If UCLA (-2.5) intends to beat North Carolina in their NCAA tournament Sweet 16 matchup Friday, the availability of Jaime Jaquez Jr. can swing the difficulty of that task dramatically in either direction.
Jaquez suffered a right ankle injury in UCLA’s Second Round win over Saint Mary’s, leaving his status against UNC in question. He missed practice Tuesday and is officially considered day-to-day. But there was one encouraging sign about where his health may be trending.
A clip surfaced of Jaquez walking to the team bus, and there wasn’t a noticeable limp in his step as he casually pulled his luggage to the side and hung around outside a bit.
A little clip of UCLA’s Jaime Jaquez Jr. as he walks to the bus for the team’s trip to the Sweet Sixteen.
He did not practice Tuesday and is still listed day to day (right ankle) ahead of Friday’s game against North Carolina.pic.twitter.com/p908wBRe4H
— Tarek Fattal (@Tarek_Fattal) March 23, 2022
For those of the opinion Jaquez can swing the result of this game, seeing him walk without a limp probably isn’t enough to bet on UCLA against the spread or moneyline. Though there could be a benefit in taking that risk now and getting ahead of a potential move in the line if and after he’s cleared.
At 6-7, 225 pounds, Jaquez has the size to score and defend against a Tar Heels team whose best players are arguably 6-10 Armando Bacot and 6-9 Brady Manek. Jaquez is UCLA’s second leading scorer and assister at 14.0 points per game and 2.3 assists, and he leads the team with 5.7 rebounds per game and 1.2 steals.
Teammate Jules Bernard said if Jaquez can walk, “he’ll play,” via the Los Angeles Daily News. But head coach Mick Cronin is still preparing two game plans: “one with him and one without him.”
