Bruins Go to Their Rally Kap

What UCLA hopes will be a second-half rally in the Pacific 10 schedule began Wednesday night with a second-half rally against USC.

In deep in conference play and not exactly looking in great shape in the early going of this game either, the Bruins shot 68% over the final 20 minutes and used another successful execution of a matchup zone defense to claim an 83-78 victory over USC before 11,076 at Pauley Pavlion, avoiding a sweep in the season series for the first time in eight years and giving a much-needed boost to their NCAA tournament hopes.

UCLA is 13-8 overall and 4-6 in conference and back on a reasonable pace to reach the 18 wins it feels will be necessary for the postseason bid. USC (13-9, 6-4) lost its third in a row and fourth in five games but not perspective.

The one-game-at-a-time mantra is giving way to the big picture. Eleven Pac-10 wins, guard Brandon Granville said, will get the Trojans an NCAA bid, more victories than the Bruins will need because UCLA has the benefit of a nonconference schedule that includes, among others, Gonzaga, DePaul and Syracuse.

“This loss just puts added pressure on us for that next goal,� Granville said after getting nine assists to set the season school record with 179.

The Bruins, gearing up for Sunday’s game at No. 4 Syracuse, made 17 of 25 shots in the second half, with Jason Kapono going nine of 10, finishing at 10 of 14 overall and a season-high 27 points, 25 in the second half. They got another 22 points and seven assists, without a turnover, from Earl Watson, and 15 points, 12 rebounds and three steals from Jerome Moiso.

It wasn’t only the offense. After using a man-to-man defense for all but a few USC possessions in the first half, the Bruins turned exclusively back to the matchup zone after intermission that had been such a key in victories over DePaul and North Carolina, then limited the Trojans to 36.7% the rest of the way.

“They ended up shooting [45.6%] tonight,� Kapono said. “[In the first meeting], they shot like . . . 100%. Layup after layup after layup.�

Not that the Bruins remember the Jan. 12 meeting at the Sports Arena or anything.

“I remember it every day,� Watson said. “Every day since that last game.�

Despite the memory, UCLA needed only 8 1/2 minutes to fall behind by 10 points, 22-12. It came as both teams lost big men with two quick fouls, Konstantinos Charissis of the Trojans after only 90 seconds and Dan Gadzuric of the Bruins after 3:34. Coach Steve Lavin sent Matt Barnes in to replace Gadzuric, but that was merely the start of the downsizing.

UCLA was still playing catchup went it went small. Not merely two forwards and three forwards, but with Barnes as the closest thing to a power player, joining Kapono, Ryan Bailey, Rico Hines and Ray Young on the court.

When Moiso came in soon after, the Bruins at least had an inside presence. Even so, Hines, back after missing four games because of a sprained toe, got to defend Trojan center Brian Scalabrine while giving away five inches and David Bluthenthal while giving away three.

UCLA lived to tell, partly because the Trojans did not pound the interior. No need to--Bluthenthal and Granville made consecutive three-pointers, maintaining the double-digit lead, 36-26, with 4:15 remaining in the half. The Bruins were already being threatened with another blowout by their cross-town rivals.

This was different than the first meeting, though. Then, UCLA played with little heart and foolishly tried to press a team with greater speed and athleticism. This time, they at least showed intensity, even climbing out of the early holes and getting within 41-37 at the break.

The momentum before halftime carried over, the Bruins moving ahead at 42-41, their first lead since 5-3.