Situated after one of the season’s most thrilling contests and before its most important showdown lies a matchup with Pac-10 cellar-dweller Arizona State.
It’s a meeting that, given all the stakes, UCLA really cannot afford to lose.
While all of the midweek talk has centered either on Sunday’s loss at California ““ an overtime heartbreaker with plenty of juicy storylines ““ or Saturday’s date with conference leader Arizona, there’s still the matter of getting past Arizona State at home, something that hasn’t been altogether easy for UCLA in recent seasons.
“We can’t go into this game assuming we’re going to win,” junior guard Malcolm Lee said. “We’re going in it to win it, but there’s no relaxing. We feel like anybody can beat anybody in this league.”
Although Lee is entitled to his assertions, the Sun Devils have had trouble beating anybody within the conference. A two-point win over Washington State in their most recent game was preceded by 11 consecutive Pac-10 losses. One of those, however, was a one-point loss in overtime in a game they easily could have won.
Guess which blue-and-gold clad team from Los Angeles that was against?
That matchup in Tempe, Ariz., saw UCLA blow a 15-point lead in the second-half to allow Arizona State to come back and force overtime. Then, in the extra session, the Bruins busted out to a 9-2 run before allowing the Sun Devils to cut the final margin down to one.
Arizona State has traditionally played UCLA tough; the Bruins managed just a two-point win over the Sun Devils in Pauley Pavilion last season and lost to them in Tempe. Arizona State won both games in the 2008-2009 season.
“We’re going to have to play really well to have success,” UCLA coach Ben Howland said.
Success will be critical if the Bruins want to extend their season beyond the Pac-10 Tournament. The loss to Cal means UCLA drifts further away from a March Madness certainty and closer to the NCAA Tournament bubble. With a game against Arizona and a trip to the Washington schools to close out the year, those crucial wins will be harder to come by.
“I don’t think anyone’s really nervous,” sophomore forward Reeves Nelson said. “I don’t think anyone’s really thinking about the tournament. We’re just trying to focus on Arizona State right now.”
With Arizona now a full two games up in the conference standings, UCLA will need some help in order to have a shot at claiming the regular season title and the No. 1 seed in the Pac-10 tournament.
Although the emotional loss to Cal isn’t likely to be forgotten anytime soon, a letdown against Arizona State could spell doom for UCLA’s postseason chances.
“We’ve still got the same momentum, we’ve still won 10 of our last 12,” sophomore forward Tyler Honeycutt said. “Every game is one we’ve got to win, if we want to be where we want to be.”
Arizona State took down Washington State despite the absence of senior starters Ty Abbott and Rihards Kuksiks because of injuries. Both are expected to be ready to go against UCLA.
Abbott was largely neutralized by a combination of foul trouble and Malcolm Lee in the teams’ first meeting, although he hit a pair of big 3-pointers in the late stages of the game to help spark the Sun Devils’ bid for a comeback.
Arizona State has been led by sophomore guard Trent Lockett, who paces the team at just under 14 points per game and led the way with 17 against the Bruins.