SAN JOSE “”mdash; His first 3-point shot was an air ball.
His third 3-point shot was blocked by Kansas’ Brandon Rush.
His last eight shots were right through the net.
The total ended up being 24 points for junior guard Arron Afflalo, the NCAA West Regional MVP and the team’s defined captain and team leader.
“I thought I was open, but he’s very long and athletic,” Afflalo said of his shot being blocked. “But you know, it’s all about the win.
“If I’m fortunate enough to make shots, just keep shooting and shooting ““ (that) has to be a scorer’s mentality.”
Afflalo on Saturday kept shooting. After making only two of his first seven shots, Afflalo put any thoughts of a shooting slump to rest by scoring 15 second-half points and willing his Bruins to victory.
There are few players like Afflalo, who came into Saturday shooting 31 percent in his last six games, who would put the Bruins on his back when they needed it most.
“The good thing (about Arron scoring) is that it was the most important game,” sophomore point guard Darren Collison said. “Arron just stepped up and hit big shots like he has all season.”
Afflalo’s biggest plays of the game might have been the first two plays of the second half.
With the Bruins barely holding onto a four-point halftime lead, Afflalo came out with a lay-up on the Bruins’ second possession and then followed it up with a 3-pointer on the next possession.
Immediately, the Bruins’ lead was up to nine.
“I had the ball in my hands, and I happened to make the shot,” Afflalo said. “No matter what kind of slump I go through, I am never going to stop shooting.”
Afflalo also did a terrific job on the defensive end, limiting Rush to seven second-half points and zero of the thunderous dunks Rush had in the first half.
It is that defensive intensity that coach Ben Howland has always appreciated the most.
“Arron’s a big-time player, and big-time players make important plays in the big games,” Howland said. “It’s been really special to have him. He’s a consensus first-team All-American. He is a big-time player.
“What else can you say?”
Afflalo on Saturday was able to embody the features that resemble a team captain. Howland pointed to a moment with six minutes to play and the Bruins’ lead down to five when Afflalo brought his teammates together and commanded the Bruins liven up their intensity.
“Those type of things make a big difference,” Howland said. “You can believe me, the players feed off it. It’s huge.”
Afflalo certainly showed, by making two shots at the end of the shot clock and scoring consistently down the stretch, that he is the Bruins’ foundation.
“He is our leader, and he has been our leader all year,” sophomore forward Luc Richard Mbah a Moute said. “I’m just glad Arron being our leader was able to carry us to victory tonight.”
LEADERSHIP AND EXPERIENCE: Much has been made of the fact that there are no seniors on this year’s Bruin squad. That perceived lack of experience was supposed to be a negative factor as the Bruins moved on through the Western Regional against teams with older players.
While UCLA may not have any seniors, four of the Bruin starters played in the national title game last season and learned to fight their way through a regional tournament last season. That experience is something that has proven to pay dividends for the Bruins as they head to the Final Four for the second consecutive season.
“We do feel like we’ve been there before,” Collison said. “We know what to expect. We know we’ve got to play hard every single game and not let down on any possessions.”
As for leadership, the Bruins have had plenty to go around as the season has wound down. From Collison’s hustle and energy to Afflalo’s ability to lead by example and keep his team focused in dire situations, the Bruins have found a bountiful source of leadership all year long, which has more than made up for the loss of their three seniors from last year.
“We lost three valuable players, but again, we had a core of those guys come back this season,” Afflalo said. “(Josh Shipp’s) presence on the floor, the emergence of Darren, the maturity of Luc and Lorenzo (Mata) and our bench guys ““ all that comes into play. We’re a different team.”
TURNOVER FRENZY: If anyone had known UCLA would turn the ball over 25 times against Kansas, they probably wouldn’t have predicted the Bruins would end up winning the game.
Yet that is exactly what happened. The 25 turnovers was UCLA’s season high. The Bruins hadn’t even turned the ball over more than 15 times in a game since their loss at Oregon back in early January.
Yet UCLA was able to counter their turnovers by forcing many turnovers of their own. Collison had five steals while Shipp and Mbah a Moute each had four steals.
“This is one of those games where you really couldn’t predict what was going to happen,” Collison said. “We had a lot of mistakes, but we won by 13 points. That says a lot about this team.”
With reports from Ben Azar, Bruin Sports senior staff.