SAN DIEGO — The clapping started rhythmically, with considerable vigor.
It’s a tradition inside Viejas Arena. Fans clap until San Diego State scores its first points, something that should take — at most — a couple of possessions.
More than seven minutes into No. 12 UCLA’s exhibition game against the Aztecs on Friday night, those fans were still clapping … with so little oomph that the gesture was barely audible.
They clapped through one turnover after another, through bad passes and a traveling violation and a player stepping out of bounds and some sloppy ballhandling in the backcourt. Less than five minutes into the game, the Bruins had forced seven turnovers. They scored the game’s first 17 points.
By the time San Diego State’s Sean Newman Jr. sank a three-pointer, finally giving those weary fans’ hands a break, 7 minutes 41 seconds had elapsed and UCLA had made its own point.
These Bruins might be pretty good defensively.
“We just know us guarding,” UCLA point guard Donovan Dent said afterward, “is going to get us everywhere we want to go.”
Predictably, San Diego State made several runs, eventually closing to within three points in the second half, but UCLA’s early lockdown defense and some late offensive execution sparked a 67-60 victory that revealed a lot of preseason positives.
“I didn’t tell our team, but I was happy they made the run at us,” Bruins coach Mick Cronin said. “I wanted to see how Donnie, Skyy [Clark] and the guys were going to react and I purposely didn’t call a timeout. You can do that when you have maybe the best two guards in the country.”
UCLA’s backcourt earned that praise on a night that Dent tallied 18 points, three assists and three steals alongside Clark’s 13 points, four rebounds and two assists despite the latter player being limited to 21 minutes because of cramping. The duo combined to make 12 of 12 free throws.
“You want a key to making free throws?” Cronin said. “Have the right guy shooting.”
Continually attacking instead of just trying to sit on their lead, the Bruins benefited from a Dent driving layup in traffic and a Jamar Brown three-pointer after teammate Tyler Bilodeau made an extra pass, giving UCLA a 65-54 lead with 3:20 left and ensuring a happy bus ride home.
Pulling away on a night that Bilodeau (seven points) made only three of 10 shots and forward Eric Dailey Jr. sat out while continuing to round into form from a minor knee injury made the Bruins’ showing all the more impressive. UCLA also didn’t get much production from centers Xavier Booker and Steven Jamerson II, who combined for seven rebounds.
“We’ve got to get 12-plus rebounds out of the five spot per game,” Cronin said.
The thinking in playing this game was that San Diego State would provide a measure of where the Bruins stood as of mid-October, an entire season ahead and so much work to do.
“I wanted the toughest game,” Cronin said, “we could get without getting on an airplane.”
The choice of the opponent was intentional. Known for causing headaches, particularly in trying to run an offense, the Aztecs can make the scoring of a single basket a slog.
But it was the Bruins who were doing most of the mucking up. They forced 21 turnovers — 14 in the first half — and held San Diego State to 42.6% shooting, including 21.7% from long range. UCLA also limited the Aztecs to just four points in the paint in the first half before the Aztecs found considerably more success inside later in the game.
“I told them at halftime,” Cronin said of his players, “if we keep giving up four points in the paint per half, we will win the national title.”
In perhaps his most impressive sequence as a Bruin, Clark followed a driving layup in the first half with a steal before sidestepping a defender for a three-pointer. After Clark came up with another steal, he followed Brown’s missed layup with a putback dunk.
“I don’t know where that came from,” Clark said with a laugh, crediting offseason conditioning work.
San Diego State was also shorthanded, playing without center Magoon Gwath because of an unspecified injury. Brown, starting in place of Dailey, scored nine points to go with three steals.
His team having shown considerable resolve, Cronin was clearly pleased with the early returns on his latest roster makeover.
“We got everything we wanted out of it,” Cronin said. “To come here and win with Tyler Bilodeau making three baskets, like, we’d have had no chance last year. No chance. So we’re a different team, honestly.”
The post UCLA showcases its potential on defense in exhibition win over San Diego State appeared first on Los Angeles Times.
