Dixon gets a lesson from Howland

The similarities between UCLA Coach Ben Howland and his former protege, Pittsburgh Coach Jamie Dixon, include their appreciation for the finer points of defense, their restlessness on the sideline and, on Thursday, extended to their choice of identically dark suits worn over light-blue shirts and patterned ties.

The difference between them, though, is significant.

Howland knows how to guide a team through a defining moment, out the other side, and into the Elite Eight.

Dixon, though undeniably bright and capable of coaxing a lot out of a limited lineup, has not achieved that breakthrough.

Howland’s Bruins made sure he would not do it at their expense.

The master schooled his former student in the Bruins’ 64-55 Sweet 16 victory over the Panthers, delighting a heavily pro-UCLA crowd of 18,049 at HP Pavilion. Pitt’s superior size proved no advantage against UCLA’s persistent and pesky defensive effort, which extended deep into the bench for solid contributions from Alfred Aboya, James Keefe and Ryan Wright after Luc Richard Mbah a Moute picked up two fouls in the first 3 minutes 22 seconds.

“Coming into this tournament, we just wanted to have a better sense of urgency, and I think we’ve done a good job of doing that and being alert on defense,” UCLA guard Darren Collison said. “If you have that sense of urgency, you can make a lot of things happen.”

In ensuring that urgency did not become panic, in being patient and plotting the double teams that rendered 7-foot center Aaron Gray ineffective, Howland showed the smarts that come from experience. The Bruins have reached the Elite Eight in back-to-back seasons for the first time since 1979 and 1980, and as much as Howland wanted to deflect credit to his players, the plaudits belonged to him too.

That was especially true Thursday because he had to get past Dixon, one of his closest friends, to earn a berth against Kansas in the West Regional final on Saturday. Seeing Dixon and other Panthers staffers in the locker room across the hall Thursday was “surreal,” Howland said.

“I hope we never have to play again,” he added. “You know, probably we will have to at some point, assuming we can both get back in the tournament here again in the near future.”

Dixon graciously congratulated the Bruins and praised their defensive play. He and Howland exchanged only a quick handshake at game’s end, but they surely will talk at length over the summer, when Howland can again resume the role of master to Dixon’s apprentice.

“It’s a little tough,” Dixon said, his tie loosened and his eyes devoid of emotion. “It didn’t feel too different during the game, though. It doesn’t right now. It just feels like a loss, and a bad one, a disappointing, end-of-the-year loss.”

The Bruins were determined to avoid that feeling Thursday. They succeeded on the strength of a performance that lacked finesse but was basic and straightforward and remained unwavering after Mbah a Moute and Lorenzo Mata each got two fouls in the first half.

“We have the quickness and athleticism and we tried to use it against them,” Mbah a Moute. “We did a good job doing it.

“Our bench was great, seeing James Keefe stepping up, going out for the double team and playing hard. He made some great plays. Alfred gave us great energy. That’s what you need at this stage to win.”

They also need to believe they can win, and Howland has helped impress that upon them by giving them the tools and confidence to prevail no matter what style their opponent chooses to play.

Defense remains the constant, whether they’re playing an up-tempo game or the deliberate and ugly game they played in defeating Indiana in the second round.

“The thing about us is that at the beginning of the season, the coaches were preaching fastbreak, push it out more,” Collison said, “but teams started slowing it up more and we have to prepare ourselves. This team is doing a good job of doing that.

“This team is starting to be in a groove with the half-court set. If teams want to grind it out, want to run, we can go into a running game with them.”

There are rough spots and potential vulnerabilities in UCLA’s lineup.

Although Arron Afflalo led the Bruins with 17 points, he’s still seeking the shooting touch that deserted him a few weeks ago; he was merely three for 11 from the floor. And though they survived on Thursday after Mbah a Moute and Mata got into foul trouble, they’d be pushing their luck if they did that against Kansas on Saturday.

So far, though supposedly undersized, they haven’t been overwhelmed.

“Even though this team doesn’t have seniors we have a lot of heart. We look here,” Collison said, pounding the left side of his chest.

“We look at each other and feed off each other.”

They intend to continue that for a while.

“A win is a win. We’re happy no matter how they come,” Josh Shipp said. “We didn’t shoot as well as we’d like to but we won.... The bench was definitely a key tonight but overall our intensity and how we executed are the reason why we won.”

And why Pitt is going home.

helene.ellliott@latimes.com