In a Numbers Game, UCLA Prevails Again

UCLA’s depth overcame UCLA’s inexperience Saturday afternoon, resulting in a 7-0 run in the final 2:18 and a 72-67 victory over Nevada Las Vegas before 9,855 at Pauley Pavilion and another learning experience for the young Bruins.

A few lessons, actually.

It’s usually not a good idea to switch on the cruise control seven minutes into the game. When UCLA did, the Runnin’ Rebels took advantage and went from 20-6 down to a 40-40 tie at halftime.

Inexperienced or not, the Bruins’ bench is strong enough to make a difference in close games, albeit close games against unranked teams such as Nevada Las Vegas, whose four victories were against Sacred Heart, Troy State, Weber State and Nevada Reno. UCLA showed that in the second half as it erased a 13-point deficit while Nevada Las Vegas ran short of fresh bodies.

Biggest of all, the Bruins got another one of those victories to offset the growing pains that have come and will continue to come. They persevered and won for the third time in a row and for the fifth time in seven games overall.

That it came on the heels of another down-to-the-wire win, last Saturday against well-regarded Oklahoma State in the Wooden Classic at the Arrowhead Pond, made the outcome against UNLV that much more satisfying.

“Both the Oklahoma State and UNLV games were ideal games for a young team to experience,” Coach Steve Lavin said. “We’ve called them before ‘grinder games.’ You know in a competitive league like the Pacific 10 [Conference] that there’s going to be a lot of grinder games, so these now help.

“To have two games in a row like this where you’re challenged down to the wire--where you have to execute and get pressure stops and hit free throws in the final seconds--is a good reference point for this team. That can be a help to us down the line.”

The 15th-ranked Bruins were in control at the start, building the 20-6 lead as UNLV hit one field goal in the opening 6:29.

But the Runnin’ Rebels regrouped and grabbed the momentum. A 14-2 run got them within 36-35 with 2:03 remaining. When Brian Keefe, a transfer from UC Irvine, made a three-pointer with two seconds left, they had climbed all the way back, to a tie at halftime.

UNLV used a 19-6 rally the final 5:53 of the half to get a 40-40 game, but didn’t stop there. It opened the second half with an identical charge--19-6--to claim a 59-46 lead with 13 minutes remaining.

In all, it was a 53-26 run for the Runnin’ Rebels, going from 20-6 down to 59-46 ahead.

But it also turned out to be an exhaustive run.

“We got fatigued,” Coach Bill Bayno said. “But I thought rather than put in the freshmen who hadn’t played, we would take the air out of the ball.”

Slow the game down, in other words, unless they had an opportunity to break.

It turned out to be an opportunity for UCLA.

“They were blitzkrieging us,” Lavin said. “We were actually glad to see them put the ball in the freezer.”

The Bruins seized it as their chance to regroup, coming after a stretch in which they committed five turnovers in six possessions.

Momentum swung back in their favor in the form of a 15-2 rally, worth a 61-61 tie with five minutes left. They were down, 67-65, but got a dunk from Dan Gadzuric, evening it again at 67-67 with two minutes left.

The Bruins had lost Jerome Moiso, who fouled out with 3:42 left after 14 points on seven-of-nine shooting, but not their composure. They know some people might have expected otherwise.

“I think a lot of people thought that in the stands,” sophomore guard Earl Watson said. “I think a lot of our fans thought that. That’s natural.”

Added freshman swingman JaRon Rush: “People may think we’re not able to react well to those situations because we’re a young team and we might have gotten our heads down. But we fought back.”

When Gadzuric was fouled, he made one from the line with 1:57 remaining. The victory was clinched when Baron Davis, who had missed all six previous free throws, made both tries with 36 seconds left. Rush’s basket with 14 seconds showing, after stealing the ball from Nevada Las Vegas’ Shawn Marion immediately after Marion’s defensive rebound, made for the 72-67 final.

The final UNLV basket had come with 2:42 to go. That was also its only field goal of the final 13 minutes--the other six points came on free throws--as the 59-46 lead evaporated. Four Walkin’ Rebels played at least 35 minutes, including Marion, who went 39 minutes and had a game-high 22 points along with eight rebounds, but only eight points in the second half and none in the final 14 minutes.