Stephen Curry helped transition basketball from the paint to the 3-point line.

Consequently, shooting and perimeter defense have become staples of every championship-caliber team.

Coach Mick Cronin has embraced a defensive-centered approach throughout his coaching career, molding squads that stifle opposing players.

“We will embrace becoming a good defensive team at all cost, whether … we don’t practice offense the rest of the year,” Cronin said.

But his 2025-2026 group has struggled to reflect his defensive standards.

UCLA men’s basketball (10-5, 2-2 Big Ten) has an opportunity to refine its defensive identity when it faces Maryland (7-8, 0-4) at Pauley Pavilion Saturday. UCLA most recently dropped back-to-back road contests to Iowa and Wisconsin, respectively, where the Westwood bunch fell into two double-digit deficits at halftime.

“When you give away 15 to 20 points, because we didn’t get back and get matched up … you can’t win,” Cronin said after the Wisconsin game. “It’s literally like saying, ‘All right, Wisconsin’s up 20 now. Let’s tip it off and try to beat them.’ You see what happens when we get back, get matched up, play solid D (defense) – you get stops.”

The Bruins’ counterparts dominated the perimeter, draining 18 collective 3-pointers and boasting a 32.1% collective clip, while the Bruins converted just four times from beyond the arc across both road contests.

UCLA went 0-for-14 from deep to begin the game against Wisconsin. Cronin said the Bruins’ struggles from deep affected his team’s defensive performance, which led to 45 first-half points allowed.

“We’ll never go 1-for-17 again,” said junior guard/forward Eric Dailey Jr. “We have a good shooting team. Bad games happen, bad shooting nights happen. It’s just the way you guys still win regardless, no matter what’s going on, and you can win on defense every night.”

The Bruins are just one year removed from boasting the best defense in the Big Ten.

They held opponents to a conference-low 65.2 points per game.

But rival superstars have punished the Bruins’ defensive unit this season.

Iowa guard Bennett Stirtz notched 27 points and nailed four of his six 3-point attempts against UCLA on Jan. 3, and Wisconsin guard Nick Boyd posted 20 points while shooting 50% on long-range attempts.

“At the end of the day, it’s just defense. We have to lock in and lock down. That has to be our motto,” said sophomore guard Trent Perry.

Senior guard Skyy Clark – the Bruins’ backcourt defensive anchor – suffered a hamstring injury against Iowa, and his status remains doubtful heading into the Maryland matchup.

But the Bruins said that they do not want Clark’s absence to excuse the Bruins’ defensive lapses, despite the communication struggles that shifting lineups create.

“Definitely just talking … communicating [and] knowing that whoever’s on the ball that the guys behind you got your back,” Dailey said when asked about UCLA’s recent defensive blunders. “People overthink it too much, not knowing that it’s a team defense thing that we’re trying to work on. We have to be a better collective group.”

Maryland guard David Coit – who averages a team-leading 13.1 points per game on a 40.9% long-range clip – will represent the next challenge for UCLA’s backcourt unit.

The Kansas transfer drained eight 3-point attempts to punctuate his 31-point performance in Maryland’s Dec. 13 loss to Michigan. Coit matched that mark Nov. 19 against Mount St. Mary’s, when he recorded a career-high 41 points.

But the Terrapins have struggled as a unit to consistently net 3-pointers.

They shoot just 32.1% from beyond the arc – which ranks No. 15 in the Big Ten – and have shot just 19.6% from deep across their last two contests.

So, the Bruins may have an opportunity to reclaim their perimeter prowess against a team that is struggling to convert from deep.

And for Cronin’s squad, the Saturday matchup represents a chance to punch back.

“We know it’s a long season … We still got at least two more months to play,” Perry said. “It’s like the NBA and Big Ten – you win some, you lose some. But … how [are] you going to fight back?”