On Saturday night, UCLA men’s basketball played like it was in an elimination game.
Saturday night’s game pretty much was that for UCLA. With their record sitting at 15-12 overall and 6-8 in Pac-12 play, the Bruins were barely even on the bubble. Another home loss would likely spell “NIT,” unless UCLA found a way to win the Pac-12 tournament.
“(It’s) that feeling of ‘if you’re in the tournament or not,’” said junior guard Isaac Hamilton. “And we don’t want that feeling.”
Hamilton came out playing like he wanted to quell that feeling entirely. He made nine of his first 10 field goals against Colorado (19-9, 8-7 Pac-12) to jump-start a Bruin offense that ran smoothly all night. The end result was a 77-53 victory in which UCLA never trailed.
“I thought this was a pivotal game for them,” said coach Steve Alford. “Because I think they knew they let one get away on Thursday.”
UCLA was hardly beatable in the first half, making seven of its nine 3-pointers en route to a 16-point halftime lead. The Bruins were able to find several open looks thanks to an offense that was moving the ball more with the pass than with the dribble.
“I thought we did a good job of pushing the ball and sharing it and creating open space,” said junior guard Bryce Alford. “When we share the ball and we move the ball from side to side and get those open looks, we make those kinds of shots.”
UCLA’s first-half stat line epitomized just how well the ball was moving. The Bruins assisted nine of their 16 field goals.
Aside from the efficient offense, another plus for the Bruins was their defensive intensity. Unlike in past games, there were no lapses in focus or passion, as UCLA kept its foot firmly on the gas pedal all night. The Bruins led for all but 18 seconds in the game and saw their lead balloon to as many as 26 points.
“Tonight, we just did a much better job for 40 minutes defensively,” Steve Alford said. “To hold (Colorado) to 53 points on 31 percent shooting, I’m very pleased with what we did defensively.”
The game was reminiscent of UCLA’s standout performances against Kentucky, Arizona and Gonzaga earlier this season. The Bruins will now need more performances just like it to spark a stretch run toward the NCAA Tournament. This team did it last year, but with a little bit more margin for error. This year’s team may need to win out to gain an at-large bid.
“I guess last year we had a few less losses, but still no difference (in feeling),” Hamilton said. “This game and the next four will be real critical.”
The Bruins’ string of elimination games resumes on Thursday night in Berkeley against California, a team that has won four straight games.