Rather Than Fading, UCLA Gives Best Shot : Bruins: They rally with 63.9% shooting in second half to beat Washington State, 99-91.

Trailing by 12 points on the road against an opponent with NCAA tournament aspirations, UCLA could have withered Thursday night in a game that carried little significance for the Bruins.

Instead, the Bruins were impressive in the second half, making 63.9% of their shots and finishing off Washington State, 99-91, before 9,264 at Friel Court, which grew increasingly quiet in the face of UCLA’s onslaught.

“Considering the circumstances, that was probably as good a half as we’ve played all season,” Coach Jim Harrick said after UCLA (21-7 overall, 9-6 in the Pacific 10 Conference) extended its winning streak to four games. “We really settled down and played basketball, executed our running game and quit letting little things bother us.”

Harrick was among the most bothered in the first half, drawing a technical foul less than a minute before halftime, but he was the picture of calm throughout most of the second half, sitting quietly on the bench as the Bruins ran away from the overmatched Cougars.

Don MacLean had 33 points and a season-high 15 rebounds for the Bruins, but equally impressive, if not more so, was the play of junior point guard Darrick Martin, who scored a career-high 31 points, including 23 in the second half, more than he scored in 91 previous games at UCLA.

Martin, who scored only one point in two previous games at Washington State, made 11 of 15 shots and also had five assists.

“Every time Martin touched the ball in the second half, something good happened,” Harrick said. “Whether he got a basket or an assist--I thought he just played an outstanding game.”

Not much to it, Martin said.

“I was just playing in the flow and a lot of things opened up for me,” he said. “I think they scouted us and when we came down on the break, they automatically jumped out on Don and Tracy (Murray, who scored 20 points). A lot of times, the lanes were open and I could beat my man.”

Harrick, he said, told the Bruins to push the pace.

“When we run, we’re a hard team to beat,” Martin said. “And in the second half, we just forced the issue, both on the offensive end and the defensive end. We controlled the tempo and that’s why we won.”

Quite simply, Washington State (16-9, 8-7), enjoying its first winning season in eight years, were unable to keep up.

At the start, UCLA gained an 8-0 lead as Washington State missed its first six shots. The Cougars, who lead the Pac-10 in three-point field-goal percentage, also missed its first five three-point attempts as UCLA increased its lead to 16-7.

The Bruins still led, 24-14, before 6-foot-10 reserve center Brian Paine scored on a hook shot with 8:02 left in the half to start a 14-0 run by Washington State. The Cougars eventually outscored the Bruins, 24-4, as UCLA went more than 7 1/2 minutes without making a shot.

As the Cougars’ lead grew, so did the Bruins’ frustration.

Harrick jumped from the bench in protest after Martin collided with Paine, arguing vigorously that Martin was fouled.

Official Charles Range slapped him with a technical foul, then gave one to Martin after Martin said something as Washington State’s Eddie Hill lined up at the foul line with 37 seconds left in the half.

Hill’s four free throws gave the Cougars a 42-30 lead.

It was 43-34 at halftime, but after a bathing-suit fashion show during the intermission, the fun was over for the Cougars.

Bruin Notes

Despite the victory, UCLA was eliminated from the Pacific 10 Conference race when Arizona beat Oregon State, 103-65, at Corvallis, Ore., to clinch the conference championship. . . . Washington State’s Brian Paine, who scored 20 points against UCLA last season at Pauley Pavilion, equaled a career high by scoring 21 points, making 10 of 12 shots. . . . In UCLA’s last four games against Washington State, Don MacLean has averaged 26.2 points.

This is UCLA’s 43rd consecutive winning season, which will be the nation’s longest such streak if Louisville, as expected, ends the season with a losing record.