February 12th, 2017

Lonzo Ball is now taking over on both ends of the floor.  His evolution continued against Oregon State on Sunday, as UCLA ran away from the Beavers with a 78-60 win.

Ball had 22 points and 9 assists, while TJ Leaf added 13 points in a game that UCLA led by only 5 points at the end of the first half.

The Bruins shot 52% on the way to their fourth straight win, but it wasn’t easy in the early going.  UCLA was trailing 27-24 with three minutes left in the half.  They managed to score the half’s final 8 points, but played with little energy in the game’s first 20 minutes.

UCLA broke the game open in the 2nd half with a 14-3 run, and with 5:37 left they had their biggest lead of the game at 71-48.  The run was sparked by a full court press that the Bruins unveiled for the first time this season.  They held the Beavers to 40% shooting for the game.

Bruins Coach Steve Alford was pleased with the effort, but stressed the importance of keeping it in perspective.  “There’s obviously been a lot of talk about our defense, which after doing this for almost 26 years, it’s almost comical because other teams aren’t critiqued like we are,” he said. “It’s who you are as your identity. Our team is a very efficient offensive team. Yes, we do want to continue to improve defensively, that’s a huge key for us. But we’re not all of a sudden going to start playing a 50-possession game to hold people in the 50s.”

The win gave the Bruins a weekend sweep of the Oregon schools at home.  It was also their first season sweep of OSU since 2012.  The last time the Bruins played the Beavers at Pauley Pavilion, the suffered an 85-82 loss on March 5th, 2016.

UCLA maintained its grip on 3rd place in the Pac 12, and will now get ready for a showdown against USC next week.  The Bruins will try to avenge an 84-76 loss to the Trojans last month.