UCLA Turns Tables on Cal

It was the most awful loss last month, the way UCLA was beaten by 13 points by California at Pauley Pavilion. But the Bruins are young and they do learn.

They learned some patience. They learned that if they passed the ball inside, the outside shots become less pressured. They learned that if you begin a game with great enthusiasm and effort, an 11-point lead can grow to 20. They learned the hometown fans can be sent early into a rainy night. They learned that their stoic coach can be made to smile in the second half.

UCLA defeated the Bears, 77-62, Thursday night in front of 9,271 at Haas Pavilion. The Pacific 10 Conference victory kept the Bruins (14-8, 8-6) a half-game behind Stanford and in sole possession of fourth place. It was the Bruins’ first win at Cal (12-11, 5-8) since 2000.

“It was a great win for us,” UCLA Coach Ben Howland said. “I give us the credit.”

His loud voice bounced off the walls. The smile had come two-thirds of the way through the game when guard Arron Afflalo passed up a shot in the lane to get the ball in to center Michael Fey. Fey didn’t score, but the effort showed growth. Since a loss to Arizona last Saturday, Howland had pushed, prodded, yelled, lectured, cajoled, begged the Bruins to get the ball inside.

Fey, a 7-foot junior who averaged 5.7 shots a game while shooting 57% from the field, had 10 shots in the first half. Fey ended up only scoring eight points and shooting once in the second half, but the determination by point guard Jordan Farmar, Afflalo and Dijon Thompson -- who had game-high totals of 23 points and nine rebounds -- to keep Fey involved made everything else flow better.

“Inside-out works,” said Thompson, who had only six points in the first game.

Cal Coach Ben Braun noticed a difference in Thompson’s play. “I thought he came out with a lot of focus,” Braun said. “They got the ball in his hands a lot today and then he becomes a very difficult matchup for us because we like to play two post players. But when Dijon starts knocking down perimeter shots and can beat you off the dribble, it’s tough.”

Thompson made UCLA’s first basket -- a three-pointer that came on a possession where Fey touched the ball first -- and with about nine minutes left in the first half the Bruins led, 20-9, an unaccustomed luxury for a team whose reputation was to get behind and fight back.

“I like it better when we’re behind,” Thompson said. “When we’re ahead we get too relaxed out there.” He was kidding. Mostly.

Howland was also excited about UCLA’s defense. Cal made only 25 of 69 shots (36.2%) and leading scorer Richard Midgley had only five points on one-for-10 shooting.

“We did a great job of doubling the post,” Howland said, “and we did a good job of rotating.” Howland noted that Afflalo and Farmar combined for 12 rebounds.

One of Fey’s baskets, a hook shot with 1:10 left in the first half, gave UCLA a 37-23 lead, but Dominic McGuire and Rod Benson scored to give Cal some momentum.

The Bruins grabbed that momentum back by scoring the first eight points of the second half. Josh Shipp started with back-to-back layups -- the second coming off a perfect pass from Fey -- and Farmar (15 points, seven rebounds) put the Bruins up 45-27 with a fastbreak layup.

Farmar also made a big mistake that ended up as a well-learned but not costly lesson. After the Bruins had gone ahead, 57-37, Cal cut five points from the lead. With UCLA ahead, 58-43, Farmar drew a foul from Bear guard Martin Smith. Farmar got caught elbowing Smith in the chest after play stopped and was called for a technical foul. Midgley made both free throws to make the score 58-45 and the Bears took possession.

“He got in my face,” Farmar said, “and I nudged him a little bit. He was in my personal space, but it was dumb of me. That was a dumb move on my part.”

A turnover and quick Afflalo layup put the lead back to 15. The Bears got as close as 60-49 but no closer.