Bruins Rumble, Trojans Crumble

This went way beyond the 20 or so minutes that turned the game, beyond the entire night, beyond the whole trip.

The UCLA Bruins on Thursday essentially went from 19 points down in the first half to two weeks ahead, offering a burst of basketball that delivered an 83-62 victory over shell-shocked California and, more impressive than anything that transpired inside Haas Pavilion, the chance to control their own destiny.

It seemed impossible a week earlier, when UCLA was in seventh place in the Pacific 10 Conference, had just been trounced twice in a row at the Arizonas, and needed an unlikely string of wins. It even seemed impossible earlier the same night, when UCLA was no place to be found, having been buried from the start and ready to settle for an unlikely string of points.

But just look now.

By dominating the final 26 minutes--shooting 66.7% (24 of 36), committing only six turnovers, switching from a man-to-man defense to a matchup zone that silenced the Cal offense--the Bruins (16-11, 7-8 in Pac-10) gained a major hold on what once appeared to be an elusive NCAA tournament bid.

By staging one of the greatest comebacks in the history of a program filled with greatness--given the postseason implications, the 19-point deficit, playing on the road against a team that beat them a month earlier at Pauley Pavilion--the Bruins likely gained the opportunity to decide their own fate.

Two wins from among the final three games--at Stanford and home to Washington State and Washington, the latter two at the bottom of the Pac-10--gets them to 18 victories for the season, a number they are convinced will get them into the field of 64, given the commendable finish and the strength of schedule.

UCLA, once left for dead, or the NIT, probably needs only to beat two teams with far-inferior records to make the tournament.

“It feels good, obviously,” center Dan Gadzuric said. “Why wouldn’t it feel good?”

Exactly. The Bruins went from 19 points down with 6:13 left in the first half to 22 ahead with 35 seconds remaining in the game, eventually winning by 21 by taking care of the ball, altering the defense and getting major individual efforts. Gadzuric had a career-high 22 points, along with 16 rebounds, four blocks and two steals in 30 minutes. Earl Watson played all 40 minutes, collecting 12 points, eight assists against three turnovers and two steals. Billy Knight helped spark the resurgence with a pair of three-point shots eight points in all in just 11 minutes. Jason Kapono had 20 points and seven rebounds.

“It just shocked me to beat them by 21,” Knight said.

Several days worth of speculation over the starting lineup ended with Jerome Moiso at center in place of Gadzuric, whose tendinitis flared anew last week, and Sean Farnham at power forward for the third consecutive game. But none of the Bruins actually started.

Mostly, they stood. Except for those times when they traveled, or got out of the way when Cal (15-12, 6-9) got the ball inside. The biggest game of the season, arguably the first time in 20 years UCLA was in a critical game late in the season to qualify for the tournament, was a no-show.

Barely eight minutes in, Cal had a 22-8 lead, and the Bruins had as many turnovers as points. They had only eight shots, 10 fewer than the Bears. They had no pulse.

The deficit eventually reached 19 points, first at 31-12 and then 33-14 with 6:30 remaining, by which time UCLA had 11 turnovers and was shooting 31.3%. Cal, meanwhile, was at one and 51.9%. It was as bad for the Bruins as anything that had been seen in Tempe or Tucson or the Sports Arena.

And then it all turned around.

Rescuing so much more than a game--try their season and even their place in history, hoping to avoid becoming the first UCLA team since 1988 to not make the NCAA tournament--the comeback started with a Rico Hines free throw with 6:12 left in the half. Knight followed with a three-pointer.

It was still little more than an infusion from the bench, but then Kapono made a free throw and Knight hit from the baseline and Gadzuric offered power and speed, first putting back Moiso’s miss for an emphatic duck and then on the ensuing Cal possession stepping in front of Sean Lampley’s pass above the three-point arc and racing to the other end for a driving layup. All this happened as Cal was going the final 8:27 with one field goal.

This looked much more like recent times--the UCLA team that beat Oregon a week earlier and the Cal team that came in with three losses in the previous four games, most recently last Saturday at Washington State in the Cougars’ first conference victory. In all, the Bruins outscored the Bears, 16-2, in the final 6:12, climbing to within 35-30 at intermission, and Kapono’s three-pointer completed a 17-0 run for a 38-35 lead.

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PAC 10 STANDINGS

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Conf. Overall Team W L W L Stanford 14 1 25 1 Arizona 13 2 24 5 Oregon 11 5 20 7 Arizona St. 8 7 16 11 UCLA 7 8 16 11 USC 7 8 14 13 California 6 9 15 12 Oregon St. 5 11 13 14 Washington 4 11 9 18 Washington St. 1 14 6 19

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Thursday’s Results

Stanford 111, USC 68

UCLA 83, California 62

Oregon St. 70, Arizona 69 (OT)

Oregon 76, Arizona St. 74

Saturday’s Games

UCLA at Stanford, 1

USC at California, 5

Arizona at Oregon, 3

Washington St. at Washington, 3

Arizona St. at Oregon St., 7