Bruins beat Wildcats in predictably unpredictable game
Feb 27, 2011, 1:39 AM | Updated: 1:39 am
LOS ANGELES, Calif – In a year where nothing in the Pac-10
is predictable, at least one thing remained constant
Saturday afternoon.
A contest between the Arizona Wildcats and UCLA Bruins
late in the season at Pauley Pavillion would have a
significant impact on the Pac-10 championship race.
The Bruins and Wildcats have combined to win 19 of the
last 25 regular season Pac-10 championships.
Needing a win to move into a first place tie, UCLA (21-8,
12-4) shocked #10 Arizona (23-6, 12-4) 71-49 on John R.
Wooden Court.
Reeves Nelson led the Bruins with a game-high 27 points
and 16 rebounds as he powered UCLA to a tie for first
place with the Wildcats. As advertised, Joshua Smith added
17 points while Tyler Honeycutt added 15 points for the
Bruins. Tyler Tripani, the great-grandson of John R.
Wooden, was inserted in the game late, scoring two points
in a brief appearance.
UCLA was dominant on the boards both offensively and
defensively. The Bruins scored 50 points in the paint to
go along with 33 rebounds, including seven on the
offensive glass.
The Wildcats, coming off a 65-57 loss at USC Thursday,
looked lost as they let UCLA go on a 22-2 run starting in
the first half and ending 5:30 into the second half,
giving the Bruins their largest lead at 51-30.
Derrick Williams, an All-America candidate, had a quiet
return to the Los Angeles area accounting for 15 points
and seven rebounds on the afternoon. Kyle Fogg was the
only other Wildcat in double digits with 10.
