Well, it’s a good thing the Bruins can hit their free throws.
For the first 38 minutes of Saturday’s game, they took it to Washington State like a chef takes it to a rat in his kitchen. They punished the Cougars on both ends of the floor and seemed to be heading for a blowout.
Then the Cougars found the 3-point line. They drained seven straight treys in about a minute, and brought the game to within three with 13 seconds to go.
But despite Derrick Low’s best Reggie Miller impersonation, the Bruins staved off the desperation comeback and picked up enough points at the charity stripe to seal the win.
UCLA’s fourth conference win and rise in the polls is important and all, but there’s something else that was more indicative of the future success of these Bruins: their first-half defense.
For the first time this season, they showed up early with the same bruising, lock-down defense that has taken them to consecutive Final Fours. The Bruins contested nearly every shot, denied the passing lanes, and gave up only two offensive boards. With less than five minutes remaining in the first half, Wazzu had put up a grand total of eight points, half of which had come on free throws. It took nine minutes for the Cougars just to make a shot from the field.
Watching Washington State on offense was like watching the beginning of “Bambi” ““ you knew how it was going to turn out, and it wasn’t going to be pretty.
And, remember, this was not just any team. With two NBA prospects in Low and Kyle Weaver, the formerly fourth-ranked Cougars are a very good team with a physical style of play. They might not be a top-five squad anymore, but they’re definitely a threat to go deep into March.
However, on Saturday, the Bruins simply outmuscled them.
Josh Shipp and others limited the talented Weaver from the beginning. He was held to nine points on 11 shots, and at times Wazzu pulled their point guard just to give him more touches. For most of the game, he was not a factor.
Around the post, Kevin Love continually frustrated Aron Baynes, the 6-10 270-pounder from down under. In front of 27 NBA scouts, Love’s 27-point performance was probably his best of the year. His shot selection, which included layups in heavy traffic, fadeaway jumpers off the glass and a pair of 3-pointers, had more variety than a two-pound box of See’s Candies. He stretched the defense like clothes from Baby Gap.
Just as important as his offensive output was his ability to clear out the paint, denying the Cougars any opportunity for second-chance points. He not only outrebounded Baynes 14-7 in the game, but also outboarded their entire team in the first half.
Love led the way for the Bruins, but it was also Darren Collison who was able to score down the stretch, attacking the Cougar defense and getting the ball into the paint. He finished with 18 points.
It was refreshing to see the Bruins not relying on the 3-ball so much ““ though they sank four of nine attempts ““ and driving towards the hoop instead. Washington State plays excellent defense ,and Collison was a key cog in UCLA putting up 81 points.
Overall, it was an impressive performance for the Bruins, who dominated a very good team.
Now the question is whether they can keep up their defensive intensity and dynamic offense against teams that don’t have the hype of the No. 4 team in the country.
But we do know one thing: the Bruins can sink their free throws.
E-mail Feder at jfeder@media.ucla.edu if you were chanting “air ball” at Aron Baynes.