Back Spasms End Gadzuric’s Day

It has been a rough week for UCLA center Dan Gadzuric, who came into Thursday’s showdown against USC having made 19 of 23 shots in his three previous games.

He got into foul trouble against the Trojans and played only 18 minutes--17 of which came in the second half. And Saturday, he left for the locker room after nine minutes because he was suffering from back spasms.

“My back just tightened up,” he said about half an hour after the game. “I feel fine now though.”

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For the fourth time in five games, the Bruins ended the first half with a timely basket.

Ryan Bailey had a buzzer-beating tip of an Earl Watson miss that gave UCLA a 44-30 lead heading into the locker room.

A few seconds earlier, there was a moment of levity. Guard Ray Young, who rushed a 25-foot shot with about 20 seconds remaining in the first half against USC, acted as if he might pull up for a similar shot against Villanova. He pump-faked, passed, then glanced at Coach Steve Lavin and smiled.

Lavin, who had thrown up his hands and looked to be shouting “No, Ray, no!” gathered himself and smiled back.

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Senior walk-on Jason Flowers doesn’t like to think of himself as a good-luck charm, but the numbers don’t lie. The Bruins are 4-0 with Flowers in the starting lineup.

“I feel really good about my role,” said Flowers, who contributed eight points and three assists in 14 minutes. “A lot of people who I haven’t talked to in a long time are looking me up now. Like they just discovered I’m on the team. It’s pretty funny.”