UCLA Survives Late Collapse, Holds Off Northwestern – Daily News
EVANSTON, Ill. — The UCLA men’s basketball team avoided the kind of loss that might have sent head coach Mick Cronin over the edge.
In a season that has seen the Bruins squander their share of late leads, they nearly blew a 14-point lead in the final three minutes before holding on for a 73-69 victory over Northwestern on Monday night.
“My buddy, Scott Van Pelt, likes having us on ‘Bad Beats,'” Cronin joked, referencing the ESPN segment devoted to late-game drama that leads to gambling losses. “So I’m trying to get on that show.”
Back-to-back dunks by Tyler Bilodeau gave UCLA a 68-54 lead with 3:07 remaining. UCLA then had three turnovers and a failed one-and-one free-throw attempt in the next five possessions. The Wildcats chipped away at their deficit and got within 68-65 on Ty Berry’s 3-pointer with 33 seconds left.
Bilodeau then was triple-teamed and called for traveling, leading to a driving backdoor layup by Berry that capped a 13-0 run and cut the Bruins’ lead to one point.
Skyy Clark made one free throw for the Bruins with 21.7 seconds left, then William Kyle III’s steal helped the Bruins ice the win as Northwestern was forced to foul and the Bruins finished it off with two free throws from Dailey with 8.4 seconds left and two more from Clark with seven seconds left.
Tyler Bilodeau scored 19 points on 8-of-14 shooting to lead UCLA (21-9 overall, 12-7 Big Ten), which kept alive its hopes for a top-four seed in the Big Ten Tournament.
Eric Dailey Jr. had 12 points and six rebounds, Aday Mara had 11 points, 10 rebounds (six offensive) and three blocked shots in 16 minutes off the bench, and Clark added 10 points and seven assists.
Cronin blamed himself for his players’ struggles in the final minutes.
“I think it’s on me – I’ve got to coach them better, at the end of the day,” Cronin said. “You’ve got to get the ball in, you’ve got to be strong with the ball. It was our possession and we had three timeouts, so you have no reason to be in a hurry – just keep calling a timeout or take the jump ball and they don’t do it. I’ve got to coach them better.”
Conclusion
The Bruins’ ability to hold off a late collapse and secure a win over Northwestern was a testament to their resilience and determination. While they still have work to do to improve their consistency, they remain a force to be reckoned with in the Big Ten.
FAQs
* What was the final score of the game?
The final score was UCLA 73, Northwestern 69.
* How many points did Tyler Bilodeau score for UCLA?
Bilodeau scored 19 points on 8-of-14 shooting.
* What was the key moment in the game?
The key moment was when Tyler Bilodeau was triple-teamed and called for traveling, leading to a driving backdoor layup by Ty Berry that capped a 13-0 run and cut the Bruins’ lead to one point.
