A lot has changed for UCLA men’s basketball since the last time it played Stanford.
Then again, much is the same.
Back on Jan. 8, the Bruins beat the Cardinal 86-81 in double overtime, ending a five-game skid as they finally figured out that playing more half-court offense centered around their post players was key to their success.
That strategy proved to be short-lived, however. Just two weeks later, UCLA became perimeter-happy again – launching 3s instead of taking it inside – and found itself floundering at Oregon State and Oregon.
Now, as UCLA heads to the Bay Area for a rematch with Stanford Thursday night, the Bruins have come full circle, rediscovering their offensive success in the half-court in their wins over Utah and Colorado last week.
After scoring just 55 points against Oregon State and shooting just 41 percent against Oregon, UCLA’s offense picked itself back up last week, scoring 69 points and 72 points against Utah and Colorado, respectively. In a season filled with offensive inconsistency, the determining factor seems to be ball movement, said senior guard Norman Powell.
“Our offense has been more up and down than last year. The fact that we were moving the ball as well in some games, (the offense) was a little bit more slowed down and trying to just find a shot,” Powell said. “In the games that we have won, we see the increased ball movement … so we’re gonna need to pick that up and keep that going heading up to the Bay Area.”
Equally important in those two wins was the Bruins’ defense. Powell pestered Utah senior guard Delon Wright, forcing him to commit four turnovers to his two assists. Then, sophomore guard Isaac Hamilton limited Colorado senior guard Askia Booker to just 16 points on 6-15 shooting after Booker scored 43 points against USC Thursday.
“This is our best defensive stretch that we’ve had,” said freshman forward Kevon Looney.
However, maintaining that stifling defense against the Cardinal will be a challenge.
Not only does Stanford have the Pac-12’s second-best offense, averaging 75.5 points per game, it also has arguably the hottest player in the conference in senior guard Chasson Randle. Randle has eclipsed 20 points in each of his past six games and leads the Pac-12 in scoring, so Powell and Hamilton will look to disrupt his flow as they did against Wright and Booker.
Doing so will be critical for the Bruins, who need every win they can get to play their way into the NCAA tournament conversation. At this stage of the season, the increased pressure comes with increased expectations for the players, but particularly for the younger teammates.
“That’s what we’ve been talking to this team about … Freshmen shouldn’t be freshmen anymore. Sophomores that are in different roles, those roles have been solidified now,” said coach Steve Alford. “That’s the next step and if we want to do the things that we hope to do as the season unfolds here, you’ve got to be able to go on the road and have success.”
This time of year also comes with another side effect, one that works more in the Bruins’ favor.
“We’re really starting to see a team trust one another and trust everybody’s abilities and roles much better than what was happening six, seven weeks ago,” Alford said.