PULLMAN, Wash. — A wire-to-wire battle-turned-win over Washington might normally lead to bitterness among Husky fans.
That should especially be the case when the player who sealed the 91-82 victory to shut Washington out of a winning Pac-12 season Thursday went to high school mere miles from Alaska Airlines Arena.
But, according to UCLA men’s basketball’s freshman guard Zach LaVine, who finished Thursday’s game with two critical steals in the final 1:27 and 14 points, it would soon be water under the I-90 bridge.
“I know what they’re going to do,” LaVine said Thursday. “They’re going to text me after the game and be like, ‘Good game.’ So it’s whatever.”
Coach Steve Alford said he mentioned nothing to LaVine before the trip about finding a way to relax while playing in his home state. The strategy worked, as LaVine reached double figures for the third time in the last four games he played. Even so, Alford admitted Thursday’s game was a little more hostile than his own homecoming to Indiana as a young coach.
“Not in Assembly Hall, no,” Alford chuckled when asked about being heckled by his alma mater.
Fortunately for LaVine, UCLA’s game in Pullman, Wash. on Saturday is a few more jumps beyond a hop and a skip from Bothell High School, the freshman’s alma mater. Fan reactions aside, UCLA will now depend on LaVine’s recent resurgence in the paint, where he scored six points and earned an opportunity for a seventh point at the charity stripe in the final 4:38 of Thursday’s contest.
“He’s starting to do that better,” Alford said of LaVine driving the lane. “Instead of just doing the jump shot thing, he’s starting to put the ball on the floor and drive, and he got to the free throw line tonight. It’s been a while since he’s been to the free throw line.”
It’s also been a while since LaVine consistently played with as much reckless abandon as he did against Washington.
“I feel real good right now. After having a little downslope, I feel I’m back in rhythm and I’m feeling confident as ever,” LaVine said. “I’m always confident and it’s always good. We’re rolling right now. “
Rolling, too, were the 2012-2013 Bruins this time last year, after capturing the Pac-12 regular season title in Seattle – but only after losing to the Cougars in Pullman for the first time in 19 years.
Despite losing 12 of their last 13 games and having just one player averaging double figures – junior guard DaVonte Lacy, who averages 19.6 points per game – the Cougars at least have recent history on their side.
In addition, Washington State (9-20, 2-15 Pac-12) still has room to climb the Pac-12 standings, unlike UCLA, which has had the conference tournament’s No. 2 seed locked up since Wednesday night. The Cougars can avoid finishing last in the Pac-12 with a win over the Bruins and a Washington win over USC.
Add Washington State’s senior night into the mix, and UCLA (23-7, 12-5) failing to complete a road sweep in four tries this season appears at least plausible. But if the Bruins can come remotely close to their barrage of scoring over Washington, which included 36 bench points and 54.2 percent field goal shooting, the Pac-12’s cellar will soon be cemented.
“Hopefully, we just sweep ’em,” said sophomore guard Jordan Adams Thursday. “It’s their senior night so they’re going to be amped up to play. We have to be focused from the get-go and come with intensity.”