Kareem Abdul-Jabbar delivers heartfelt Bill Walton message during UCLA-Ohio State
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UCLA has been one of the legendary programs in college basketball and the team was at its best in the late 1960s and early 1970s when Hall of Fame centers Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bill Walton led the Bruins to multiple national championships under head coach John Wooden. Walton passed away last year after a lengthy battle with cancer, and UCLA used the opportunity of Sunday’s game against Ohio State to pay tribute to him.
"He really understood the game. He loved the game and enjoyed sharing it with everybody."
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar shares his memories of Bill Walton. pic.twitter.com/iSjWtqSei8
— CBS Sports College Basketball (@CBSSportsCBB) February 23, 2025
Abdul-Jabbar, known as Lew Alcindor during his playing days with the Bruins, thought very highly of Walton as both a basketball player and a man. Abdul-Jabbar sat courtside as his old friend and rival was honored. “He really understood the game,” Abdul-Jabbar said. “He loved the game and he enjoyed sharing it with everybody.
“I really enjoyed listening to his broadcasts. He was informed and he had a sense of humor.”
Abdul-Jabbar played at UCLA from the 1966-67 season through 1968-69. UCLA won the national championship in each of those seasons. Walton followed Abdul-Jabbar at UCLA and played there from 1971-72 through 1974. Walton’s Bruins won the national title in 1972 and ’73, but the Bruins were beaten in the national semifinal by North Carolina State in ’74.
UCLA comes through with victory of Ohio State
The Bruins were victorious as they honored Walton, coming through with a 69-61 victory in the Big Ten conference game. UCLA was a long-time member of the Pac-12 conference and this is the Bruins’ first season in the Midwest-based Big Ten conference.
The Bruins were led by Eric Dailey who scored a game-high 20 points and added 8 rebounds. Skyy Clark contributed 13 points and 2 assists. UCLA got key contributions off the bench from Sebastian Mack and Aday Mara. Mack scored 11 points and had 3 assists while Mara had 10 points and 9 rebounds.
The Buckeyes struggled from the floor throughout the game and made just 20 of63 shots from the field and 6 of 27 from beyond the arc. Bruce Thornton played all 40 minutes for Ohio State and scored 21 points with 4 rebounds and 3 assists. Micah Parrish was the only other Buckeye in double figures with 12 points.
UCLA improved to 20-8 overall and 11-6 in the Big Ten while Ohio State fell to 15-13 and 7-10 in the conference. UCLA has won 9 of its last 11 games as it heads into the home stretch of the regular season. The Buckeyes have lost 3 consecutive games and have dropped 5 of their last 7 Big Ten games.
The victory was the 500th of UCLA head coach Mick Cronin’s career.
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