After Thursday’s loss to Stanford, the Bruins knew that
they would ultimately be judged by how they responded in their game
against California.
The boos that reverberated throughout Pauley Pavilion were
perhaps the best indication of UCLA’s response ““ an
uninspired 64-51 loss to a Golden Bear team that entered the
contest with the worst record in the Pac-10.
Totally hopeless against Cal’s 2-3 zone defense, UCLA
managed only 18 points in the first half. And until scoring a
flurry of meaningless buckets as the clock wound down on the
embarrassing loss, the Bruins were well on their way to setting new
lows for a home game.
“We just didn’t come to play at all, on either end
of the floor, and it definitely showed,” freshman Jordan
Farmar said. “It’s not supposed to happen, not at all,
especially in this building.”
UCLA mostly fumbled its offensive sets throughout the game,
repeatedly settling for 3-pointers as the shot-clock was winding
down. In the first half, the Bruins missed all 11 of their 3-point
attempts, and at one point in the second half they were 2 of 24
from beyond the arc.
The Bruins were also victimized on defense, with Cal’s
inside duo of bruisers David Paris and athletic Rod Benson
dominating their matchups. Previously averaging just over six
points per game, Paris emerged with a career-high 20 points on 10
of 11 shooting, most of those easy layups and dunks. Benson had 14
points and a career-best 14 rebounds, helping Cal dominate the
glass as a team, outrebounding the Bruins 43-32.
“They really took advantage of us inside,” UCLA
coach Ben Howland said. “It’s disappointing because
it’s hard to rotate every single time the ball goes to the
post, but that’s something we’re going to have to start
thinking about based on our performances this week.”
For the second straight game, junior Michael Fey led the Bruins
in scoring with 12 points, while senior Dijon Thompson was once
again a non-factor. Thompson shot only 2-for-9 from the field for
six points, and didn’t score in the second half. As a team,
UCLA shot 30.3 percent from the field, but even that number is a
little misleading. Freshman Arron Afflalo converted on three
3-pointers and freshman Lorenzo Mata scored on a put-back in the
final 1:30 of the game, by which time a comeback was clearly out of
reach.
“We were really inept at attacking the zone,”
Howland said. “We were very tentative, not attacking gaps,
getting forced out on the perimeter. Some of those were ill-advised
shots, a number of them were open looks that we didn’t knock
down.”
The game was effectively over midway through the second half,
when the 265-pound Paris outran the entire UCLA squad down the
court for a transition dunk, making the score 56-37 and drawing the
loudest chorus of boos from the crowd. Fans expecting to see the
Bruins bounce back after the first home loss of the season began
making their way to the exits with over five minutes remaining.
“We have to stay together, it’s not about anybody
else, it’s all about the guys in the locker room,”
Farmar said. “We have to play with a passion and intensity.
If we play like that we’ll give ourselves a chance every
game.”
After an impressive road trip in Arizona, it seemed as though
UCLA had all the momentum to make a strong run at finishing near
the top of the Pac-10 standings. When asked if he would ever have
believed at the beginning of the week that it was possible to be
swept at home by Stanford and Cal, Thompson responded
succinctly.
“No. Not at all,” he said.
With the eerie resemblance of last season beginning to creep in,
the Bruins can only focus on the games left to play rather than
dwell on their miserable homestand.
“This game is in the past,” Thompson said.
“We just have to move on and start a winning streak again.
We have the talent and the potential to not lose another game. We
have to just go out there and do it and not just talk about
it.”