Bruins down Ducks, win 6th straight
By Daily Bruin Staff
Feb. 22, 2001 9:00 p.m.
 MARY CIECEK/Daily Bruin Senior Staff Matt
Barnes goes to the basket against Oregon’s Luke
Jackson in first half action at McArthur Court in
Eugene,Oregon. UCLA 88 Oregan 73
By AJ Cadman
Daily Bruin Senior Staff
EUGENE, Ore. “”mdash; While the UCLA players missed
Thursday’s episode of the hit television series
“Survivor,” their showdown with Oregon almost banished
the Bruins from their island in the national rankings.
The No. 15 Bruins (18-6, 11-2 Pac-10) held the Ducks (13-11,
4-10) to under 32 percent shooting for the game and survived to win
88-73 before a sellout crowd of 9,087 at McArthur Court.
“We were able to withstand their surge in the second half
and execute our game plan,” said UCLA Head Coach Steve
Lavin.
UCLA jumped out to a 21-point lead just five minutes into the
second frame. Then the rims became unkind to the Bruins. They did
not score for more than six minutes, as Oregon put together 13
straight points to cut the margin to eight.
During that stretch, the tribal council of referees sent senior
point guard Earl Watson to the bench with his fifth foul. There was
12:07 left in the game and the Bruins were clinging to their slim
lead in the game.
“I wasn’t worried,” Watson said of his early
departure. “We were still ahead and we were winning. We won
at USC when I fouled out of the game.”
“Even when Earl fouls out,” Lavin said, “we
have to find a way to grind out the win. That’s exactly what
we did tonight.”
UCLA pulled out early in the game thanks to second chances on
the offensive glass. Time and time again, Oregon failed to box out
forwards Matt Barnes and Jason Kapono. UCLA out-rebounded the home
team 30-21 in the first half, including a 13-5 advantage in
offensive rebounds. They also won the battle for the boards 51-44
for the game.
This allowed Barnes to notch 10 of his team-high 21 points in
the first half, and Kapono dropped 14 of his 20 points during the
same span. He also cleaned the glass with a team-, game- and
career-high 13 rebounds.
But it was the veteran guidance of senior co-captain Ryan Bailey
that proved to be the difference in gaining immunity from a tough
road challenge. While his six points, five rebounds and four
assists don’t stand out on the box score, his poise while
Oregon was breathing down UCLA’s neck allowed the Bruins to
stay within their framework.
“The bench, for the second consecutive game, made all the
difference,” Lavin said. “Bailey and (Ray) Young really
stepped up. Bailey comes in like a pinch-hitter and he responds
when called on.”
“We know he’s capable of doing that,” said
junior guard Billy Knight. “He knows what he needs to do and
he’s always ready.”
Oregon closed the gap to 69-61 with 6:25 left in the game on
Bryan Bracey’s three-pointer, but didn’t score for the
next four minutes. UCLA went 8-for-10 from the charity stripe
during that span, boosting its lead to 77-61. Oregon never
recovered, and UCLA got its third win in the last eight years in
Eugene.
“They did a nice job attacking and a good job with the
press,” said Oregon Head Coach Ernie Kent. “When it was
said and done, we just didn’t get (the job) done.”
Next up for the Bruins is Oregon State on Saturday at Gill
Coliseum in a game that starts at 3 p.m. UCLA will face a
defensively tough Beaver squad that is coming off a 16-point home
victory over USC.
