Once again UCLA’s lead dwindled. This time its confidence
did not.
The Bruins refused to repeat their season-ending collapse of a
year ago, thwarting another spirited Oregon comeback effort and
hanging on for an 81-74 victory over the Ducks on Saturday at
Pauley Pavilion.
“Last year’s loss was definitely in the back of our
minds,” sophomore center Ryan Hollins said. “I knew
Oregon was going to come back, but I never had the feeling that we
were going to blow the lead.”
A year ago UCLA coughed up an 11-point advantage in the final
three minutes of its Pac-10 Tournament loss to Oregon in what
proved to be former UCLA coach Steve Lavin’s final game. This
time around, Ben Howland’s Bruins would not allow history to
repeat itself.
When the Ducks (6-3, 1-1 Pac-10) whittled a 22-point deficit
down to six with 5:46 to play, UCLA (6-3, 2-0) responded with
stingy defense and an improved effort from the free throw line.
The Bruins went 12 of 16 from the charity stripe over the
game’s final 5:16 as Oregon could never pull any closer.
“This was a great win for us over a very good team,”
Howland said. “We beat an NCAA tournament team
(Saturday).”
UCLA, which has trailed at halftime in three of its last four
games, played perhaps its best half of the season in
Saturday’s first half. The squad out-rebounded Oregon 25-12
in the first half and stymied its vaunted three-point attack,
holding the Ducks to just 28 percent from beyond the arc.
Reserve guard Janou Rubin had 12 of his team-high 13 points in
the opening 20 minutes as the Bruins raced out to a 46-33 halftime
lead. It was Rubin’s second-straight game to score in double
figures after a hamstring injury for junior guard Brian Morrison
opened up more playing time for him.
“You have to step up when other players go down,”
Rubin said. “It’s been a challenge, and I’ve
risen up to it.”
Early in the second half, UCLA seemed to be on the verge of
delivering a knockout punch as a 9-0 spurt over the first 5:16 of
the second half left Oregon staggering.
But although they teetered, the Ducks wouldn’t fall. They
employed a trapping zone defense that befuddled the Bruins and
quickened the pace of the game.
Rubin and fellow-guards Cedric Bozeman and Ryan Walcott each
committed key turnovers as the Bruins’ passive play allowed
Oregon to storm back.
“We got a little bit cute out there, and all of a sudden
they were right back there on top of us,” Howland said.
“We stopped attacking and started turning the ball over.
Twenty points evaporated to 11 points in about four
minutes.”
Oregon guard Luke Jackson tallied 17 of his game-high 28 points
in the second half, repeatedly penetrating the lane and getting to
the foul line.
But Jackson was one of just two Ducks who scored in
double-digits compared to four Bruins. UCLA’s Dijon Thompson
rebounded from a poor game against Oregon State on Thursday with 13
points while Bozeman and T.J. Cummings added 12 apiece.
Bozeman, who had converted just two of his last 14 free throws,
made all four of his attempts down the stretch Saturday, and UCLA
finished a season-best 25-for-32 from the foul line.
“We don’t win unless we knock down our foul
shots,” said Howland, who had his team shoot free throws for
a half-hour Friday after a horrific 3-for-11 performance against
the Beavers.
The victory was the Bruins’ first in their last six tries
against the Ducks and gives them plenty of momentum heading into
their first road game of the conference season, a match-up with
Washington State on Thursday.
“We’re growing up as a team and becoming more
mature,” Cummings said. “We’re playing with a lot
of confidence right now.”