This post was updated Nov. 11 at 11:18 p.m.

Lazar Stefanovic’s second 3-pointer of the night – off an inside-out action from junior forward Tyler Bilodeau – was nearly where the Bruins called it a half. 

9:42 minutes before the clock would. 

The senior guard’s triple froze the Bruins’ offense. Though the hosts’ scoreboard eventually dethawed, shots clanked off the rim, passes slipped through fingers and rhythm evaporated into 7:29 scoreless minutes, barring four charity shots from the line.

“Sloppy” may have categorized its first half, but that didn’t stop UCLA men’s basketball (2-1) – particularly its defense – from romping past Boston University (0-3) in a 71-40 decision at Pauley Pavilion. The Bruins managed 59 deflections – according to the players’ counting – to pester the Terriers in Monday’s tussle. 

“I was most happy tonight with our attitude of humility and the fact that we dove on the floor more tonight than every scrimmage, game or exhibition game combined,” said coach Mick Cronin. “In the first half, we surpassed our dives on the floor for the year, so I tried to send a message the last couple of days.”

A lackluster 20 minutes to launch action at Pauley Pavilion could have been a product of junior guard Dylan Andrews’ absence. 

Andrews – who has appeared to be Cronin’s chosen floor general after posting 12.9 points and 3.7 assists through the 2023-2024 season – earned the starting nod through the Bruins’ opening pair of contests but was sidelined because of a groin injury prior to Monday’s 7 p.m. tipoff. 

The junior’s void heralded the long-awaited showing of Stefanovic, UCLA’s veteran guard whose minutes on the court have largely been stripped because of fellow senior guard Kobe Johnson’s arrival in Westwood. 

It seemed Stefanovic had been biding his time. 

UCLA, the Cronin-led program that finished in the nation’s 95th percentile for pick-and-roll time usage last season, employed its go-to play action on its second possession Monday night. While Johnson muscled his way off his defender to receive junior guard Skyy Clark’s inbound pass, sophomore guard/forward Eric Dailey Jr. set a well-placed pick at the block for Stefanovic. 

Off the 45-degree cut from the right wing, Stefanovic opened himself up for Johnson’s pass, finding an open look from deep to drill down his team’s first points of the night. 

Touted a leader on the Bruin roster this season, Stefanovic has been far from one to expatiate on his reduced minutes – the Serbian senior has embraced whatever Cronin has handed him and warmly greeted the nine new members of UCLA’s 2024-2025 roster. 

“If we’re going to have a big year, Lazar, he’s got to help us,” Cronin said. “He’s a senior. The guy played 40 minutes a game last year. He can make shots. He’s smart. He’s 6-6, second-leading rebounder on our team last year.”

Across 18 minutes of action Monday night, Stefanovic knocked down 13 points off 3-of-5 shooting beyond the arc and an efficient 57.1% clip from the field. 

Stefanovic accounted for 60% of the Bruins’ 3-point attacks against the Terriers, drilling three of the team’s five total long-range buckets. Cronin’s unit totaled for a 5-of-22 mark from deep and recited a similar tale from the field, managing a 40% clip through 40 minutes of an action. 

While that prolonged first-half dry spell cast a shadow on UCLA’s overall accuracy from the floor, Cronin’s halftime adjustments ensured the Bruins compensated with newfound energy, both offensively and defensively, in the second half. 

“We’re still learning how to play with each other,” Stefanovic said. “We’re getting better at it, but it’s all the mistakes we make offensively in the half court. It’s all controllable stuff. It’s all that we can fix and we can learn from.”

It was Sebastian Mack who led at the half – a scrappy, tenacious 11:38 minutes for the sophomore guard liquidated into eight points and one diving steal, though four other Bruins chipped in at least five points apiece. 

Stefanovic echoed the opening rhythms of both halves. 

Cronin pulled his trusted senior to the sideline during a loose ball, howling at Stefanovic following a blunder on the Bruins’ first defensive possession of the second frame. 

The barking cranked him up. 

On the ensuing play, Dailey grabbed a steal and threaded the needle to a cutting Stefanovic, who paced down the floor and converted with a massive slam. Pauley Pavilion was on its toes, and Cronin could retake his seat. 

That dunk kickstarted an 11-point Bruin run, with Stefanovic, Dailey and Clark each contributing to the figure. 

The latter Bruin of that crew embodied the philosophy Cronin has harped on through six years in Westwood – defensive ferocity – as Clark managed 16 deflections alongside six rebounds on the night. 

“Our motto is toughness, and he just showed that,” Dailey said. “He displayed it today, harassing guards. … It’s a lot of things that coach wants to see that don’t always show up on the stat sheet, and it’s just hard to hustle.”

Though the Bruins didn’t eclipse their first-half tally through the second, Cronin’s defensive-minded approach shone through Monday night. 

Over and above relentless diving plays on the defensive end, UCLA forced BU to 28 turnovers through the duel – marking the first time since the 2008-2009 season that the Bruins forced 20-plus turnovers in back-to-back games.  

“When my guys don’t play hard, I blame myself. I’m hard on them, but trust me, I’m harder on myself,” Cronin said. “I basically told them, ‘If you’re going to play for me, this is how it’s going to be, or you’re not going to play for me.’”