UCLA men’s basketball leads Montana State 60-32 at halftime
By Matt Joye
Nov. 14, 2014 10:10 p.m.
On a team filled with fresh faces, the Bruins have a few wrinkles to iron out. Still, UCLA overcame a sloppy start to build a 60-32 halftime lead over Montana State.
Senior guard Norman Powell led all scorers with 14 points and four different Bruins scored in double figures as UCLA finished the half on a 44-20 run.
Much like in its exhibition game against Azusa Pacific, UCLA was shaky in its offense in the early going, making just five of its first 15 shots. The Bruins led by just four points with a little more than 12 minutes to go in the half and committed seven fouls in the first eight minutes of play.
But the Bruins eventually found their rhythm, using strong defense to catalyze their offense. UCLA forced 12 turnovers and held Montana State to 39 percent shooting in the first 20 minutes of play.
The Bruins also regularly got to the line against an undersized Bobcats squad, making 16 of 26 foul shots. UCLA hit its stride from outside as well, knocking in six of 12 shots from deep.
Nine different Bruins saw playing time in the first half, with sophomore guard Isaac Hamilton and freshman forward Kevon Looney cracking the starting lineup, and freshman center Thomas Welsh and freshman forward G.G. Goloman coming off of the bench.
Hamilton was sharp from beyond the arc in particular, with nine of his 11 points coming from three-pointers. Meanwhile, Looney did the majority of his work from the charity stripe, shooting 8-14 on free throws, while also adding six rebounds. Looney’s 13 points were second on the team behind Powell.
Compiled by Jordan Lee, Bruin Sports senior staff.
