After trailing at halftime for the first time this season, UCLA men’s basketball lost its first game of the year, falling to Oklahoma 75-65 in its first game of the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament. The loss means UCLA will next play No. 5 North Carolina, who lost to Butler earlier Wednesday.
UCLA (4-1) wasted no time in erasing its five-point deficit in the second half.
Sophomore guard Bryce Alford scored five quick points in the first two minutes of the second half to tie the game at 34, but the Sooners (3-1) once again gained some separation.
Then freshman forward Kevon Looney came to life. After struggling in the first half, shooting 1-9 from the field and 3-6 from the free-throw line, Looney’s activity began making a positive impact.
With 13:58 remaining, Looney soared for an offensive rebound then hit an and-one layup to give the Bruins a 46-45 lead, their first lead since the 9:55 mark in the first half.
After UCLA built a 57-49 lead, Oklahoma went on a 10-0 run to reclaim a two-point lead with 7:32 left. Looney stopped the bleeding with a running floater off the glass and tied the game.
Trailing by three with 2 1/2 minutes remaining, UCLA got a stop and took over with a chance to tie the game. Instead, the Bruins missed their shot then surrendered a 3-pointer to the Sooners on the other end, pushing Oklahoma’s lead to six.
From there, the Sooners held on to win the game.
Ultimately the game was decided by 3-pointers and free throws. Oklahoma made them, UCLA didn’t. The Sooners made 10 3-pointers to the Bruins’ four and their 23-30 mark from the free-throw line bested the Bruins’ 9-21 rate.
UCLA struggled with foul trouble throughout, as Looney, senior guard Norman Powell, sophomore guard Isaac Hamilton and junior forward/center Tony Parker all had four fouls.
The Bruins’ tendency to have all five starters at or near double-digit scoring ended Wednesday. Only Alford and Looney reached double figures with 19 and 16 points respectively. Looney also grabbed 15 rebounds for his fourth double-double of the year.
Compiled by Kevin Bowman, Bruin Sports senior staff.