UCLA uses defensive switch, offensive rebounding to beat Arizona, keep Pac-12 wide open

The 180-degree turning point of UCLA’s biggest win of the season wasn’t a Lonzo Ball dunk, wasn’t a Bryce Alford bomb, wasn’t a TJ Leaf drive. It wasn’t a flash flood of a fast break, wasn’t a 3-point barrage, wasn’t a crafty set play. No, it was something UCLA hasn’t often been praised for this season.

It was defense.

Oh, and rebounding. Rebounding too. Specifically offensive rebounding, the one facet of the nation’s top offense that isn’t typically anything special.

The fifth-ranked Bruins, who trailed No. 4 Arizona by four at halftime in the first Pac-12 game between top-five teams in nine years, used a zone defense and nine second-half offensive rebounds to beat the Wildcats, 77-72, and ensure that the Pac-12 race will come down to the regular season’s final weekend.

Arizona closed the first half on a 16-5 run behind 16 first-half points from Allonzo Trier, and led 43-39 at the break. But in the second half, UCLA head coach Steve Alford went primarily to a 3-2 zone that interrupted everything Trier and the Wildcats were doing well offensively.

The zone had Arizona swinging the ball around the perimeter for a good portion of the second half. It halted the Wildcats’ penetration. It had Arizona coach Sean Miller frantically gesticulating, trying to get his team to move, trying to get the ball to move, and trying to figure out a defensive look that the Bruins have shown at times this season, but hadn’t shown much in the first half.

Miller used his final timeout with 6:47 to play in an attempt to solve the zone before the game got away from his team, but the solution arrived too late. The zone, along with some hot shooting and second-chance points, had allowed UCLA to turn a four-point halftime deficit into a double-digit lead. The Wildcats made a late charge, and had the ball down three with under 30 seconds to play, but Kadeem Allen air-balled a 3. It was the closest the Wildcats would get.

But the game was lost in the 11-minute stretch smack dab in the middle of the second half, when Arizona scored just nine points against the zone. The length of Ball, 6-foot-6, at the head of the 3 in the 3-2 made the Wildcat guards hesitant. The urgency of UCLA close-outs prevented Arizona from finding open looks from beyond the arc. It wasn’t until the final five minutes that the Wildcats finally found routes into the teeth of the zone.

While Arizona’s offense faltered, UCLA’s flourished in large part due to hustle plays. The Bruins, on average, retrieve about 30 percent of their missed shots, a mediocre mark, but in the second half tracked down 56 percent of their misses. They then converted offensive board after offensive board into 14 second-chance points, several of them on kick-outs for 3s. They shot 4 of 9 from deep in the second half after going 4 of 17 before the break. Alford hit three of the 3s, and led a balanced scoring effort with 15 points.

Trier finished with 28 points for Arizona, a season-high, but didn’t get enough help. Lauri Markkanen was cold all game; he finished with 10 points, and didn’t make a 3-pointer. The Wildcats shot 5 for 18 from beyond the arc, and 2 for 10 in the second half against the zone.

The loss drops Arizona to 15-2 in the Pac-12, and into a tie with Oregon atop the conference. The Ducks beat Stanford earlier on Saturday. UCLA, with the win, pulled to within one game in the loss column of the league leaders.

UCLA’s final two games are at home against Washington and Washington State, so it should conclude Pac-12 play at 15-3. Arizona and Oregon each have one game remaining; the Wildcats play at Arizona State, while the Ducks play at Oregon State.

If the two current co-leaders win and finish tied atop the standings, Oregon would received the No. 1 seed in the Pac-12 tournament. Arizona would be the 2, and UCLA the 3.

But perhaps the Bruins’ victory will impact a more important seeding decision, the one the NCAA tournament selection committee will make 15 days from now. UCLA has been projected as a 3- or 4-seed in recent weeks. A road win over a top-five team won’t singlehandedly vault the Bruins up to the 2-seed line, but puts them in position to get there.

And if nothing else, Saturday’s victory sent a message to all those who gave up on UCLA after two-straight losses in late January: The Bruins, defensive fragility and all, are dangerous. And if that defense gets a big more sturdy, even just in spurts? UCLA will be pretty darn tough to beat.