National Basketball Association
Arizona 77, UCLA 71
When: 4:00 PM ET, Saturday, January 20, 2024
Where: McKale Center, Tucson, Arizona
Officials:
# Kelly Pfeifer, # Nate Harris, # Ray Natili
Attendance:
14688
By Field Level Media
Pelle Larsson scored 22 points, sparking No. 12 Arizona's comeback from a 17-point second-half deficit Saturday as the Wildcats rallied past rival UCLA 77-71 in Tucson, Ariz.
Arizona (14-4, 5-2 Pac-12) made 22 of 23 free throws in the second half and survived a wild last minute against the Bruins (8-11, 3-5), who were making their final scheduled appearance in McKale Center.
Larsson provided a huge basket with a rebound and short jumper with 52 seconds left for a 75-71 lead. UCLA's Dylan Andrews then turned over the ball on an offensive foul.
The Bruins quickly got the ball back on a traveling call but missed three 3-pointers before retaining possession on a held ball.
UCLA then missed another 3-pointer and fouled Oumar Ballo, who made both attempts with 19.0 seconds left. UCLA's Will McClendon missed one more deep shot attempt as Arizona escaped with the win.
Ballo had a double-double with 17 points and 13 rebounds. He entered the game shooting 43.5 percent from the free-throw line but made 7 of 8 against UCLA. Caleb Love scored 14.
Sebastian Mack scored 21 to lead the Bruins. Lazar Stefanovic had 17 points and eight rebounds.
UCLA, which entered shooting 29.6 percent from 3-point range, was hot at the start, making six of its first nine shots from behind the arc. Stefanovic hit three during the early blitz and he capped a 13-0 run with two free throws that gave the Bruins their largest lead at 32-13 with 7:40 to go.
Although the Wildcats closed the half on a surge, UCLA led 37-28 at halftime and extended the lead by holding Arizona scoreless for more than four minutes to start the second half, going up 45-28.
The Wildcats whittled away and later used a 7-0 run to get within 55-52 before tying the game at 60 with 6:04 left when Larsson converted 4 of 4 free throws when he was fouled on a drive and UCLA coach Mick Cronin picked up a technical foul for arguing the call.
Arizona took its first lead since the opening minute when Love attacked on a fast break and converted a three-point play for a 67-65 lead at the 4:14 mark.
--Field Level Media
Top Game Performances
UCLA |
|
Arizona |
Sebastian Mack 21 |
Scoring |
Pelle Larsson 22 |
Sebastian Mack 4 |
Assists |
Pelle Larsson 4 |
Lazar Stefanovic 8 |
Rebounds |
Oumar Ballo 13 |
Sebastian Mack 4 |
Free Throws Made |
Pelle Larsson 8 |
Will McClendon 3 |
Steals |
Oumar Ballo 1 |
Adem Bona 1 |
Blocks |
Keshad Johnson 2 |
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
UCLA
|
71 |
44.6 |
9-26 |
12-14 |
11 |
25 |
3 |
6 |
13 |
Arizona
|
77 |
42.6 |
6-26 |
25-29 |
14 |
32 |
3 |
5 |
10 |