With UCLA clinging to a slim lead late in the first half, Jordan
Farmar did something he hasn’t done very often during his
whirlwind freshman season. He hesitated. Wide open on the left
wing, Farmar received a pass and shot-faked but didn’t shoot,
prompting UCLA coach Ben Howland to make a mental note to talk to
his young point guard at halftime. “He talked to me about
that,” said Farmar, who has been mired in a shooting slump
recently. “He said he wanted me to shoot the ball, look to
score, and be more aggressive.” That’s exactly what he
did. Upon entering the game two minutes into the second half,
Farmar drained a 3-pointer from the right corner to quash a brief
Arizona State scoring burst and give the Bruins a 50-39 lead. That
shot sparked a 13-3 UCLA run that clinched the victory for the
Bruins. Farmar had 11 points and a no-look assist to Michael Fey
during that run, finishing with 18 points on 5-for-7 shooting after
being held scoreless in the first half. “The second half we
started running some things for him, and he got it going,”
Howland said. “We needed him to step up the way he
did.” The second-half hot streak was a relief for Farmar, who
had been ice-cold from the field recently. The touted freshman made
only seven of his 21 shots on UCLA’s trip to Washington this
past week, and missed his only two first-half shots Thursday night.
“I was more aggressive in the second half,” Farmar
said. “I knocked down a shot, and I just fed off that. I had
confidence going. I tried to get a lot of deflections, and that
helped me get in a rhythm and feel like I was a part of the
game.”
SHIPP HURTING: Josh Shipp sustained a right thigh contusion
during practice on Tuesday, but the freshman forward was able to
play through it Thursday night. Shipp, who wore a sleeve on his leg
to protect the injury, played 31 minutes, scoring eight points and
pulling down five rebounds. “I can’t say enough about
how tough Josh is,” Howland said. “I’m really
pleased he was able to play.”
DEFENDING DIOGU: Instead of planting his feet on the low block
like he did against UCLA in Tempe, Arizona State’s Ike Diogu
showed his versatility, attacking the Bruins off the dribble and
from the perimeter. The result was a 20-point, 7-rebound
performance for Diogu, the Pac-10’s leading scorer and
rebounder. It was the second time this season that UCLA managed to
hold the Sun Devil standout below his season averages. “We
played outstanding team defense on Diogu,” Howland said.
“His 20 points were hard-earned.”
DRIBBLERS: Arizona State’s Steve Moore made eight
3-pointers … Brian Morrison scored 10 of his 13 points in the
first half … UCLA used only seven players until 1:41 remained in
the game when freshman Lorenzo Mata entered the game … Walk-ons
Quinn Hawking and Ike Williams came in the game in the final minute
for the first time this season.