Tag: UCLA Bruins

Stanford overwhelms UCLA at Maples, 104-80

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Photo credit: @StanfordMBB

By: Eric Epstein

PALO ALTO, Calif. — The Stanford Cardinal avenged their Jan. 3rd loss to the UCLA Bruins by blowing them out with a score of 104-80 on Saturday evening. The Cardinal have now won 5 out of their last 6 Pac-12 games, pushing their in-conference record to 7-6. The Bruins move to 13-13 on the season and 6-7 in-conference.

When the Cardinal and Bruins met in Los Angeles earlier this year, the Bruins imposed their will on their guests, blowing them out by 22 points. The Cardinal, however, one-upped the Bruins by welcoming them to Maples Pavilion with a 24-point beatdown. Saturday marks the first time since 2013 that the Cardinal have scored over 100 points in a game.

Stanford outscored UCLA in the first half 49-40, powered by their 22 points in the paint along with 22 bench points. Despite sophomore guard Jaylen Hands’ 17 first half points on 6-8 shooting, the Bruins only managed to shoot 39% from the field, turning over the ball 8 times in the process. After Bryce Wills committed 2 quick fouls for the Cardinal, fellow freshman guard Cormac Ryan picked up the slack off the bench by making his first five shots and pitching in a team-leading 14 first half points.

Sophomore forward and Stanford’s leading scorer KZ Okpala had an extraordinarily sleepy first half where he started the night 0-4 and finished the period with a notably inefficient 2-7 shooting mark.

After a basket malfunction caused an extended halftime delay, the Cardinal quickly increased their lead to 20+ points thanks to dynamic play from senior center Josh Sharma, sophomore guard Daejon Davis, Wills, and Ryan.

The game flow of the second half came screeching to a halt, as the referees blew the whistle 13 times against each team. UCLA won the free throw battle, going 25-35, compared to the Cardinal’s 20 makes in 28 attempts.

With less than 5 minutes to play in the game, Okpala and Wills both endured hard falls to the hardwood after fouls at the rim. They both left the game momentarily but returned to after a brief seat.

The Cardinal finished with a season-high 5 players scoring in double digits with Sharma, Okpala, Davis, Wills, and Ryan all filling up the bucket at an exceedingly high clip.

Sharma, who was able to stay out of foul trouble for most of the night, led the team in scoring with 22 points on an insanely efficient 91% field goal percentage. In the second half alone, he wreaked havoc on the emergency replacement rims, throwing the ball down 5 times. He also grabbed a game-leading 12 rebounds.

Davis finished with 11 assists, the highest total for a Stanford player this season. He also coughed the ball up one time over the course of the game, an arguably more impressive feat.

After only playing 3 minutes in the first half, Wills played a very solid second half where he scored 10 points on 3-4 from the field and 4-5 from the foul line, also tallying 3 assists along the way.

Okpala turned his night around and scored 13 second-half points, shooting 50% from the field and throwing down an extremely athletic alley-oop dunk out of an inbounds play.

Ryan cooled down after his blazingly hot first half, and he only scored 5 points in the second period. He finished the night with 19 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists.

Hands never looked back after his monster first half, as he finished with a game-high 29 points on 8-14 shooting from the field and went 10-11 from the charity stripe. He and freshman guard Jules Bernard were the only reliable offensive weapons for the Bruins, and the loss surely would have been a lot uglier if they weren’t able to carry the offensive load that they did.

The Cardinal will try to build off of their Pac-12 momentum when they visit ASU and Arizona for their last road trip of the regular season before hosting their last three Pac-12 games at Maples.

Stanford continues homestand against UCLA Saturday night

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Photo credit: @StanfordMBB

By: Ana Kieu

Stanford Cardinal men’s basketball surely showed that they were the Comeback Cardinal in Wednesday’s thriller against the rival USC Trojans 79-76 at Maples Pavilion. The Cardinal (13-11, 6-6 Pac-12) certainly rebounded after a rough two-game road trip in the Beaver State against Oregon and Oregon State this past weekend. Now the Cardinal will seek their second straight win over the lowly UCLA Bruins, who currently stand at 13-12, 6-6 Pac-12 in the conference standings. That’s clearly not super low to the point of being a hapless team, like, say, my alma mater San Jose State University, but they’re just a step below the Cardinal and this should be a winnable game for the home team as long as the Bay Area big men continue to play with grit throughout the two halves.

In case you missed it, Stanford not only celebrated the exhilarating win over USC Wednesday with its head coach Jerod Haase, but also a familiar face in football head coach David Shaw, who appeared to be really happy to be back on the Stanford University campus as the Cardinal support each other, no matter what teams they play for or what genders they describe themselves as.

Check out the Cardinal’s postgame celebration in the embedded tweet below.

As you should already know, Stanford took matters into their own hands and gutted out a gutsy win over USC and also carried some momentum into Saturday’s rivalry matchup. Well, at least a fan rivalry in the minds of those who follow these two Pac-12 schools.

I’d also like to mention that Bryce Willis was clutch down the stretch against USC and even threw in the much-needed game-winner to help the Cardinal get ahead for the win.

Since both teams aren’t leading the conference, I believe Saturday’s Pac-12 matchup will feature a lot of back-and-forth action along with fluctuating leads and deficits. As long as there are runs for the money, they’ll be strides to try even harder over the course of the game itself. But I predict that Stanford will somehow pull off a win, so my prediction will be 80-75 Stanford. Let’s see how I’ll do Saturday.

Running Out Of Gas: UCLA hangs around then stuns Cal in OT, 75-67

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By Morris Phillips

BERKELEY, Calif. — Typically, the Cal Bears can’t seem to stop anyone from scoring. On Wednesday, their issues were with scoring themselves.

From a competitive standpoint, the change put the Bears in a more esteemed place by leaps and bounds than they’ve been during a lengthy, 12-game losing streak. But ultimately, losing in overtime didn’t feel much better.

Matt Bradley hit a game-tying 3-pointer with 27 seconds remaining in regulation to force overtime, but the Bears went the first three-and-a-half minutes of the extra period scoreless in a 75-67 loss to UCLA.

“We just could not score tonight. That’s the biggest team in the league. When you’re playing against a team with that length, it’s tough,” Bears coach Wyking Jones said.

The Bruins’ struggles shooting the basketball in the first half helped Cal mask their own issues. UCLA fell behind 11-2 in the early minutes prompting interim coach Murry Bartow to bench all five of his starters briefly. The Bruins’ misfires continued throughout the half in which they shot just 28 percent and made eight baskets.

But ultimately, Cal couldn’t maintain their nine-point lead at the break as UCLA took their first lead, 44-43, on Chris Smith’s jumper with 11:05 remaining.

Darius McNeill led Cal with 18 points, and his pair of 3-pointers helped Cal stay in the game, down 52-51 with 8:52 remaining. Grant Anticevich’s free throw line jump shot pulled the Bears even, 55-55 with 4:56 left.

Bradley then scored the Bears’ final seven points, including the three to even the score in the final 30 seconds.

“We got good things when we got to the high post but it was difficult to get it there,” Jones aid. “The guys don’t want to turn it over and that team is the biggest team in the league, so when you’re playing team with that much length it’s tough to get the ball to the high post.”

Overtime brought a different list of issues for Cal as they sandwiched three misses from distance around a pair of turnovers before scoring for the first time in overtime (and the last time in the game) with 1:34 remaining.

The Bears would go 1 for 7 shooting in overtime, along with a couple of free throw misses from Connor Vanover, and lose meekly. Still, the Bears competed with a team that beat them by 15 points at Westwood on January 5.

“We’re getting better,” McNeill said. “People may not see it but we’re in every game that we lose in the first half, and in the second half we just come out flat and don’t really get back together. But we’re getting better every game and we just have to stay focused for the whole game.”

Cal gets a second opportunity to topple the Trojans on Saturday. Game time is 2:30 pm at Haas Pavilion.

Bears Squander Another Opportunity, Fall to UCLA 75-67 in Overtime

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Photo credit: @CalMBBall

By: Michael Duca

BERKELEY, Calif. — The second time was not the charm.

Cal opened its Pac-12 season against a UCLA team in disarray, with Interim Coach Murry Bartow coaching his first game after a mid-season change. The Bruins broke form and blew out Cal at Pauley. Wednesday night, the Bears got their shot at the Bruins at home, immediately after what should have been a soul-crushing loss to Utah Sunday afternoon.

It was not meant to be.

One of the worst free-throw shooting teams in the nation (62%), the UCLA Bruins rode 9-of-10 shooting from the charity stripe to a 75-67 overtime victory at Haas Pavilion. Led by Kris Wilkes 27 points, the Bruins, who did not lead until 11:04 remained in regulation, caught fire late from behind the arc to steal a sloppy game from Cal, which is still seeking its first conference win (0-12, 5-18). UCLA started the game shooting 3-of-16 from behind the arc, but finished hitting 7 of their final 16 treys, including back-to-back shots from the left corner in a 30-second span in the final 90 seconds of regulation. Those three-balls pulled the Bruins from a 59-55 hole inside 2:00.

Cal, which held a nine point advantage at the half, fell to 3-3 in games with a lead at the intermission. The Bruins played a sloppy game, with 13 turnovers in the first half (and only 4 assists). Those turnovers led to a 15-4 lead in points off turns for Cal, but they just could not hold it in the second half once the Bruins started to hit from outside.

Wilkes 16 points after intermission overshadowed a nice evening for Darius McNeil, who flashed his speed time after time in racking up a team-high 18 points, including four treys, but McNeil also committed a pair of thoroughly unnecessary fouls that gave the Bruins life.  The taller Bruins owned the boards, with a 50-36 edge that included 17 offensive rebounds and 13 second-chance points.

Down 9 with 14:00 left in regulation, David Singleton hit three consecutive three-balls for the Bruins to close the game to 43-42 at 12:18.

Matt Bradley had a rollercoaster night, missing his first eight shots but draining a three to send the game to overtime.

Cal’s frustration will only increase when they watch film – they have suffered mightily in conference play from poor defense, but they held UCLA (averaging 80 points/game) to under 40% shooting on the night, but could barely exceed hitting one-third of their own shots (23-of-68).

Justice Sueing had a solid game with 15 points on 5-of-9 shooting, adding a team-leading 7 rebounds and 3 assists. Conor Vanover is beginning to show flashes of adapting to the speed of the college game, finishing with 12 points on 5-of-10 shooting, plus 6 rebounds and a pair of blocks (plus countless other shots altered), and a pair of plays where he created held balls that gave Cal possession.

It remains to be seen whether Cal will break through and avoid a winless conference season, but it is clear from watching this team that they have not given up on the season – they competed hard for 45 minutes, but just didn’t have the offense to put the game away in regulation.

Next up for Cal are the USC Trojans, Saturday afternoon at 5 pm.

Cal Bears basketball podcast with Morris Phillips: Did UCLA’s coaching change throw monkey wrench into Cal’s game plan?; Cal tries to regroup as ASU arrives Wednesday

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Photo credit: @CalMBBall

On the Cal Bears podcast with Morris:

#1 UCLA have been a force since new head coach Murray Bartow has taken over. What are some of the differences?

#2 How frustrating was it for cal head coach Wyking Jones to re-plan things against UCLA after the Bruins made the coaching change?

#3 UCLA dominated last Saturday in a 98-83 win at Pauley Pavilion with 53% shooting from the floor and posting a season-high in points.

#4 What was the reason coach Jones decided to bench the starters during Saturday’s game?

#5 Cal hosts ASU Wednesday night at Haas Pavilion. Can the Bears overcome UCLA and have a chance to defeat the Sun Devils?

Morris does the Cal Bears podcasts each Monday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Cal Bears basketball podcast with Michael and Morris: Cal needs to figure out UCLA and USC

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photo by bruinnation.com: The UCLA Bruins Moses Brown throws down as Cal Bears defender Justice Sueing could just watch during Saturday night’s game at Pauley Pavilion

On the Cal Bears basketball podcast with Morris and Michael:

We thought we’d have some good news to talk about regarding the down Pac-12 conference with two of the more down teams in that conference USC and UCLA. One of them, the UCLA Bruins, started to turn it around before Cal got to town. UCLA fired head coach Steve Alford, and all of sudden, the Bruins have become unstoppable.

UCLA turned it around immediately. They came off those four losses. UCLA lost to Liberty in a 30 point blowout loss. There was Ohio State they played Stanford and they all beat up on Cal. The Bears got 92 points against Stanford and the Bruins. No matter what they did in this last game, they just couldn’t get past UCLA.

Morris and Michael do the Cal Bears podcasts every week podcast at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

Stanford Cardinal podcast with Joey Friedman: Brown and Hands lead UCLA to 92-70 win over Stanford Thursday

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Photo credit: @UCLAMBB

On the Stanford Cardinal basketball podcast with Joey:

#1 UCLA (8-6) blew out Stanford (7-6) 92-70 for a 22 point win on Thursday at Pauley Pavilion.

#2 The win was UCLA’s head coach Murry Bartow’s first since replacing former UCLA head coach Steve Alford.

#3 It was the first time in UCLA basketball history that the Bruins fired and replaced a coach during the season.

#4 Moses Brown led the Bruins with 17 points and nine rebounds and Jaylen Hands had 15 points.

#5 Stanford will try and come back with a win against USC on Saturday.

The Cardinal basketball podcast with Joey Friedman is every Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Bruins reward new coach with 92-70 win over Stanford

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Photo credit: @UCLAMBB

By Daniel Dullum
Sports Radio Service
Thursday, January 3, 2019

UCLA used a big second half to blow out Stanford 92-70 Thursday in Pac-12 men’s basketball at Pauley Pavilion, giving interim coach Murry Bartow his first win after replacing Steve Alford, who was fired earlier in the week.

It was the first time in UCLA men’s basketball history that a coach was dismissed during the season. Bartow’s father, Gene, coached the Bruins for two seasons in the mid-1970s.

Moses Brown hit 8-of-9 from the field and led the Bruins (8-6 overall, 1-0 Pac-12) with 17 points and nine rebounds. Jaylen Hands was next for UCLA with 15 points and six assists, and Kris Wilkes and Prince Ali each score 14 points.

The Bruins held a 56-30 edge on points in the paint, and their defense collected seven steals.

KZ Okpala’s 22 points topped the scoring column for Stanford (7-6, 0-1). It was the Cardinal’s 13th straight loss at UCLA, as Stanford opened its conference schedule on the road for the first time since 2013.

Okpala also pulled down 10 rebounds for the Cardinal, who were outrebounded 46-34. Okpala and Oscar Da Silva each had three assists.

With 13 minutes left in the second half, Okpala scored four straight points, pulling the Cardinal to within 48-42. UCLA asserted itself from there, building an 18-point lead with dunks by Brown, Wilkes and Ali.

The Bruins extended their lead with a 10-0 run with under four minutes remaining, taking an 88-61 advantage.

Stanford continues its L.A. road trip when it visits USC on Sunday at 5:00 pm PT.

NCAAB podcast with Daniel Dullum: Costly losses for UCLA, ASU, Illinois, Wisconsin; Good day for Stanford, UCSB, Saint Mary’s; plus more

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bruinsnation.com photo: UCLA Bruins (7-6) head coach Steve Alford contemplates as the Bruins drop their fourth straight game to Liberty (11-4) on Saturday.

On the NCAAB podcast with Daniel:

1 Men’s Hoops: Potential costly losses by UCLA, Arizona State, Illinois and Wisconsin

2 Good day for Stanford, Pacific, UC Santa Barbara and Saint Mary’s

3 Rick Pitino picks up win in EuroLeague debut with Panathinaikos

4 Women’s Hoops: UConn still No. 1 after tough road trip

5 There’s no need to expand the D-1 Football Playoffs

Catch Daniel each week for the NCAA podcasts at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Cal Bears podcast with Morris Phillips and Michael Duca: 18-point rally not enough to catch red-hot Redhawks in Cal’s latest loss

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calbears.com photo: The Cal Bears guard Paris Austin (3) takes a drive against the Seattle Redhawks guard Terrell Brown (23) at Haas Pavilion in Berkeley on Saturday night

On the Cal podcast with Morris and Michael:

The Bears (5-7) fell behind by as many as 18 points in the first half, only to rally, but ultimately lose to Seattle, 82-73 at Haas Pavilion. The loss concluded Cal’s non-conference schedule without providing much belief that they can right the ship with Pac-12 play next up beginning Thursday at UCLA.

Coach Wyking Jones surely didn’t get any assurances from his team that they’ll be engaged come Thursday, not after they led 2-0 Saturday, only to fall behind 21-4 with 12:11 remaining before halftime. The Redhawks with the win notched their win loss record to 12-3.

Morris and Michael do the Cal Bears basketball podcast each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com