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UCLA Basketball: Bruins Blow 19-Point Lead In Loss To No. 12 Arizona

UCLA was primed for an upset until foul trouble opened the door for a Wildcat comeback.

Maren Angus-Coombs

UCLA Basketball: Bruins Blow 19-Point Lead In Loss To No. 12 Arizona
UCLA Basketball: Bruins Blow 19-Point Lead In Loss To No. 12 Arizona /
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Your UCLA Bruins men’s basketball program (8-11) blew a 19-point lead against No. 12 Arizona (14-4) on Saturday afternoon in a 77-71 loss at the McKale Center in Tucson.

Riding a two-game winning streak, UCLA put on a shooting clinic early in the first half and then turned into an undisciplined, chaotic mess down the stretch in the second half. 

With 13 minutes left in the game, the Bruins sent the Wildcats into the bonus and foul trouble allowed Arizona to mount its comeback making 22 of 23 free throws in the second half. The Wildcats were only 3 of 6 from the line in the first half.

The turning point came with 6:04 to play when Stefanovic was called for a shooting foul on Pelle Larsson and head coach Mick Cronin was assessed a technical foul. Larson sunk all four free throws to tie the game at 60. He also led all scorers with 22 points. 

For a team that averaged 4.4 three-pointers per game, the Bruins created space behind the arc early and often. They finished 9-for-26 from three-point range with six of those coming in the first half.

Sebastian Mack led the Bruins with 21 points and Lazar Stefanovic added 17 and Adem Bona joined the UCLA record books with his 94th career block. The sophomore center has 37 blocks through 19 games this season.

The first half saw UCLA on a mission to change the narrative about its offense. Stefanovic was a perfect 4-for-4 from the field including 3-for-3 from three-point range.

The Bruins carried a nine-point lead into halftime but led by at least 10 for most of the first half, which Arizona had rarely faced this season. Before Saturday, the Wildcats were 0-3 when trailing by double-digits.

To open the second half, UCLA continued its hot scoring with an 8-0 run.

The lead officially slipped away from UCLA's grasp when Caleb Love took advantage of a missed dunk. 

From there, UCLA completely lost control. The Bruins ended up with 17 personal fouls (26 total) and the Wildcats slammed it shut by holding the visitors without a field goal for almost four minutes.

UCLA has a week of practice before traveling to its crosstown rival, USC, on Saturday. That game will air on ESPN2 at 5 p.m. PST.

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Maren Angus-Coombs
MAREN ANGUS-COOMBS

Maren Angus-Coombs was born in Los Angeles and raised in Nashville, Tenn. She is a graduate of Middle Tennessee State University and has been a sports writer since 2008. Despite being raised in the South, her sports obsession has always been in Los Angeles. She is currently a staff writer for the LA Sports Report Network.