BERKELEY — After back-to-back losses to Utah and Oregon and seven consecutive losses to Cal in Berkeley, UCLA finally broke the streaks.
UCLA got ahead early, then held off a second-half push by Cal to win 36-34.
The Bruins jumped out to an early 7-0 lead until fumbles by redshirt junior quarterback Brett Hundley and redshirt sophomore running back Paul Perkins set the Golden Bears up to two easy touchdowns to make the score 14-10 Cal midway through the second quarter.
UCLA responded with an 11-yard touchdown on a strong run by redshirt senior running back Jordon James and a 49-yard touchdown on a screen pass by Perkins just before halftime, giving the Bruins a 24-14 lead going into the locker room.
But all the momentum UCLA’s offense gained at the end of the second quarter was lost early in the third, when the Bruin offense struggled to move the ball. Meanwhile, its defense had issues slowing down Cal, who put up another 14 points in the quarter.
The Bears took a brief 28-27 lead with 2:33 left in the third quarter, but Hundley responded with a 15-yard run at the end of the period to give the Bruins a 33-28 lead going into the fourth.
That lead was also short-lived, however, as Hundley committed his second turnover of the game on an interception early in the fourth – which was returned by Cal’s Cameron Walker all the way back to the UCLA 32-yard line. Two plays later, Cal was in the end zone and on top, 34-33.
The Bruins responded with a 55-yard drive that ended with a 26-yard field goal to retake a slim 36-34 lead with 3:40 remaining.
Cal made a final push, driving close to field goal range, but redshirt sophomore cornerback Marcus Rios came up with a huge interception at UCLA’s own 2-yard line with 51 seconds left to save the game for UCLA.
Compiled by Kevin Bowman, Bruin Sports senior staff.