Two little steps forward. One huge step back.
Just three days after their second straight blowout victory, the
Bruins were booed off the Pauley Pavilion floor by a better portion
of 5,736 fans following a 67-63 loss to Northern Arizona.
The defeat saddled UCLA (2-3) with a losing record going into
Saturday’s nationally-televised game against Kansas and left head
coach Steve Lavin looking for an explanation.
"We didn’t play well at either end of the floor," he said. "I
thought we had made a lot of progress in the last week."
The Lumberjacks (6-2) seemed prime targets for another UCLA
shellacking.
NAU’s tallest player was 6 feet, 8 inches and the team lacked
athleticism, just as the Bruins’ last two victims had.
But in the end, NAU out-rebounded UCLA 28-25 and caught fire
from beyond the three-point arc, hitting nine of 13 shots. By the
time diminutive
Lumberjack point guard Kyle Feuerbach drained his fourth
three-pointer of the second half, the Bruins were down seven and
running out of time to catch up.
Somewhat surprisingly, the most impressive big man on the floor
wasn’t UCLA’s TJ Cummings, who came on late with a flurry of
points, or the Bruins’ much heralded seven-foot freshmen. Instead,
it was NAU’s 6-foot-7-inch Ryan McDade, who finished with 22 points
and 12 rebounds while showing he was hardly afraid to challenge
UCLA down low.
"Coach Lavin told us they were good shooters and that the big
guy was a beast," sophomore forward Andre Patterson said. "It was
on us."
The Bruins clawed back in the final two minutes to pull within
one. But with 34 seconds left and the shot clock off, NAU inbounded
the ball and avoided UCLA’s efforts to foul.
By the time Jason Kapono got a hand on Aaron Bond, only 16
seconds remained.
"We tried to foul, but they didn’t call it," Lavin said. "Jason
was hacking him, and it was kind of ironic, us yelling for them to
call a foul."
Bond hit both free throws to put the Lumberjacks up three. As
has been customary during his tenure in Westwood, Lavin opted not
to call timeout, instead allowing his players to execute a set
piece.
Sophomore Dijon Thompson got the ball at the top of the key,
drew two
defenders his way, and parted them with a pass to the waiting
Kapono, who squared up with a clean look.
"I have faith in anybody in that situation, especially with that
kind of open look," Thompson said.
"If I were in Vegas, I’d bet on that every time," senior guard
Ray Young said.
But it rimmed out, and Cummings’ effort at passing a rebound
back outside the arc failed. That’s when the boo birds began their
derisive calls and a small Lumberjack contingent started
celebrating.
"This was one of the greatest wins in our team’s history," NAU
coach Mike Adras said. "Our three-point shooting was a surprise to
everyone."
In the last few years, UCLA has made an ugly habit of giving
outmatched opposing teams program-defining wins.
Three years ago, it was Gonzaga. Two years ago, it was Cal
State
Northridge. Last season, it was Pepperdine. In the season opener
Nov. 26, it was San Diego.
And now the Bruins can add Northern Arizona, a team that lost to
a school called High Point, to the list. The mood around the UCLA
program – and Lavin in particular – is precarious, especially after
new athletic director Dan Guerrero fired football coach Bob Toledo
despite a winning season and young team.
"It’s always tough when you think you’re the better team
overall," Young said. "But we didn’t prove that on the court and
that’s all that matters."