UCLA at Head of the Class With Victory Over Arizona : College basketball: Edney leads the way as Bruins stake claim to No. 1, 74-66.

Before a sold-out crowd at Pauley Pavilion, second-ranked UCLA remained undefeated and won its showdown with No. 9 Arizona, 74-66.

Maybe the Bruins can make it to No. 1 by the end of the weekend if they can sweep the state of Arizona.

For UCLA (12-0, 5-0), it was their first victory of the season over a ranked opponent.

It was billed as a game to be decided in the backcourt, and it was. Tyus Edney’s driving layup with 3:40 to go gave UCLA a 64-55 lead, which was enough to stand up.

Edney had 26 points for the Bruins.

The Wildcats made their first mini-run at the midway point of the second half, but the Bruins called upon an old friend--the ever-popular running game--to sprint out to force Arizona Coach Lute Olson to call time out with UCLA holding a 55-47 lead.

Five consecutive points got the Wildcats within 49-47, but Cameron Dollar wriggled loose inside for a layup and Ed O’Bannon and Edney scored on a pair of breakaways.

The Wildcats are now 14-8 against UCLA in the Olson regime, while the Bruins improved to 4-8 against Arizona under Jim Harrick.

Even before the game, there was a big-game atmosphere.

Shon Tarver walked past ESPN announcer Dick Vitale, eyes wide, then was escorted away by assistant coach Lorenzo Romar.

Why?

“I asked him before the game if he was ready and he said ‘Look at my eyes,’ ” Vitale said. “I guess he wanted me to see his eyes again.”

As UCLA players went through their stretching exercises on the court, Vitale grabbed a ball and took a few shots, soon to be joined by Marques Johnson, who pretended to defend Vitale.

Vitale, who gets worked up by the mere sight of a dribbled basketball, studiously handicapped the game for UCLA.

“It’s an advanced class for the Bruins,” Vitale said. “This is trigonometry, calculus. The easy courses are over.”

He was correct, of course.

In the opening moments, there was a flash of what was to come. Ed O’Bannon got a quick shove when he stuck his head in an impromptu on-court huddle by the Wildcats before a free throw.

Order was restored quickly. The game did not go as orderly, at least for a while. Between turnovers, UCLA took its first lead at 13-11 on a short jumper by Charles O’Bannon, who made a three-pointer three minutes later for a 20-14 lead.

In the meantime, Tarver might have been having trouble with his offense, but his defense against Khalid Reeves was smooth as Vitale’s bald head.

Reeves missed all six of his shots and had one point in the half, while at the other end of the court, Tarver started slowly and finished fast. Tarver banked in back-to-back short jumpers to give the Bruins a 26-20 lead, which grew to 32-22 with 5:06 to go, thanks to a series of Wildcat turnovers.

When Charles O’Bannon collected his third foul with 4:08 remaining in the half, UCLA’s lead was eight points and Tarver made it 10 again, 34-24, after a drive down the middle produced a short jumper.

A free throw by Reggie Geary and two baskets by Damon Stoudamire got Arizona to within 34-29 before Tarver ended the half with a drive for a 36-29 lead.

* USC BEATEN HANDILY: Arizona State overcomes a 10-point halftime deficit and outscores the Trojans, 36-8, in the final 11 minutes of an 87-62 victory at the Lyon Center. C6