Los Angeles Times

Tyger Campbell, Jaime Jaquez Jr. lead talent-laden UCLA's title hopes

UCLA Bruins head coach Mick Cronin talks with UCLA Bruins guard Tyger Campbell during a NCAA Men's College basketball game between the UCLA Bruins and the North Carolina Tar Heels at Wells Fargo Center on March 25, 2022, in Philadelphia.

They had made so many trips around the college basketball block that their odometers nearly rolled over. What might they have possibly missed?

Their UCLA journeys included a new coach, a rise to stardom, crushing injuries, a Final Four run, a once-in-a-century pandemic and a loss to Cal State Fullerton, of all things.

Professional basketball beckoned with its big paychecks and singular focus. Classes would be over. Coaches would be more coddling.

Would they move on or come back?

Picking experiences over excesses, Tyger Campbell and Jaime Jaquez Jr. would take one last ride together. They would remain Bruins.

"We had talked about in the offseason what our decision was going to be," Jaquez said on the eve of the eighth-ranked Bruins' season opener against Sacramento State on Monday night at

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