Sixteen NCAA titles litter the Bruins’ and Hoosiers’ trophy cases.

But since the turn of the century, neither have hoisted the ultimate prize.

Though each team has rightfully earned the blue-blood moniker, the search for another championship has been a long journey.

UCLA men’s basketball (18-7, 9-5 Big Ten) will take on Indiana (15-10, 6-8) on Friday evening in Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. Following a loss to the Fighting Illini on Tuesday night, the Bruins will land in Bloomington, Indiana, for the first time since 1956.

UCLA’s first battle on its Midwest trip ended with a loss – its first in nearly a month – to Illinois. Though the squad never led and often trailed by double digits, coach Mick Cronin’s brand of toughness and resilience was on display.

“There were a lot of positives – you don’t always play bad when you lose,” the sixth-year head coach said. “There was a lot of good tonight, but we did get exposed defensively.”

With just under five minutes remaining in the second half, UCLA dug itself into a 16-point hole. And despite sophomore center Aday Mara and junior forward Tyler Bilodeau still being hampered by illness and an injury, respectively, the Bruins punched back to draw within a pair.

Bilodeau – who finished with a team-leading 25 points – knocked down a career-high seven shots from beyond the arc. Despite his scoring outburst, Bilodeau was not satisfied with the team’s result.

“We all want to win. We’ve got to focus on Indiana right now but learn from this loss,” Bilodeau said. “We’ve got to get better defensively, especially myself. I can’t be that bad defensively.”

After holding Illinois to 31 first-half points, UCLA’s second-half defense crumbled, yielding 52 points. The 83 total points given up by the Bruin defense is 18.4 more than their season average – and the most since UCLA narrowly defeated then-No. 18 Wisconsin 85-83 on Jan. 21.

The Bruins had a chance to retrieve the ball in the waning seconds down three after a missed free throw, but the Fighting Illini secured their final offensive board of the night and slammed home the final nail in the coffin.

However, with just two off days between contests, Cronin wants his team to continue to look forward.

“There was no regression,” Cronin said. “The kids stayed together, their attitude is great, they’re focused on Friday already.”

Indiana features a pair of familiar faces in center Oumar Ballo and guard Myles Rice.

The former spent three seasons with Arizona and earned a pair of All-Pac-12 First Team selections, while the latter earned Pac-12 Freshman of the Year honors last season with Washington State.

After missing the 2024 NCAA tournament, the Hoosiers appeared to be on track to return to the Big Dance in the early part of this season – opening the campaign with a 15-3 record.

However, that blazing start came to a screeching halt as Indiana lost seven of its next eight games. The slide not only mounted tallies in the loss column but also put pressure on fourth-year head coach Mike Woodson to produce results.

And after suffering a fourth consecutive loss, a decision had been reached. On Feb. 7, Indiana athletic director Scott Dolson announced Woodson’s intention to step down at the end of the season.

Despite the presumptive change in leadership, Indiana upset No. 11 Michigan State in East Lansing four days after the announcement. With the Hoosiers returning home after their first ranked win of the season, the Bruins will surely enter another hostile environment.

“That’s another tough place to play,” said junior guard Skyy Clark. “We know what to expect, and we’re going to get in the gym these next two days and focus on what we need to do to get the win.”