UCLA, Love are board certified

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Nobody plays UCLA freshman center Kevin Love as tough as UCLA backup center Alfred Aboya.

The second-ranked Bruins beat Maryland, 71-59, Monday night in the semifinals of the O’Reilly Auto Parts CBE Classic. It was the first game played at the new Sprint Center, and Love had 18 points and 16 rebounds while playing with a left finger that was fractured in practice by Aboya.

Love said the finger was cracked Thursday. The culprit was Aboya, his physical teammate who has given Love bruised calves and thighs during practice. “I heard it pop,” Love said, then showed off the finger, which was still swollen.

The painful digit wasn’t a bother when it came to corralling the rebounds. Love’s 16 are a UCLA freshman record. JaRon Rush, who’s from Kansas City, and Jelani McCoy shared the old record of 15.

But Love lamented his five missed free throws in 12 attempts even while saying the sore finger was not the problem. “I can’t blame the free throws on the finger,” he said.

It also didn’t affect Love when he made a three-pointer with 1 minute 49 seconds left in the first half to give UCLA a 25-15 lead or when he put in a rebound at the buzzer to give UCLA a 28-18 halftime lead.

“That was a big basket,” UCLA Coach Ben Howland said.

The Bruins (4-0) attacked Maryland’s press with vigor to start the second half, outscoring the Terrapins, 15-5, and taking a 43-23 lead.

“In the second half when we broke the game open we attacked to score,” Howland said. “When teams press you attack and try to score.”

UCLA also out-rebounded the Terrapins, 44-29. Besides Love’s 16, Lorenzo Mata-Real had nine.

“It seemed like they always got a second shot when they needed it,” Maryland Coach Gary Williams said. “I thought that was a big part of the game.”

The Bruins had 19 offensive rebounds, which made their 23-for-61 shooting less painful.

Howland was also happy with his team’s defense. The Terrapins (3-1) shot 40% from the field (22 for 55) and made only one of 11 three-point shots.

UCLA started fast, moving ahead, 9-2. Luc Richard Mbah a Moute hit a baseline jumper, Josh Shipp made a three-pointer, Love made a layup and Aboya scored on a running dunk.

But the tone of the game changed when Shipp took off about 10 feet from the rim and made a flying dunk, then stuck out his chest and bellowed. The basket gave UCLA a 13-4 lead, but Shipp was assessed a technical foul for taunting and the Terrapins scored five straight points to close to within 13-9.

“We already talked about that technical foul in the locker room,” Howland said.

“I’ve learned my lesson,” said Shipp, who finished with 18 points.

Aboya gave a more emphatic synopsis of Howland’s talk. “Coach was really mad,” Aboya said. “That was a momentum switch. We had the momentum and that technical put them right back in the game.”

The Bruins started the second half with Love scoring on consecutive offensive rebounds -- of his own missed shots. Shipp had a layup and Aboya scored his second basket-rattling dunk, this one off a pass from Russell Westbrook, who has assumed most of the point-guard duties while junior Darren Collison recovers from a sprained left knee.

Westbrook celebrated Aboya’s slam vigorously but not within sight of the officials.

Westbrook’s own dunk gave UCLA its biggest lead of the game, 43-23 with 16:29 left. After that Howland had the injury-depleted Bruins use the shot clock to full advantage. Besides Collison, swingman Michael Roll and forward James Keefe are out. Westbrook played 38 minutes and had seven assists to three turnovers. “A good performance,” Howland called it.

The Bruins will need that play to continue. Howland, who’d initially hoped to have Collison back by Monday and later said he hoped his point guard could return for the George Washington game Nov. 28, said Monday night that it might not happen until the Dec. 8 game against Davidson.

“We won’t rush him,” Howland said.

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diane.pucin@latimes.com

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TONIGHT’S GAME

UCLA vs. Michigan State

Championship of CBE Classic

at Kansas City, 7 PST, ESPN2

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UP NEXT FOR UCLA

Michigan State, tonight, O’Reilly Auto Parts CBE Classic final, 7 PST, ESPN2 -- The 10th-ranked Spartans (3-0) beat Missouri, 86-83, in Monday’s second semifinal at the Sprint Center. Michigan State is led by senior point guard Drew Neitzel, who is a 40% three-point shooter in his career. The Bruins keep overcoming problems. Coach Ben Howland said the team had several computers stolen from a Kansas City hotel ballroom before Monday’s game. And four Bruins played 30 minutes or more Monday because injuries have shortened UCLA’s bench.