Operation Desert Sweep is a Bruin success
Freshmen Bailey and Henderson give UCLA a lift
in overcoming early deficit for 85-72 win at ASU
By Randy Satterburg
Daily Bruin Staff
TEMPE, Ariz. — The senior trio of Ed O’Bannon, Tyus Edney and
George Zidek provided the focus and will to win, but when push came
to shove it was UCLA’s underclassmen who ultimately showed the way,
as the Bruin basketball team disposed of No. 13 Arizona State,
85-72, Saturday and improved its overall record to 11-1 (5-1 in the
Pac-10).
With Zidek in early foul trouble and O’Bannon and Edney slightly
fatigued from Thursday night’s hard-fought win at Arizona, No. 4
UCLA found itself trailing 28-17 Â in dire need of a lift.
Freshmen Toby Bailey and J.R. Henderson provided the strength.
Not only did they give the Bruins a lift, in certain key stretches
they all but carried the team.
Bailey came off the bench for a game-high 19 points, Henderson
contributed 14 points and 8 rebounds, and each player dramatically
changed the game’s complexion in his own way.
ASU had appeared on the verge of running away with the game
early when it took an 11-point lead on Quincy Brewer’s follow-up
slam midway through the first half. The Sun Devils’ frantic style,
which bordered on out-of-control, had UCLA flustered in the first
half trying to limit costly turnovers, which numbered 26 by game’s
end.
But then Bailey and Henderson took over the game.
First, Henderson  who moved his game inside when the
Bruins went without a center to better handle ASU’s quickness
 ignited a UCLA run when he took a length-of-court pass from
Ed O’Bannon and cruised in for a break-away dunk. Then, Bailey
gathered a loose ball on the next possession, with Henderson
converting again on the other end.
Two more UCLA steals on the Sun Devils’ ensuing trips down court
led to more fast break points; Henderson chasing down a long pass
and setting up Charles O’Bannon for an easy dunk, followed by
Bailey getting out in the open court for a two-handed slam of his
own.
Just like that, Bailey and Henderson helped turn an 11-point
deficit into a tied game, 28-28, in just over two minutes. The Sun
Devils (13-4 overall, 3-2 Pac-10) seemed shocked by UCLA’s
quick-strike athleticism, and they never recovered.
"When (UCLA) went small they were a better team," ASU head coach
Bill Frieder said. "At halftime we said their bench Â
Henderson and Bailey  was really hurting us."
Henderson  who actually started the game for the Bruins
 would dispute being called a bench player, and after Bailey
was so instrumental in forcing a tied game, 48-48, at halftime,
both he and Henderson were rewarded with second-half starts by UCLA
head coach Jim Harrick.
In fact, Harrick had a difficult time keeping either player out
of the game. Bailey, the "non-starter," earned a team and
career-high 35 minutes of action.
"I told Bailey before the game that he is a starter, he just
doesn’t have his name announced before the game," Harrick said,
adding, "I probably overplayed him today," Â to which Bailey,
who never wants to come off the court, disagreed with a big grin on
his face.
UCLA’s small line-up continued to be successful, as the Bruins
took off on a 20-5 run to start the second half. With Ed O’Bannon
(14 points) denying the entry pass and Cameron Dollar (5 assists)
providing help-side support, the Bruins keyed on defense.
Arizona State had difficulty even getting the ball to Mario
Bennett, the team’s leading scorer, as O’Bannon and Dollar
accounted for nine of UCLA’s total of 18 steals  which was
just one short of a team record.
And for the second game in three days the Bruins held a top-15
team to less than 40 percent shooting on its home court. Guards
Edney, Dollar and Bailey rotated, collapsed and double-teamed to
shut down ASU’s shooters, not allowing a single three-point field
goal in the second half after surrendering seven treys in the first
half.
"We can go small versus small, we can go big versus big, we can
go quick versus quick," Dollar said. "Whatever we need to do Â
with J.R. and Toby so versatile  we can do, whenever we need
to do it."
ASU had a brief opportunity to sneak back into the game after a
pair of free throws by Marcel Capers brought the Sun Devils to
within seven points, 73-66, and got the crowd involved again.
But after a UCLA timeout, the Bruins ran a set play that freed
up Ed O’Bannon in the post, where Dollar fired a two-hand entry
pass to set up an important lay-up that crushed the Sun Devils’
spirits. In the meantime, the Bruins did not allow an ASU field
goal for the game’s final 4:24 after the timeout, until a
concession basket at the buzzer.
Charles O’Bannon, who continued his outstanding play with 19
points on eight of 12 shooting, showed his competitive spirit by
refusing to let up even in the closing moments of the game, when a
UCLA victory was a certainty.
After a windmill slam in the open court, O’Bannon sprinted back
on defense to contest a meaningless three-point attempt by ASU’s
Ron Riley, which he soared high in the air to block. Moments later
O’Bannon was the recipient of a well-timed lob from Dollar for a
demoralizing dunk and dance, including a subtle head butt on the
basketball, that brought the UCLA fans in attendance to their
feet.
"The way this team is, we’ve been taught that once an opponent
is on the ropes, you knock them out," O’Bannon said. "The lobs at
the end weren’t necessary, but that’s an exclamation point that I
think is deserved."