SEATTLE — If there was such a thing as a must win in early December, this might have been it for UCLA.
The Bruins had fallen out of the national rankings and had no quality wins to their name after nearly a month of lifeless basketball.
They found a pulse Wednesday night thanks to a 2-3 zone and an incredibly hot stretch from Tyler Bilodeau in his return from a knee injury.
Bilodeau scored 16 straight points for UCLA early in the second half while also fighting his way through cramps that required frequent trips to the bench and the massaging of his lower legs with a device.
There was also the reemergence of Donovan Dent and a long-range heater from Skyy Clark, all combining to help the Bruins snare an 82-80 victory over Washington at Alaska Airlines Arena in their Big Ten opener.
It got more than a little scary late. Once down by 16 points, the Huskies pulled to within 78-77 with 36 seconds left after the Bruins’ stall tactics resulted in one empty possession after another.
Zoom Diallo was called for a questionable foul on Clark’s three-point attempt and Clark made all three free throws to provide a four-point cushion.
Diallo got his revenge when he drove on Clark, making a layup in which he drew a foul. After Diallo made the resulting free throw, it was back to a one-point lead for the Bruins. The Huskies fouled Dent in the backcourt and he made the first free throw before missing the second.
Diallo dribbled furiously up the court before firing a three-pointer that was off the mark at the buzzer, averting disaster for the Bruins and causing Dent to playfully grab Clark around the shoulders while they ran off the court in glee.
Bilodeau scored 16 of his 21 points during an impressive stretch early in the second half and Clark finished with 25 points for UCLA (6-2 overall, 1-0 Big Ten). Dent added 17 points and eight assists and the Bruins’ defense was slightly stronger while unveiling a new wrinkle eight days after giving up 80 points in a loss to California.
With the Bruins up by 16 points with less than five minutes left, it was almost hard to remember they had trailed the Huskies (5-2, 0-1) by 11 in the game’s early going while having no answers for Huskies forward Hannes Steinbach. They finally found one by going to the zone defense that has been a rarity under Cronin.
UCLA’s starting lineup was fully intact upon the return of Bilodeau from a two-game absence caused by his knee injury, but top reserve Trent Perry was unavailable because of a left ankle injury suffered earlier in the week in practice.
Having been criticized by Cronin for folding when things get tough, the Bruins offered a strong retort in the first half on the way to taking a 36-32 lead by the game’s midpoint.
The game was trending in a far different direction early, when Washington continually attacked the basket and built a 16-5 lead. But UCLA broke out a 2-3 zone that befuddled the Huskies and caused a flurry of turnovers. The Bruins went on a 14-0 run, taking their first lead on one of Clark’s five three-pointers in the first half.
Clark was also a force on the defensive end, blocking two shots and drawing two offensive fouls on the Huskies. There was another good sign for UCLA in that point guard Dent looked far more comfortable than he had recently, throwing a lob to Steven Jamerson for a dunk and shooting with confidence.
For a while it appeared as if Steinbach (29 points on 11-for-12 shooting) might outscore the Bruins all by himself in his return from a badly sprained ankle. Powering his way toward one easy basket after another, Steinbach scored the game’s first six points and made his first six shots before heading to the bench after picking up his second foul with 5:19 left before halftime.
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