Recap and highlights: No. 22 UCLA outlasts No. 14 Gonzaga 65-62 in another thriller between two teams
INGLEWOOD, Calif. – After being on the other end each of the last four years, this time it was the UCLA Bruins dishing out a helping of heartache to the Gonzaga Bulldogs.
Gonzaga shook off a rugged first half offensively and for a few minutes late it looked like the Zags might sneak out of the Intuit Dome with a comeback victory. Instead, the 14th-ranked Zags walked away with a disheartening loss, 65-62 to No. 22 UCLA on Saturday.
Gonzaga (9-4) caught a break when Sebastian Mack missed two free throws with 1:18 left and the scored tied. Ryan Nembhard nailed a 10-footer to put Gonzaga on top 60-58 with just under 1 minute left.
Mack atoned by driving for a three-point play with 33.4 seconds left to give UCLA the lead 61-60. Gonzaga’s Dusty Stromer, who got the starting nod in place of Nolan Hickman, misfired on a corner 3-pointer and Skyy Clark’s two free throws bumped the Bruins’ lead to 63-60.
Nembhard countered with a layup and he was fouled. UCLA called timeout to make Nembhard wait even longer. His free throw came up well short and Clark added a pair of free throws to extend UCLA’s lead to 65-62 with 5.5 seconds left.
Nembhard put up a 3-pointer from near the half-court line with a couple of seconds still on the clock that was off target.
Big Ten Conference / Youtube
GU had knocked off the Bruins by three points twice in the NCAA Tournament thrillers and by four at the Maui Invitational last season. There was also a 20-point blowout when Gonzaga was No. 1 and UCLA was No. 2.
Graham Ike finished with 26 points and Nembhard had 16 points and eight assists. Eric Dailey Jr. led the Bruins with 18 points.
About the only things that went right for Gonzaga in an otherwise rugged opening half was its start – a modest 7-2 lead – and a 9-0 spurt to close the half and trim UCLA’s lead to 27-25.
In between, Gonzaga committed a whopping 11 turnovers, missed shots inside and outside, open and contested, and lost senior guard Khalif Battle with 4:13 left when officials deemed his hard foul underneath the basket on UCLA forward Dailey a Flagrant 2.
Battle had scored five of GU’s 16 points at that point and the Bruins hiked their lead to 27-16 with 4 minutes left on a Dailey putback basket seconds after Battle headed to the locker room.
Gonzaga finally warmed up in the final 3-plus minutes of the half. Hickman connected on a 3-pointer and Ben Gregg found Ike open inside for a layup – the Zags’ first time scoring on one-shot back-t0-back possessions.
Nembhard hit his first field goal and Ike’s 5-footer dropped in just as the buzzer sounded.
Ike scored 13 of GU’s 25 first-half points, which was its lowest scoring half of the season (previously 29 in the second half vs. Kentucky). Gonzaga’s lowest scoring first half before Saturday was 38 twice (Bucknell and Arizona State).
UCLA nearly matched GU missed shot for missed shot, turnover for turnover and scoring drought for scoring drought, but one fairly smooth offensive stretch generated a 17-2 burst and an 11-point lead.
First half
18:23 – GU 2, UCLA 0: Slow start and Ike finally gets the first basket on a layup after the teams missed their two first shots each.
14:25 – GU 7, UCLA 3: Ugly stretch to open this one, Battle hits a layup in transition and a 3-pointer to extend the Zags lead, but GU has been hurt by four turnovers. Bruins shoot 1 of 8 from the field.
11:53 – GU 7, UCLA 7: Huff is stuffed by Mara, but the ball goes out of bounds and the Zags keep possession at the U12 media timeout.
No points in 3:24 for the Zags. Stefanovic has five points for the Bruins.
7:03 – UCLA 13, GU 11: Bruins hit a pair of 3-pointers to take the edge in a total rock fight at the U8 media timeout.
Gonzaga shooting 28% with seven turnovers, UCLA shooting 21% with eight turnovers. Maybe the new Intuit Dome is making it hard on the offense.
5:29 – UCLA 22, GU 13: Bilodeau hits a 3-pointer to give the Bruins a 15-2 (9-0) run and the Zags call a timeout. Brutal stretch for the Zags. Hickman, who is did not start today, is 0 of 2 and has two turnovers.
3:32 – UCLA 27, GU 16: Ike snaps the run, but the Bruins maintain their lead at the U4 media timeout.
Uphill climb gets harder for GU after Battle was called for a flagrant two foul and ejected for a play where he went high for a block and wrapped his arms around the neck of the shooter on the way to the ground. Didn’t seem to have bad intent, but looked like the correct call.
0:46 – UCLA 27, GU 23: Much needed 7-0 run for the Zags before halftime and the Bruins call a timeout. Nembhard knocks down his first basket of the game.
Halftime
Losing a starter gave Gonzaga a needed spark to cut into a double digit deficit and trail UCLA 27-25 at halftime.
The Zags closed the half on a 9-0 run with a jumper from Graham Ike hanging on the rim and falling through at the buzzer. GU’s scoring burst came after Khalif Battle was ejected for a flagrant two foul.
That all added up to a sloppy and inefficient half from both teams. Gonzaga had 11 turnovers and shot 41% from the field. UCLA had nine turnovers and shot 29%.
Second half
15:38 – UCLA 35, GU 32: Things getting chippy at the U16 media timeout, players had to be separated after a heldball.
Ajayi was called for a technical foul, GU’s second of the game, but his didn’t result in an ejection.
12:13 – GU 45, UCLA 43: Zags catch fire and make five straight shots to take the lead. Nembhard hits a 3, then on the next possession finds Hickman for another and the Bruins call a timeout. That’s an 8-0 GU run.
7:27 – GU 51, UCLA 47: Nembhard hits a layup and some miscommunication on the other end results in a shot clock violation at the U8 media timeout. Momentum favors GU down the stretch, as the Zags already have more points in the second half than they did in the first.
Ike leads with 24 points, Nembhard adds 10 and eight assists.
3:56 – GU 55, UCLA 54: Johnson hits a 3-pointer, then is called for a foul at the U4 media timeout. Going down to the wire, like it usually does when these teams meet.
1:59 – GU 58, UCLA 58: Dailey hits 1 of 2 free throws to tie it up and the Zags call a timeout. GU has struggled late in close games this year.
0:42 – GU 60, UCLA 58: Nembhard sinks a big jumper after two missed free throws from UCLA and the Bruins call a timeout to set up a play.
0:30 – UCLA 61, GU 60: Mack drives on Innocenti and finishes through contact for a three-point play to give the Bruins the lead. GU calls a timeout.
Mack initiated the contact with an elbow to the head, tough break for the Zags.
0:13 – UCLA 63, GU 60: Stromer misses a good look at a 3-pointer in the corner and the Bruins make both free throws.
0:08 – UCLA 63, GU 62: Nembhard makes a lightning-quick layup and is fouled. He’ll have a chance to tie.
0:05 – UCLA 63, GU 62: Nembhard shoots well short at the line and the Zags have to foul.
0:00 – UCLA 65, GU 62: Nembhard’s final heave falls short and the Zags lose in another great installment of this series. Will go down as another close loss for the Zags, who finish nonconference 2-3 in top 25 games.
Starting 5’s
Gonzaga: Ryan Nembhard, Michael Ajayi, Dusty Stromer, Khalif Battle, Graham Ike.
UCLA: Kobe Johnson, Dylan Andrews, Skyy Clark, Eric Dailey Jr., Tyler Bilodeau
Pregame
The Gonzaga men’s basketball team closes its nonconference schedule with its fifth top 25 matchup of the season Saturday.
The No. 14 Zags (9-3) will play No. 22 UCLA (10-2) in the West Coast Hoops Showdown at 1 p.m. at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California. Fox 28 will carry the broadcast.
Gonzaga lost its last two top 25 games to Kentucky and Connecticut. The Zags regrouped with wins over Nicholls State and Bucknell before the holiday break.
The Bruins had an easier go in their nonconference slate and were knocked off by North Carolina on Dec. 21.
Series history
The Zags have controlled the series of late with wins in each of the last four seasons. Two of those came via heartbreaking fashion on NCAA Tournament buzzer beaters from Jalen Suggs and Julian Strawther.
Gonzaga has the overall series lead 7-2.
Team stats
Individual leaders
Game preview
More on the Zags