UCLA 64; Wazzu 53

On February 21st, Washington State torched the UCLA defense, shooting 59% and scoring 82 points in an 82-81 victory at Pauley Pavilion. Their return trip to L.A. didn't go so well. The Cougars found the going much more difficult tonight, scoring almost 30 fewer points, and shooting only 30% from the field. The Bruins weren't excellent by any means, but they made 43% of their long range shots, and took advantage of poor shooting by the Cougars to avenge last months loss. They will move on to face USC in the tournament semi-final tonight.

The Bruins did the bulk of their damage with an early 21-0 run that turned a 5-4 deficit into a 25-5 advantage. Washington State never got closer than nine points the rest of the way, failing to take advantage of plenty of open looks in the first half, and repeatedly failing to convert offensive rebounds into points. Aron Baynes muscled his way to 22 points, but the trio of Caleb Forest, Taylor Rochestie, and Klay Thompson, who combined for 60 points at Pauley, combined for only 20 in this game.

I'll be honest. I hesitate to give the Bruins a ton of credit for their defense tonight. They didn't force a ton of turnovers, they allowed 12 offensive rebounds to the Cougs, and it generally looked like Wazzu just failed to take advantage of early opportunities before getting into a whole from which they could not extricate themselves. But I do give the Bruins credit for taking advantage of Wazzu mistakes early, going on that early run, and responding to every threat the rest of the way.

Darren Collison had 15 points to lead the Bruins, doing the bulk of that damage from the line (8-10). Josh Shipp (10), Jrue Holiday (10), and Nikola Dragovic (12) also finished in double figures for UCLA. Dragovic may responsible for the night's most surprising line. His 12 points came without a three pointer, and he had eight points in the paint (he was also 4-4 from the line). Holiday in particular rebounded from a horrid defensive effort last month to put the clamps on Klay Thompson. The box score may not tell the whole tale, but Michael Roll deserves some credit as well. He had only four points, both layups, one very tough. But his first bucket ended a 7-0 WSU run at a time when the Bruins were struggling to score, and his second basket ended a 6-0 run. He didn't score a lot, but he picked important moments.

The Bruins will have to find a way to play better defense in the post against USC. Taj Gibson doesn't have Baynes' size, but his athleticism could pose problems for Alfred Aboya, who didn't play his best game tonight.

The teams will tip it off at about 8:30 Pacific Time.

Sports Filled Thursday

Lots to take in last night, so I'll briefly touch on the four sporting events that kept me from watching the new episode of Lost.

Kings 5; Red Wings 3

Absolutely amazing third period for the Kings, as they potted four goals to turn a 3-1 deficit into a 5-3 victory. Alexander Frolov has been terrific since returning to full health, and the Detroit broadcasting crew named him their player of the game last night. I thought Brad Stuart was awful over the first two months of the season, but he's been terrific over the last month or so, and the Kings really need to think about extending his deal.

I understand the sentiment of those who don't necessarily want to see the Kings win at this point of the season. Barring a miracle, they won't be playing in the post-season, and every point threatens their chances at acquiring the top pick. But this is a team that needs to learn how to win, and they've been doing that over the last month. That experience may prove invaluable heading into next season. Confidence is a curious thing, and when a team has it, it can be very powerful. If they can go into next season not believing that they can be good, but knowing that they have been good, that will be more valuable than the difference between the first pick and the fourth or fifth pick. I hope they keep winning.

Florida Panthers 4; Ottawa Senators 5

I know, this seems out of place, but a fiend of mine is a gambler, and he suddenly decided that he wants me to start picking hockey games for him. I don't gamble, but I've been "owning" the picks I make, so I was very interested in this game, and it actually caused me to miss the beginning of the Kings comeback. After blowing a 3-1 lead, and a 4-3 lead, Ottawa was the first team to five, and only a couple of great saves by Ray Emery preserved the victory.

Indiana 83; Illinois 79 (2OT)

From a purely objective standpoint, this was an excellent game. Fairly well played by both teams. Back and forth most of the night, with Illinois performing their trademark late collapse, losing a double digit lead yet again. Free throw woes continue to plague the Illini. Sean Pruitt missed two free throws at the end of regulation that would have sealed the victory, then did so again in the first overtime. Six of Illinois' losses this year have come by a combined 23 points. That includes three overtime games (one double overtime game). In those six games, they've made 67-122 free throws. That's fifty five points they've left on the court. They're not a bad team when the clock is running, but they've killed themselves at the line all year.

From a purely subjective standpoint, I hate Indiana with the white hot intensity of a thousand suns. This one hurt, and it was really a game that Illinois should have won. I've lost what little shred of respect I had for ESPN, as they continue to lie about what happened in the recruitment of Eric Gordon. He did not re-open his recruitment, no matter how much Pat Forde, Fran Frischilla, and Jay Bilas want to believe otherwise. Decommitting or re-opening a recruitment entails a conversation with the committed coach wherein the kid explains his intentions. If Gordon had gone to Bruce Weber and said "The situation has changed, and while I'm still interested in Illinois, I'd like to explore other options." Doing so would have allowed Bruce Weber to do likewise. But Gordon didn't do that. His family assured Weber that his commitment to Illinois was solid virtually all the way up to signing day. Quite simply, they lied. Whether they were simply malicious, or too pathetic to look coach Weber straight in the eye and tell him the truth makes no difference. They lied, and liars like the Gordons deserve to play for cheating scumbags like Kelvin Sampson.

Lost in all the hoopla, and the loss, was a transcendent performance by freshman point guard Demetri McCamey. He went for 31 points, 7-13 from beyond the arc, and kept the Illinois in the game all night. He definitely outplayed Gordon. It hurts this year, but in the long run, Illinois is probably better off with McCamey for three or four years than Gordon for one.

UCLA 63; Wazzu 59

Great battle in Pullman last night as these teams traded the top spot on the scoreboard all night. But in classic UCLA style, they wore down the Cougars in the second half, created some separation, eventually pushing the lead to 10 points. With LRMAM, perhaps their best defensive player, home with a sprained ankle, the Bruins allowed the Cougars to shoot over 50%, but dominated the glass, outrebounding Wazzu 29-20. Ten of those were on the offensive glass, and it was second chance points that eventually did in the Cougars.

Darren Collison followed a scoreless first half with an 18 point second half, while Kevin Love netted 16, and Russell Westbrook added 14. Josh Shipp continues to struggle on the offensive end, making only three out of eight shots for six points.

UCLA will face Washington on Sunday, and following that game they'll have only three road games remaining. If they can defend their home court against the Bay Area schools, they'll have the inside track on a third consecutive conference championship.

A Couple of Points About Last Night's UCLA Game

I didn't mention these in yesterday's post, but here's a couple of adenda:

1. As stifling as both defenses were, there were surprisingly few fouls. Neither team was in the bonus in the second half until the final few minutes when Wazzu had to foul on purpose just to put UCLA into the bonus. And it wasn't as if there were a ton of plays that made you think 'boy, I can't believe they didn't call a foul right there.' I've watched a lot of Big 10 basketball, so I've seen a lot of games where refs let guys get away with everything. Last night wasn't one of those games. It was good, hard, aggressive, in-your-face defense, and neither team needed to clutch and grab to play it well.
2. Good column today from Pat Forde of ESPN, calling UCLA the "most mature team in the nation." It's hard to argue with that. These guys don't just play one style and hope they do it well enough to win. They're driven, and they find ways to win when they have to, with a couple of exceptions. The funny thing is, the "most mature team in the nation" has absolutely no seniors. Not even a walk on. I'd be surprised if everyone came back, but damn, they'll be incredible next year if everyone comes back.
   

UCLA 53; Washington State 45 -- Bruins Clinch Second Straight Outright Pac 10 Championship

In 1994, the New York Rangers won the Stanley Cup. I watched every game of their seven game series with New Jersey in the Wales Conference Finals, and every game of their seven game series against Vancouver in the Stanley Cup Finals. That Rangers team had a knack for absolutely blowing their opponents doors off in the first 10 minutes of the game. Didn't matter who they played, they dominated from the opening face off. If you could weather that storm and hang in, you could beat them, but a lot of teams just wilted from the beginning, and that's why the Rangers were the best team in the regular season, and the best team in the playoffs.

This UCLA team has a similar trait. They come out and simply dominate teams in the first five minutes of the second half. They did it against Arizona a couple of weeks ago. They did it to Berkeley last week. They did it to Stanford on Saturday. And they did it again tonight. I said it before, and I'll say it again: UCLA lost to Stanford last month at Maples because they didn't compete in the first five minutes of the second half, and by the time they got it together, Stanford was rolling. They learned their lesson. Since then, they've dominated that five minute stretch, and it's been the key factor in their conference win streak.

Tonight, after trailing by one at the half, the Bruins came out and scored the first nine points of the second half, and they did so convincingly, on two layups, a dunk, and three pointer. The built an eight point lead that they would never relinquish. And they didn't just do it with offense. Their defense has an extra gear in the second half, and they found it tonight, ultimately holding the Cougars to 37.5% shooting. Derek Low especially had an off night. He is a difference maker, and tonight he simply couldn't find his range.

Aaron Afflalo led the way on the scoresheet with 14 points on 5-11 shooting. Darren Collison, in a bit of a shooting slump (for him) over the last few games added seven to go along with eight assists, many coming on pinpoint passes into the post. He's a big reason that Alfred Aboya chimed in with eight points of 4-5 shooting. Aboya gives me the impression that he's going to absolutely bust out next year. Don't ask my why. He's shown flashes of greatness this year, and it's just a matter of him putting it all together. If he takes that step, their front line next year is going to be absolutely sick with LRMAM, Aboya, Mata, and Love. That's assuming they get nothing from Keefe and Wright (and I think those two will contribute). That frontcourt will be dominant.

Give a ton of credit to Washington State. They have an excellent team, and for a defensive powerhouse, they don't play a boring style. Their low points-against isn't built on a boring zone and 35 second possessions on both ends. They play hard and really get after it. I think they're going to do some damage in the tournament, and until UCLA took them out of it, they really had a great crowd tonight. And yes, that paragraph was a lot easier to type considering the outcome.

Barring some catastrophic injury (which the selection committee will take into account), UCLA probably locked up a #1 seed tonight, and they're probably going to stay out west for the second year in a row. Now it's off to Seattle to finish the season and get ready for the Pac 10 tournament. Congratulations to the Bruins on their second straight outright conference championship.