Tuesday, January 21, 1997
M. HOOPS:
Win against Arizona Wildcats silences critics, satiates hungry
fansBy Emmanuelle Ejercito
Daily Bruin Staff
Who would have thought?
After losses to Tulsa, Kansas, Illinois and, of course,
Stanford, many people had written off the UCLA men’s basketball
team as being out of contention in the race for the Pacific-10
title. But with an 84-78 overtime victory over No. 6 Arizona
Saturday at Pauley Pavilion, the Bruins now have sole possession of
first place in the conference.
"This is a tremendous win for our program, for our fans, and
most importantly for our players and their confidence level," UCLA
head coach Steve Lavin said. "After that drubbing we took at
Stanford, no one wants to lose by 48 points. That’s a humiliating
experience, but what I am so proud of is the way they picked
themselves off the floor at Maples Pavilion to come back and win
three big-time conference games."
It wasn’t an easy battle. Throughout the game neither team could
put together a substantial lead. Altogether there were 11 lead
changes and 16 ties. However, with 7:08 to go in regulation, the
Wildcats (10-4 overall, 3-2 Pac-10) put together a 10-2 run to take
an eight-point lead. The Bruins (10-4, 5-1) responded with an 8-0
run of their own to tie the game at 60 with 4:17 left.
"I told them today was like two heavyweight fighters. We were
just counter-punching each other," Lavin said. "You can’t get
frustrated, you can’t get down. You just keep playing, you just
keep competing. We were down by eight and we could have folded like
an accordion, but we just responded."
With six seconds to go and the score tied at 69, UCLA had a
chance to win with a Kris Johnson shot, but it was rejected by
Bennett Davison. Moments later after an Arizona timeout, UCLA fans
breathed a sigh of relief when a three-point attempt by the
Wildcat’s Jason Lee bounced off the rim to send the game into
overtime.
Arizona was at a disadvantage going into extra minutes with
three players fouled out of the game. Starting center Donnell
Harris fouled out with 12:25 left in regulation, then back-up big
man A.J Bramlett collected his fifth with a little under three
minutes left. Freshman point guard Mike Bibby joined his teammates
on the bench soon after, fouling out with 1:52 to go. When it was
all over, the Wildcats were whistled for 29 fouls.
"We had fouls on everybody," Arizona head coach Lute Olson said.
"Our big guys kept fouling people. We didn’t have many options at
that point."
And UCLA took advantage of the smaller lineup. Charles O’Bannon
scored eight of the 15 Bruin overtime points by tipping in missed
shots and dominating inside. In his 42 minutes, O’Bannon racked up
a team-high 24 points and 13 rebounds.
"This rivalry is top notch," O’Bannon said. "The winner of the
Arizona-UCLA game has decided the Pac-10 title the past few years,
and we realize that and we know that we have to step up."
Despite their 20 turnovers, the Bruins were able to stay with
the Wildcats with tough defense. UCLA played man-to-man most of the
game and held Arizona’s top scorer Michael Dickerson to only 12
points in 39 minutes of play. Dickerson averages 22.3 points for
the Wildcats.
"They did a great job on (Dickerson)," Olson said. "As soon as
he put it down, they doubled him right away."
The Bruins took the lead for good when Johnson sank two free
throws after being fouled recovering a rejected O’Bannon shot with
a little over a minute left. The 35-second shot clock was down to
11 seconds after the blocked shot but was incorrectly reset, as
O’Bannon’s shot attempt did not hit the rim. Olson was still bitter
about the call in his press conference after the game.
"The shot clock reset because it hit the rim when Davison
blocked the shot from the corner," Olson said facetiously. "So I’m
just trying to figure out that he must have blocked it (toward the
basket) and it just ricocheted off the rim and back to the corner I
guess. But with my eyes I guess I’m at the age now where I can’t
see things correctly."
The clock should have been reset five seconds earlier, when J.R.
Henderson’s missed shot clanged off the rim. Instead it was reset
when O’Bannon’s shot was blocked, essentially giving UCLA five
extra seconds on the shot clock.
"Not to contrast (Olson’s) opinion but I thought that
(Johnson’s) shot got off anyway," Lavin said. "In those kinds of
games there is lots of confusion and lots of calls. It’s the human
element."
UCLA sits atop the Pac-10 alone now thanks to Oregon State. The
Beavers won their first conference game by defeating Stanford
86-77, dropping the Cardinal to 4-2 in conference play.
(Top) Charles O’Bannon and Jelani McCoy combined for 39 points.
(Left) Bruin players celebrate their overtime victory over the
sixth-ranked Arizona Wildcats at Pauley Pavilion Saturday. J.R.
Henderson high-fives Kevin Daley.