PULLMAN, Wash. “”mdash; Punished down low on the defensive end
for the greater part of the game by Washington State big man Jeff
Varem, UCLA’s Dijon Thompson decided to fight back on the
offensive end.
Although Varem tallied 17 points and nine rebounds, it was a
single shot by the Bruin forward that practically negated
Varem’s dominant performance and paved the way for the
Bruins’ 58-56 overtime win over the Cougars in Pullman,
Wash., on Thursday night.
Thompson scored a game-high 24 points, none more important than
his 3-pointer at the end of regulation that sent the game into
overtime tied at 49-49.
“The shot was huge,” UCLA coach Ben Howland said.
“I can’t say enough about Dijon. He’s one of the
best players in the league.”
Though the Bruins were fortunate for Thompson’s heroics,
the senior doubted the opportunity would come to fruition just
moments earlier. After Washington State’s Robbie Cowgill
blocked Thompson’s baseline jumper with eight seconds
remaining, the Bruins (12-6, 6-4 Pac-10) had to resort to fouling
the Cougars in hopes of obtaining one more chance to tie the
game.
Down by three with seconds remaining, freshman Jordan Farmar
rushed the ball up the court and dropped it off to a trailing
Thompson, whose shot silenced the crowd and gave UCLA another
chance to steal the win.
“I know he wanted it,” said Farmar, who indicated
that he was ready to hoist the final shot of regulation himself.
“He’s our senior. He was hitting clutch
shots.”
Once into the extra period, Thompson was just as instrumental,
hitting what proved to be the game-winning shot with 37 seconds
left. Varem, like Thompson five minutes earlier, had an opportunity
to send the game into another overtime, but his desperate 3-point
attempt caromed off the backboard.
With the victory, the Bruins captured their second see-saw game
against Washington State, who took UCLA to double-overtime earlier
in the year at Pauley Pavilion before losing.
“I’m so glad we got this win, especially since
it’s my last in Pullman,” Thompson said. “I
don’t ever have to come here again, hopefully.”
The hometown fans in attendance would be just as glad if
Thursday was Thompson’s last trip. He made a concerted effort
to demand the ball and force the issue, particularly after Varem
picked up his third foul three minutes into the second half. Though
Varem had used a 30-pound advantage to gain leverage over
UCLA’s forwards in the post, Thompson became just as
determined to exploit Varem once he got into foul trouble.
“I wanted to take it at him as badly as he was taking it
at us,” Thompson said. “I was being aggressive and
making him play defense as well.”
While Varem seemed to be able to score at will down low against
the Bruin big men, UCLA contained the Cougars with a swarming
defensive effort. The Bruins yielded just 18 first-half points, the
lowest total they have allowed an opponent to score this season,
and limited the Cougars to just five 3-pointers on the night.
“Our guys really showed a lot of character and mental
toughness to be able to defend for those long periods of time and
being able to hold them to 40 percent,” Howland said.
Though the swarming defense and patient offense were more suited
to Washington State’s preferred style of play, UCLA managed
to beat the Cougars at their own game for the second time this
season. It was the 12th straight road win for the Bruins against
the Cougars and vaulted UCLA back into a tie for third place in the
Pac-10.