COLLEGE BASKETBALL / MEN’S FINAL FOUR REPORT : Bruins’ Bailey, With Help From Dollar, Puts a Padlock on Cowboys’ Rutherford

UCLA freshman guard Toby Bailey says he can’t remember the last time he put up only two shots in a game--any game. But that’s how many he had Saturday, making one and scoring two points in 23 minutes.

For Bailey, who actually had only one attempt Dec. 28 against North Carolina State and two Dec. 5 against Kentucky, most of his playing time against Oklahoma State was spent chasing scorer Randy Rutherford around screens all over the court.

Together, Bailey and sophomore Cameron Dollar held Rutherford to four-of-13 shooting from the field, and only four of 11 from three-point distance.

“The guys were making fun of me because I’m usually the gunner,” Bailey said. “But that wasn’t my role today, I just wanted to play defense and get whatever shots that came to me.”

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On a key play late in the game, Rutherford, moments after making a tough three-point shot from the left corner to cut UCLA’s lead to 62-61, had a chance to make another from the right corner, but missed.

Charles O’Bannon, who had his hand in Rutherford’s face for the made basket, said help from center George Zidek probably was the difference in the miss.

“I really couldn’t believe he made it,” O’Bannon said of the first shot. “I was a fingernail away from blocking it, and it was all net. But on the second one, I didn’t do anything different, I just got a little help from George.

“The coaches told us that in the last six to eight minutes of the game, in every tape that they saw, Rutherford really stepped up and had a tremendous impact. We knew it was going to him.”