UCLA basketball received some brutal news Wednesday afternoon. Star forward Jaylen Clark, one of the best defensive players in the Pac-12 and potentially even the country, was ruled out of the remainder of the season with an Achilles injury.

Clark has recently started contributed heavily on offense as well and was become a solid 3rd option for the Bruins behind Jaime Jaquez and Tyger Campbell. He’s also the 2nd leading scorer on the team, averaging 13 points per game.

This doesn’t kill UCLA’s Pac-12 and NCAA tournament chances, but it’s a devastating blow this late in the season.

How will this impact UCLA?

There is no replacement for what Clark brings the Bruins defensively, let’s get out in front of it. Clark averages 2.6 steals per game and has recorded at least 1 steal in every game he has played since Dec. 1 this season against Stanford.

Clark’s absence will put a lot of pressure on Jaime Jaquez. One of the top players in the country will need to step up alongside David Singleton and Amari Bailey to replace Clark’s production in the aggregate.

UCLA tips off its Pac-12 Tournament run against either Washington or Colorado Thursday at Noon.