You want effort?
Trent Perry followed one sneaky steal with another in a span of less than a minute.
You want defensive intensity?
Xavier Booker stepped in front of his man, rising to block a dunk attempt.
You want offensive efficiency?
Skyy Clark blew by one helpless defender after another on the way to repeated driving layups.
Three days after Mick Cronin used a lineup change to challenge his players to be tougher, to play some defense, to show they cared, the UCLA Bruins provided a retort.
Hey, coach, take a look at us now.
Bringing the intensity early and building a massive early cushion thanks to strong offense and rebounding, the No. 19 Bruins unloaded any lingering frustrations during an 86-46 victory over Presbyterian on Friday night at Pauley Pavilion.
Cronin went back to his normal starting lineup with the exception of forward Tyler Bilodeau, who was out after spraining his left knee in practice Thursday. Brandon Williams replaced Bilodeau in the starting lineup and delivered his best performance of the season, finishing with 11 points and seven rebounds.
The game lacked drama after UCLA (5-1) built a double-digit lead in less than eight minutes while clobbering the Blue Hose (3-5) on the boards and making nearly every shot. Clark made his first six shots — five on driving layups — on the way to a game-high 22 points on nine-for-11 shooting.
It was a strong effort across the board for the Bruins, who shot 62.7% while holding Presbyterian to 33.3% and also outrebounded the Blue Hose, 33-25. UCLA’s shooting percentage was its best in seven seasons under Cronin, topping the 62.1% it recorded against Iowa last season.
Point guard Donovan Dent, the last of UCLA’s regular starters to enter the game against Sacramento State on Tuesday, redeemed himself with some offensive sorcery against Presbyterian. Making his usual array of driving layups and floating jumpers, Dent finished with 14 points, five assists and only one turnover in 24 minutes.
Jonah Pierce scored 13 points to lead the Blue Hose, a tiny South Carolina-based outfit out of the Big South Conference that lost to California by only 10 points earlier this week.
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