Huskies Put Bite on Bruins : UCLA: Hot-shooting Washington pulls away in final six minutes for an 81-67 victory.

Here we go again.

Another pedestrian team in the Pacific 10 Conference peaked against UCLA, resulting in another defeat that is bound to have reverberations in Westwood.

This time, it was the Washington Huskies, making 60% of their shots and sinking 17 of 18 free throws Thursday night to defeat UCLA, 81-67, before 3,788 in Edmundson Pavilion.

Every loss adds pressure to Coach Jim Harrick, whose fifth season has been fraught with controversy, particularly after a 22-point defeat by California on Jan. 24.

But neither Harrick’s coaching nor his team’s play had much to do with the Huskies’ victory.

Washington (10-7, 4-4) simply shot down UCLA’s hopes with center Rich Manning scoring 23 points, guard Prentiss Perkins adding 21 and Mark Pope 15. Pope had 12 rebounds, Manning 10.

Playing a tight defense, Washington shut down UCLA’s transition game and forced the Bruins into a half-court offense that was less than overpowering.

If Harrick was concerned, it was because of the play of Ed O’Bannon, a 6-foot-8 sophomore forward who is one of the Pac-10’s premier players. O’Bannon, who was double-teamed in UCLA’s last two victories but still scored in double figures, played poorly.

His face showed frustration when the Bruins were dismantled in the final 5:49 after taking a 57-56 lead.

“It was the first time I ever felt like I got the stuffing knocked out of me,” O’Bannon said. “Like I laid down or something. My mind wasn’t in the game. I was just out there.”

O’Bannon, who was averaging 17.9 points, scored six and did not have a rebound.

“The closest I got to a rebound was a missed free throw on the first shot of two,” he said. “I just have to get a rebound, start sticking my nose in places.”

Said Harrick: “He just didn’t have any energy.”

But the loss had less to do with O’Bannon’s ineffectiveness than the Bruins’ inability to stop Washington from playing a slow-paced game that concentrated on the inside shooting of Manning, a 6-11 center, and the outside play of Perkins.

“They just executed well and made their shots,” said Tyus Edney, UCLA’s point guard.

The Huskies did that.

They led, 56-48, with 13:45 to play after Perkins drove through the defense to score. But in the next 4 1/2 minutes, Edney made three shots, including a three-pointer, to help the Bruins rally. UCLA took a 57-56 lead with 9:20 left on Edney’s six-foot shot.

Washington Coach Lynn Nance called a timeout and told his team to get Manning the ball. The Huskies executed perfectly, and the Bruins faltered.

UCLA suddenly folded when Manning made a 12-foot shot and a 14-footer to give the Huskies a 63-57 lead with 4:44 left. Brett Pagett’s three-point basket at 4:44 seemed to take the spirit from the Bruins (14-6, 4-4).

When Washington was done, it had outscored UCLA, 14-1, in about eight minutes.

Playing before the largest home crowd of the season, the Huskies secured their first victory over UCLA since the 1989-90 season.

Still, Harrick could not fault his players.

“We played hard,” Harrick said. “They just made (practically) every shot they took. We’ve run in to that a couple times this year.”

Washington had its best shooting game of the season.

UCLA Notes

Tyus Edney led the Bruins 16 points. Mitchell Butler had 13 with a team-leading five rebounds. Shon Tarver added 12 points. Richard Petruska had six points at halftime, but only eight total. . . . Erik Hanson, a pitcher for the Seattle Mariners, joined the Bruins in shooting drills Thursday morning at Edmundson Pavilion. Hanson, no slouch on the court, said he was headed to Duke to play basketball before being drafted in the major leagues. He attended Wake Forest and played baseball before joining the Mariners’ system. . . . Chandler Nairn, Washington’s first reserve, was suspended for Thursday’s game because of academic reasons. The 6-foot-8 forward is expected to return against USC on Saturday.