TUCSON, Ariz. “”mdash; Through all its success in recent years, the UCLA men’s basketball team has been known to play well against pressure.
But on Saturday, the Bruins were unable to resist the force of their opponent’s defensive harassment, and it cost them the game.
No. 11 UCLA (19-6, 8-4 Pac-10) could not overcome a sluggish first half, falling to a suddenly rejuvenated Arizona team (18-8, 8-5) 84-72 at McKale Center.
Senior guard Darren Collison was the lone bright spot for the Bruins, scoring 26 points on 10-of-14 shooting.
But UCLA’s inability to infiltrate Arizona’s relentless full-court press and zone defense overshadowed Collison’s strong offensive effort. The Bruins committed 14 of their 20 turnovers in the first half and trailed by 18 points at the break.
“We knew exactly what we was coming against,” Collison said. “We just didn’t force the issue.”
The Wildcats led by as many as 25 points in the second half before Collison scored 14 points to guide UCLA on a 22-6 run. But the surge came too late. By the time the Bruins cut the deficit to nine, only 1:35 remained on the clock.
“Arizona is playing great, they’re the hottest team in our conference,” UCLA coach Ben Howland said. “It’s hard to dig that kind of hole and come back.”
With the victory, Arizona extended its winning streak to seven games. The Wildcats used a balanced offensive attack from their juniors, guard Nic Wise and forward Jordan Hill, who combined for 48 points on 17-of-27 shooting. The third junior in Arizona’s potent trio, forward Chase Budinger, added 17.
According to Arizona interim head coach Russ Pennell, the Wildcats’ offensive output was a result of his team’s defensive pressure.
“(The Bruins) turned the ball over a lot today, and we were able to push the ball more,” he said.
Collison agreed.
“Turnovers, mistakes on the defensive end, all of that in one is the cause for 84 points,” Collison said.
Redshirt senior guard Josh Shipp, who scored 18 points for the Bruins, nailed a two-point jumper with just over 14 minutes to play in the first half to give UCLA a 16-14 lead. Arizona sophomore guard Zane Johnson answered with the first of his three first-half 3-pointers to put the Wildcats up by one. That’s as close as the Bruins got.
A few minutes later, Arizona pulled away for good, extending its lead with an efficient 12-0 run. The Bruins dug a deeper hole for themselves by failing to score in the final 3:11 of the first half.
“We really, really cut down our opportunities to have a chance to win when you’re down that big against a good team,” Howland said.
And in the loss at Arizona State Thursday, UCLA did not play like the team that had won its previous four games by an average of almost 23 points. UCLA committed just six turnovers in its 26-point victory over Notre Dame on Feb. 7. That number increased at ASU Thursday, when the Bruins turned the ball over 11 times. UCLA concluded its weekend with 20 turnovers in Tucson.
The Bruins were swept during a weekend set for the first time since the 2003-2004 season ““ Howland’s first year. Senior center Alfred Aboya, who was not even on the team then, attributed Saturday’s defeat to UCLA’s carelessness with the basketball.
“We just had way more turnovers than we usually do,” Aboya said. “That was the difference in (Saturday’s) game.
“The turnovers we had are uncharacteristic of our team. It was a combination of Arizona’s pressure and the crowd helping them.”
Collison acknowledged that every team is attempting to knock UCLA off its “reign” of the Pac-10. At times during the road trip the Bruins seemed to be rattled by the rowdy atmospheres.
“All these Pac-10 teams are good when they’re playing at home,” Shipp said. “Playing on your home court is a big advantage.”