Panic in the Pavilion — Disco may have died, but the Golden Bears refused to, after a Bruin barrage led by Lonzo, Leaf, and Lil-ford had Cal down 24 points, as they cut the lead to 5 before #4 UCLA finally slams the door in the 81-71 victory
Wanted: Killer Instinct. Will pay top dollar. Please contact Steve Alford asap.
The #4 UCLA Bruins outlasted and survived the unranked Cal Berkeley Bears 81-71 last night, but there is a big problem: The Bruins almost failed to hold onto a game that they led by 24 points with less than 14 minutes left. This is not the first time they have squandered a lead late in a game. Kentucky closed the gap, and Oregon overcame a late deficit, just to name two besides Cal.
The Bruins are just too good to let this happen repeatedly. Earlier in the season, they made a habit of wearing opponents down with their fast pace, often pulling away in the second halves. They will need that trend to return if they want to continue their quest for a Pac-12 Title and top seed in the NCAA Tournament.
On Thursday night, Bryce Alford got it going early, hitting 4 straight three’s on his way to a team-high 24 points. Then Lonzo Ball took over, dominating the floor as he often does, stuffing the box score with 14 points, 7 assists, 5 rebounds, 3 steals, and a blocked shot. Fellow Freshman phenom T.J. Leaf did the rest, scoring 18 points inside, and adding 11 boards, 3 assists, a steal, and a block. Leaf also provided the highlight of the game: a drive from the free throw line that culminated with a monster slam dunk in a Bear’s face.
All that firepower, because of the Bruins’ trademarked unselfish play. EIGHTEEN of the 27 buckets were ASSISTED, compared to only 7 of 27 for Cal. But it still wasn’t enough to secure the victory until the final minute. UCLA took its foot off the gas — and off the Bears’ throats — with 13 minutes left and with the game not out of reach. In order to achieve the epic season the Bruins are gunning for, they will have to SHOW NO MERCY to foes they have down. Kick ’em while they’re up, kick ’em while they’re down. Lonzo and T.J. seem so nice in interviews — hopefully this near-tragic collapse will elicit their MEAN STREAKS, which they probably exhibited in high school when they were crushing their competition.
I would imagine that Lavar Ball’s “Offspring” know full well that when your team achieves some separation, “you gotta keep ’em separated!”
Speaking of offspring, here are 49 more photos of some members of the UCLA Dance Team, who were obviously RAISED RIGHT!
