It wasn’t supposed to be that easy.
With a Big East team coming to town, a national audience and a 10 a.m. tip-off, Saturday’s matchup against Notre Dame was supposed to be a dogfight between powerhouses.
Not quite. The recent six-game slide for the Fighting Irish (12-10, 3-7 Big East) had wiped some of the luster off Saturday’s contest before they even reached Pauley Pavilion. Regardless, No. 15 UCLA (19-4, 8-2 Pac-10) still had an opportunity to send a message on national TV. And with an 89-63 blowout win, they did exactly that.
The Bruins are back.
“We’re really playing well right now,” coach Ben Howland said. “I think it’s pretty obvious. We’re playing on a new level.”
The Bruins have been playing on that level ever since their loss at Washington on Jan. 24. Since then they’ve dominated in four home games by an average margin of victory of 22.7 points, while forcing 74 turnovers in that stretch.
“If we continue to play relatively the same way we’re playing now, we’re definitely one of the best teams in the country,” Howland said. “We’re playing right now how we were ranked going into the season, which is a top-five team in the country.”
On Saturday, UCLA exhibited just why they’re living up to the hype. Just two minutes into the first half, junior forward Nikola Dragovic set the tone for the kind of day the Bruins would make it for the Irish. On a fast-break opportunity, Notre Dame junior forward Luke Harangody pushed the ball and cut into the lane driving for a layup. Dragovic stayed in front of the 6-foot-8-inch 255-pound forward and cleanly blocked Harangody, leaving the All-American and reigning Big East Player of the Year lying on the floor. It was the first of a flurry of shots that the Irish took early.
“We didn’t fight at all,” Harangody said. “They threw a couple punches and we just seemed to back down.”
Just one minute after the Dragovic swat provoked noise from the Pauley stands, another defensive play on Harangody brought the crowd to its feet.
The big man caught the ball on the low post, garnered an instant double-team by Dragovic and senior center Alfred Aboya and pivoted away from the basket. With nowhere to turn or pass, Harangody lobbed an ill-advised floater over the middle. Freshman guard Jrue Holiday picked it off and sprinted down the court. He tossed up a pass to streaking senior guard Josh Shipp, who threw down a roof-rattling, one-handed tomahawk jam, giving the Bruins an 11-2 lead.
It was a typical possession for the Bruins, who have scored 96 points solely off of turnovers over the past four games. They had combined for 46 points off of turnovers in their previous five games. After Shipp’s slam, the Irish never got closer than seven points and trailed by as many as 33 late in the second half.
UCLA moved the ball seemingly at will on offense despite no player getting more than 27 minutes. Led by Aboya’s 19 points, double digit tallies for Dragovic (10), senior guard Darren Collison (17) and freshman point guard Jerime Anderson (10), the balanced offensive attack showed no signs of the scoreless streaks that haunted them just weeks ago. Someone posed the question: Is this the best UCLA’s offense has flowed since Darren Collison arrived on campus?
“Definitely,” Collison said. “I can say that with so much confidence.”
It’s an assessment that Notre Dame coach Mike Brey would probably agree with. After the game, Brey told the Los Angeles Times the Bruins are competitive with any team in the Big East, a large compliment considering Big East teams are ranked Nos. 1, 5, 7 and 8 in the country.
“They are up there with any other team in our league,” Brey said. “Their speed, size and strength match the top teams in our conference.”
The major reason for the Bruins turnaround over the past two weeks has been their defensive intensity, forcing teams into shooting earlier in the possession, Collison said. The senior leader credited Holiday as a reason for that shift. Holiday has seen his points, assists and steals all rise over the past four games. But possibly most importantly, Holiday has attempted more free throw shots in the Bruins’ last four games than the rest of the conference season combined, showing his increasing aggressiveness in getting to the hoop.
“We’re looking like a strong team, an elite team, and that’s what we’ve been striving for throughout the whole year.” Collison said. “Now the pieces are falling together.”