Published Feb 2, 2020
UCLA Continue To Roll Upending Utah, 73-57
Rick Kimbrel  •  BruinBlitz
Publisher


UCLA (12-10, 5-4 Pac-12) registered their first sweep of the season, defeating Utah (12-9, 3-6 Pac-12) with a strong performance on both ends of the floor, 73-57.

The Bruins have now won their last four out of five games while climbing back into the conference and are playing their best basketball of the year. During the three victories, the Bruins have played tenacious defense that has been the driving engine of their recent success.

With 12:34 left in the first half, UCLA went on a 13-3 to take a dominating lead 26-13. During that timespan, the Bruins forced five Ute turnovers and were 0-6 from the field while holding Utah scoreless for 4:49 ticks of the clock.

UCLA started to play sloppy and ended up turning the ball over, allowing the Utes to go on 7-0 run and momentarily crawl back into the game. The Bruins led at the half by 32-21.

“First half there was a lid on the rim,” Utah head coach Larry Krystkowiak said. “I thought we missed a bunch of open shots. You guys witnessed it. We were one for twelve at the half. We started the second half, hit three, threes, and then it was a couple-possession game, and we couldn’t sustain it. The free-throw line was key.”

Some more sloppy play made the game close, the Utes were able to get as close as four points before the Bruins pulled away with 8:02 left to play. UCLA went on a soul-crushing 17-2 run to put the game away.

True freshman Tyger Campbell was outstanding, scoring a career-high and game-high 22 points. He also tied for a game-high eight assists with Utah’s Timmy Allen.

True freshman, Jaime Jaquez Jr., scored 18 points and sophomore Jalen Hill scored 14 points to go his game-high eight rebounds.

Sophomore Riley Battin led the Utes in scoring with 14 points. Allen had 13 points and seven boards. Freshman point guard Rylan Jones scored 11 points for the Utes.

Once again, defense was the story for the Bruins. UCLA had ten steals and made things tough for a good passing team Utah, most of the game.

The Bruin D held the Utes to shooting 39.3 percent from the field and 36.0 percent from the three. In contrast, UCLA shot 49.0 percent from the field 42.9 from beyond the arc.

Again, it was an outstanding all-around game for the Bruins. The Michael Price Family UCLA Men’s Head Basketball Coach, Mick Cronin was pleased with his team’s performance.

“Obviously, happy with our defensive effort,” Cronin said. “They can really shoot the ball.

“I thought we needed to pressure them, try to speed them up because they shoot it well, and they pass it well. It’s a great recipe, offensively. They’ve been on a roll lately. They won two against the Washingtons. They led USC for 38 minutes the other night.

“Really happy with our win. Happy for Tyger Campbell, obviously. It’s tough being a young guy when everybody expects the world from you in your first year.

“Unfortunately, that’s how college basketball has changed for the worse now. But he stood in there, kept working. You stand in there and keep working, and you get better.

“Today, I thought he had the advantage in the pick and roll. Obviously, we rode him as long as we could, and he dominated the second half from an offensive standpoint.”

The next test for the Bruins will be on the road in Tempe against ASU (13-8, 4-4 Pac-12) for an 8:00 PM PST tipoff, and the game will be televised nationally on ESPN2.