TUCSON, Ariz. “”mdash; Chief among UCLA coach Ben Howland’s
flurry of last-second instructions moments after Arron
Afflalo’s game-tying 3-pointer was the importance of marking
Arizona sharpshooter Salim Stoudamire tightly on the game’s
final possession.
“Don’t give him any space,” Howland told
Afflalo. “Make him drive.”
But those instructions fell on deaf ears. Wary of getting beaten
off the dribble, Afflalo backed off Stoudamire, who pulled up and
sank a 26-footer with 2.5 seconds remaining to give 17th-ranked
Arizona a 76-73 victory over UCLA on Saturday at the McKale
Center.
“I just didn’t listen,” Afflalo said. “I
gave him a little too much space. It was a little immaturity on my
part, and I take responsibility for that. All I can say is
I’ll do a better job on him next time.”
It was Stoudamire’s quick first step and fluid mid-range
game that compelled Afflalo to retreat to the top of the key as the
final seconds ticked off the clock. So many of the Wildcat
guard’s 24 second-half points came in the lane that Afflalo
felt he had to respect Stoudamire’s ability to score off the
dribble.
Stoudamire showcased his versatility, amassing a season-high 32
points and scoring 24 of Arizona’s last 29 points.
Yet with the game on the line, Stoudamire, the nation’s
second-leading 3-point shooter, came back to his forte.
“I saw (Afflalo) backing off, so I just pulled up,”
Stoudamire said. “I had extreme confidence in the second
half. I knew that was going in.”
So did Afflalo, who knelt at mid-court for several seconds with
his face buried in his jersey as the Wildcats mobbed Stoudamire
after the shot.
“I didn’t think he’d just walk up and shoot
from the volleyball line,” Afflalo said. “Maybe I
showed him a little too much respect. Maybe I should have pressured
him, made him go to the cup, and relied on my teammates a little
bit.”
There was no indication that the notoriously temperamental
Stoudamire would catch fire early in the second half when Arizona
coach Lute Olson removed him from the game after his lazy pass led
to Josh Shipp’s breakaway dunk that gave UCLA a 48-40
lead.
At the time, it was UCLA’s Dijon Thompson ““ not
Stoudamire ““ who had taken the game over. Thompson, who
scored 27 points and pulled down 10 rebounds, made his first six
shots, most of which were contested or came in heavy traffic.
Once Thompson’s torrid shooting cooled, however,
Stoudamire’s heated up. It was his baseline jumper that
allowed the Wildcats (14-3, 4-1 Pac-10) to take their first lead of
the game at 49-48. It was his six-point surge that put Arizona
ahead 65-60, and it was his four consecutive free throws that gave
the Wildcats a four-point lead after UCLA had rallied to tie the
game at 68-68.
Whether it was Afflalo, freshman Jordan Farmar or senior Brian
Morrison who marked Stoudamire in the second half, none of them
could deny him from getting the basketball or stay in front of him
once he got it.
“He took the game over,” Howland said. “He was
really good tonight.”
UCLA (10-4, 4-2), which shot over 60.7 percent from the field in
the first half, could not match Stoudamire’s production in
the second. The Bruins seemed to lose their legs, missing all but
three of their second-half jumpers and failing to convert any of
their eight second-half 3-pointers until Afflalo’s game-tying
20-footer from the left corner.
Twenty-three turnovers also were costly for the Bruins, who fell
out of first place in the Pac-10 with the loss.
“They stepped up their intensity, and we missed some
shots,” Farmar said. “We had a lot of good looks that
we missed.”
Even after Stoudamire’s game-winner, Arizona had to
survive a lengthy final 2.5 seconds. A technical foul was called on
the Wildcat bench after several players ran out on the court to
congratulate Arizona’s Hassan Adams, who stole
Thompson’s inbound pass and was fouled with 1.2 seconds
remaining.
Farmar could not capitalize, however, missing both of his free
throws, and even though Adams also missed two free throws, UCLA
could not get a shot off before the final buzzer.
The final outcome was especially disappointing for Afflalo, who
found it difficult to put the range of emotions he experienced in
the final seconds into words.
“It’s unexplainable,” he said. “You go
from the ultimate high of a potential overtime to
just…”
Despair.