UCLA Bruins Insider Podcast: Complete Recap of Bruins' Loss to North Carolina

Our latest episode of the UCLA Bruins Insider Podcast recaps the Bruins' brutal loss to the North Carolina Tar Heels on Saturday afternoon at Madison Square Garden. The Bruins saw their nine-game winning streak snapped as they gave up a late lead.

Dec 21, 2024; New York, NY, USA; UCLA Bruins forward Tyler Bilodeau (34) shoots the ball while being defended by North Carolina Tar Heels forward Ty Claude (0) during the first half at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: John Jones-Imagn Images / John Jones-Imagn Images

The No. 18 UCLA Bruins (10-2) have their nine-game winning streak broken on Saturday night in a 76-74 loss to the North Carolina Tar Heels (7-5) at Madison Square Garden. A double-digit lead would vanish for the Bruins as they caught the Tar Heels on a hot few final minutes to earn the win.

In this episode of the UCLA Bruins Insider Podcast, Bruins on SI beat writer Tom Cavanaugh breaks down the Bruins' first loss since early November as they struggled from the free throw line and making shots down the stretch to earn the loss.

You can watch the episode below:

The Bruins led by 16 points with just under 13 minutes to play and would proceed to give up the lead over the final several minutes. In the final nine minutes, the Bruins would sink just two field goals while the Tar Heels made 10 of their final 15 shots to finish the game.

Shooting woes only came at the free throw line for the Bruins as they shot 49% from the field, 50% from downtown, but a disappointing 59% from the charity stripe, hitting just 13 of 22 free throw attempts. So many points left off the board which may have earned the Bruins the victory.

The top two scorers for the Bruins both earned career highs as junior forward Tyler Bilodeau posted 26 points with five 3-pointers, while sophomore guard Sebastian Mack had an impressive bounce-back performance with 22 points and three assists.

There will be a major emphasis on finishing games for this Bruins team in this week of practice. They nearly gave up a lead against No. 12 Oregon and Arizona over their last few games. They escaped with wins in both those games but came up on the wrong side against the Tar Heels.

The Bruins will take a much-needed break as they will not play until next Saturday when they face the No. 13 Gonzaga Bulldogs at the Intuit Dome, home of the NBA's Los Angeles Clippers. A big spot to regenerate momentum in a bounce-back spot against another top-ranked team.

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