M. basketball: Golden Eagles soar past Bruins, 74-64

ANAHEIM “”mdash; In UCLA’s earlier games, its weaknesses
were masked by the mediocrity of its opponents and by four straight
victories.

But in the team’s first serious test against Boston
College on Sunday, the Bruins fell flat down the stretch and were
unable to overcome problems that became even more glaring during
their 74-64 loss in the Wooden Classic at the Arrowhead Pond.

UCLA shot just 28 percent from the field in the second half,
allowing the Golden Eagles to easily overcome a five-point halftime
deficit. The Bruins, who were outshot for the first time this
season, relied almost exclusively on their perimeter game,
struggling to get the ball inside to their post players.

“We were dribbling too much without passing the
ball,” coach Ben Howland said. “We need to somehow
develop an inside presence and our bigs have to demand the ball
more.”

Starting center Michael Fey took only three shots in the game,
finishing with five points. Meanwhile, Ryan Hollins, who did not
start after being late to the team bus, added just two more.
Howland attributed those numbers to the lack of touches his
frontcourt players were getting.

“We forced a couple inside (passes) early and then stopped
looking at all,” Howland said.

As disappointing as Fey and Hollins’ offensive output was,
their rebounding totals were even further below par. The 7-footers
had just five rebounds between the two of them. The lack of taking
care of defensive rebounds contributed to 19 second-chance points
for the Golden Eagles as Boston College collected eight more
rebounds than the Bruins, marking the third consecutive game the
Bruins have been outrebounded.

“They took it to us on the glass and were keeping it
alive,” Howland said.

After jumping out to double-digit leads multiple times in the
first half, the Bruins once again let their opponent back into the
game. While timely shooting enabled them to eventually pull away
against the likes of Long Beach State and UC Irvine, the Bruins
went cold from the field as Boston College mounted its
comeback.

With just over six minutes left in the game, the Golden Eagles
went on a 9-0 run to open up an 11-point lead.

“We just got really stagnant,” said point guard
Jordan Farmar, who led the Bruins in scoring with 14 points.
“We weren’t getting any movement or
penetration.”

And though senior forward Dijon Thompson was able to revitalize
the Bruins’ offense in their last game, he was not even on
the court this time down the stretch. Thompson was forced to leave
the game in the midst of Boston College’s decisive run after
re-injuring the webbing between his index and middle fingers on his
shooting hand. He had 13 stitches put in following the game.

Despite the absence of Thompson and poor perimeter shooting,
freshman Josh Shipp provided a second half-spark, exploding for 13
second-half points, including seven in a row for UCLA.

“Josh came in and gave us a big lift,” Howland said.
“He continues to show me he’s going to be a very good
player.”

But Shipp’s offensive outburst was overshadowed by his
former high-school teammate Craig Smith. The Golden Eagles’
bruising post player finished with 20 points, despite having to sit
out much of the second half because of foul trouble.

“I know how they play from playing pickup games with
them,” said Smith, a Los Angeles native. “I knew I had
certain advantages with my quickness.”

As a pre-season Big-East All-American, Smith was the first truly
elite player the Bruins have faced this season. And Howland feels
Smith’s talent will contribute to taking the Golden Eagles
places where the Bruins still aspire to go.

“We were beaten by a good team that’s going to be in
the NCAA tournament,” Howland said.

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