This post was updated March 13 at 10:04 p.m.
The conference’s best defender resides in Westwood, again.
UCLA men’s basketball sophomore forward/center Adem Bona won Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year on Tuesday morning, marking his second conference award after earning Freshman of the Year last season. Bona’s honor marks the second consecutive time a UCLA player has won the award after guard Jaylen Clark – who went on to become the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year – earned it last season in his final year with the Bruins.
“It means a lot to me. One, keeping it in the family. Last year, my teammate Jaylen Clark won the award and this year, I’m honored to be also deemed the defensive player of the year,” Bona said. “Also, I want to give credit to my teammates. It wasn’t just me out there. It was all five of us.”
Bona is the only Pac-12 player of the 15 finalists for the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year award. He finished the regular season second in the conference in blocks with 57, and his 34 steals are the most among players with at least 35 blocks.
The big man is also in rarefied company as the first UCLA and third Pac-12 player to win both Freshman of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year, joining NBA Hall of Famer Gary Payton and current Cleveland Cavalier Evan Mobley.
Alongside his defensive award, Bona was named to the All-Pac-12 First Team for the first time in his career. Offensively, Bona tied for the team lead with an average of 12.4 points and six rebounds per game. He was the only Bruin to appear on either the first team or second team – a sharp decline from UCLA’s three representatives on those lists in 2023.
Bona wasn’t the only Bruin to receive an honor, however. Freshman guard Sebastian Mack was one of five players named to the All-Pac-12 Freshman Team, following in the footsteps of Bona and former Bruin guard Amari Bailey, who were both named to the team last year.
Mack averaged 12.4 points per game on 39% shooting from the field while tallying a team-high 44 steals. He earned Pac-12 Freshman of the Week twice and was one of only three players to win the award multiple times this season, alongside Washington State guard and Pac-12 Freshman of the Year Myles Rice and USC guard Isaiah Collier.
Following a season in which UCLA picked up four awards and had five players named to the All-Pac-12 or All-Freshman teams, Bona and Mack were the only Bruins recognized this year. Washington State coach Kyle Smith succeeded coach Mick Cronin as Coach of the Year, while Arizona guard Caleb Love followed guard/forward Jaime Jaquez Jr. as this year’s Pac-12 Player of the Year.
Bona and Mack will open postseason play Wednesday afternoon against Oregon State for the opening round of the Pac-12 tournament.
