UCLAs home winning streak ends at 10
The Bruins didn't get the job done on either end of the floor and saw their record drop to 14-11 for the season 7-6 in Pac 12 play. The loss was UCLA's first loss in 10 games at home. Cal improved their record 20-6 and 11-3 in the Pac-10 with the 73-63 victory.
The game had all the earmarks of a losing UCLA effort. The Bruins are now 0-8 on the season when the opposition shoots 50 percent or better from the floor. The Bruins also had a season low, seven assists and a goose egg in the first half in the assist category.
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Not exactly the recipe for winning basketball.
With their victory, Cal completed its first regular-season sweep of UCLA since the 1993-94 season and won all four regular-season games against their Los Angeles conference foes, UCLA and USC for the first time since the 1958-59 season.
"That was a disappointing loss," UCLA coach Ben Howland said. "I thought that three that Jerime Anderson hit at the end of the half would give us momentum.
"Jorge Gutierrez made some big shots; he had guys in his face and was still able to make those," Howland said. "He really played like a senior today.
"I was really disappointed that we dropped down to such a deficit; some of our guys were hanging their heads and at that point," Howland said. "I called a timeout to get on some of the guys.
"I think we had three costly charges in the first half that caused turnovers," Howland said. "The difference was that their turnovers led to points.
"I felt I should have played Brendan Lane more, especially the way we were shooting," Howland said. "I felt like he could have really helped us get some rebounds.
"Justin Cobbs played great for them today," Howland said. "He was the key for them, especially in the second half. He really hurt us."
UCLA senior guard Lazeric Jones agrees with his coach, the turnovers in this game were costly.
"We had some turnovers at the end that they capitalized on," Jones said. "We have to really slow down and be more confident.
"They ran the pick-and-roll really well and they continued to go to that play," Jones said. "They really gained momentum using that play. I took some bad shots; it happens, it's just part of basketball."
UCLA sophomore forward David Wear was disappointed in the outcome and in his play, but he saw one positive.
"They went on a run and it was disappointing that it happened again to start the second half," Wear said. "At least the lead didn't grow, we decided to fight and compete hard.
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"It was disappointing that I had just one rebound," Wear said. "That is unacceptable. I've got to do a better job rebounding."
UCLA senior guard Jerime Anderson continued the theme of not taking care of the basketball as a reason for the loss, but he did give Cal a lot of credit for their fine play.
"We had some turnovers," Anderson said. "It was bad communication. I was trying to force the issue at the end, but it was a little too late.
"They (Cal) executed really well," Anderson said. "They continuously were moving off their screens instead of just going through the motions.
"We missed Anthony Stover," Anderson said. "His presence is important for us out there."
Rick Kimbrel is the publisher of BruinBlitz.com. You can email him at rickpma@sbcglobal.net or follow him on twitter at @BruinBlitzcom.