UCLA Men's Basketball Beats Akron in Tight NCAA Tournament Opener

The Bruins were trailing for most of the night, but Tyger Campbell hit big shots late and Cody Riley got a block to ice it.

When Johnny Juzang pulled up and knocked down a 3 on the first possession of the night, it seemed like the Bruins would put on the same kind of show they did last March Madness.

They eventually did, it just took them a while to get there.

No. 4 seed UCLA men's basketball (26-7, 15-5 Pac-12) is no Cinderella this time around, coming into the weekend favored to make the Sweet 16 or beyond. No. 13 seed Akron (24-10, 14-6 MAC) gave them everything they could handle in the opening round of the NCAA tournament up in Portland, a far cry from last year's feel-good Final Four run, but the Bruins were able to eke out a 57-53 victory.

Akron led for nearly three quarters of the night and were up by seven points inside of six minutes. UCLA was unable to hit shots for a big chunk of the game.

A 15-4 run to close things out – highlighted by Tyger Campbell 3-pointers and Cody Riley defensive stops – provided the Bruins the boost they needed to survive and advance.

The energy on UCLA's bench was palpable in those final moments, something that was not the case early on.

Akron immediately answered Juzang's game-opening triple with one of their own, then picked off a pass at midcourt and ran ahead for a fast break slam.

After going back up 10-7, UCLA got back to racking up the turnovers and misses. The Bruins had already coughed it up five times midway through the first half and were 1 of their last 10 from the field, putting them down 18-10.

UCLA was pushing the ball amid all the miscues, seemingly getting flustered and rushing every other possession.

Eventually, the Bruins got things under control a bit when an and-1 by Campbell ended the Zips' 11-0 run. That started a 9-2 run for UCLA, and although Akron got a couple of free throws to widen the gap, guard/forward Jaime Jaquez Jr. stepped into a 3 to tie things up.

Jaquez got a steal under the basket and wound up taking a pair of free throws and hitting one to give the Bruins the lead.

Akron, which hadn't hit a field goal in nearly seven minutes at that point, then lobbed one ahead for a transition layup followed by a short jumper to make it 26-23. Jaquez hit a couple more free throws, but turned it over before the buzzer as UCLA went into the break down 26-25.

A dunk early on in the second put the Zips back up by three, and even after Juzang finally got his second shot of the night to fall, Akron got that lead right back.

Juzang pushed a fast break and made a no-look bounce pass to Jaquez, who hit the and-1 layup to finally tie things up at 32 apiece and seemingly give the Bruins some evasive momentum. The Zips immediately went back ahead by four, though.

It took freshman wing Peyton Watson hitting a 3-pointer for UCLA to go back ahead, but once again, Akron snatched the lead right back and Watson got called for a foul 90 feet away from the hoop after missing a contact floater.

Another go-ahead Watson jumper, another Zips answer.

Guard Xavier Castaneda hit back-to-back wide open 3-pointers. Guard Greg Tribble hit a layup, drew a foul and hit the free throw to make it 47-39.

Guard Jules Bernard hit a couple 3s of his own after missing his first four long balls of the night. But right as Juzang hit a jumper, for Castaneda attacked Riley to get those two points right back.

The Bruins finally got a stop, and although their next shot didn't fall, Jaquez got a rebound and kicked to Campbell for an open corner 3. A few possessions later, Campbell pulled up for a midrange jumper to put the Bruins ahead.

With just over a minute left, Campbell found the ball in his hands as the shot clock wound down. Standing on the half court logo, he hoisted up a prayer and had it answered, putting UCLA up 55-51.

Akron got a layup with 39 seconds to go, and they had a chance to tie after Jaquez's dagger attempt came up short. That's when Riley went up and got a block at the rim with his trailing hand, setting up the clinching free throws for Juzang.

Campbell's late push meant he led the way with 16 points, while Jaquez finished with 15, Bernard put up 10 and Juzang had nine. Campbell was the only one of that bunch who didn't shoot below 50% from the field, as UCLA was actually outshot 40% to 35% from the field.

Akron won the points in the paint battle 26-10 and also had more points off turnovers. The Bruins had more steals and blocks, though, and they assisted 14 of their 19 field goals compared to the Zips only picking up helpers on four of their 21 makes.

The blue and gold, finally using ball movement to free up shooters and knock down open looks, flipped a switch in those final moments and emerged victorious as a result.

UCLA went from getting yelled at in the huddle to trotting off the court with smiles on their faces, and they will get back to work Saturday against No. 5 seed St. Mary's with a spot in the Sweet 16 on the line.

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