UCLA cannot hang with ASU. Loses in Tempe 88-79.

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TEMPE, Ariz. – Aaron Holiday scored 20 points and Thomas Welsh added 14 as UCLA dropped an 88-79 decision at Arizona State before 14,025 at Wells Fargo Arena on Saturday.

UCLA (17-8, 8-5 Pac-12) had a four-game winning streak snapped and trailed the Sun Devils (19-6, 7-6) at halftime by a 40-32 margin. The Bruins never were able to tie the game or take the lead in the second half.

Gyorgy Goloman and Kris Wilkes rounded out the Bruins' list of double-figure scorers, recording 11 points each.

Arizona State's three starting guards – Tra Holder (22 points), Shannon Evans II (23 points) and Kodi Justice (17 points) – accounted for 62 of the Sun Devils' 88 total points.

"Those three [ASU] guards got away from us," UCLA head coach Steve Alford said. "Those three are very talented guards and they had it going. There was a stretch in the first half where we had a pretty good rhythm, and we then had a bad stretch in the first half, offensively. We took some quick shots instead of working on getting the ball inside."

Holiday recorded his ninth 20-point performance in 13 Pac-12 contests. The junior guard from Chatsworth, Calif., scored just three points in the first half before totaling 17 points after halftime. Holiday shot 6-for-15 from the field and 4-for-10 from three-point range.

UCLA never got any closer than eight points in the second half despite shooting 50 percent against Arizona State (17-for-34) after the intermission.

ASU led by as many as 16 points late in the second half (75-59, 3:54) before the Bruins used a 9-2 scoring run and consecutive three-point baskets by Holiday with roughly two minutes to play in the contest.

Arizona State withstood the Bruins' late run by making 11 free throws in the final two minutes. In all, ASU shot 89.3 percent from the free throw line (25-for-28).

The host Sun Devils led 40-32 at halftime after using an 11-0 scoring run on three consecutive three-pointers during a two-minute span, securing a 29-22 advantage with 7:33 to play. Evans II and Justice combined to score 22 first-half points, leading the way for Arizona State.

UCLA shot the ball well in the opening minutes of the first half, sinking seven of 10 field goal attempts. Welsh had seven of his 14 points in the game's first six minutes, helping the Bruins secure a 12-7 cushion with 15:39 to play before halftime.

The Bruins shot 45 percent from the field on Saturday (30-for-66), but made just 31 percent (8-for-26) of their three-point shots.

UCLA will return home next week to play its final two regular-season home games, before embarking upon a three-game road trip. The Bruins host Oregon State on Thursday in Pauley Pavilion, before taking on Oregon on Saturday, Feb. 17.

UCLA's game against Oregon State will begin on Thursday at 8 p.m. That game will be nationally televised by FS1.

The Bruins' final regular-season home game on Saturday, Feb. 17, will begin at 7:15 p.m. (TV: ESPN).

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UCLA Stuns No. 13 Arizona on the Road, 82-74

feb 08, 2018 | UCLA MEN'S BASKETBALL PAGE | POST LINK

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TUCSON, Ariz. – Aaron Holiday scored a team-leading 17 points and Gyorgy Goloman had 16 points as the UCLA men's basketball team won at No. 13 Arizona, 82-74, on Thursday night.

Kris Wilkes finished with 14 points, while Jaylen Hands and Thomas Welsh each totaled 11 points before a capacity crowd at Arizona's McKale Center.

UCLA (17-7, 8-4 Pac-12) handed Arizona (19-6, 9-3) its fifth loss at home since the start of the 2012-13 season (93-5 home record). The Bruins have picked up three of those five victories at the McKale Center over the past six seasons.

Thursday's game also marked Arizona's first home loss versus an unranked opponent since losing to California at the McKale Center on Feb. 10, 2013.

Goloman finished with a career-best 16 points on Thursday after having made a career-leading three three-pointers. The senior from Kormend, Hungary, hit a three-pointer with 6:10 to play, helping UCLA push its lead to 72-60. His ensuing three-pointer at the 1:43 mark gave the Bruins a comfortable 82-67 advantage.

Welsh logged his team-leading 14th double-double of the year, recording 11 points and 12 rebounds in 30 minutes. Welsh made 5 of 9 shots from the field.

After a back-and-forth first half, UCLA entered the locker room at halftime with a 44-34 cushion.

Leading 48-40 early in the second half, Arizona trimmed the Bruins' margin to 48-44 before UCLA used an 8-0 scoring run to push its lead to 12 points (56-44). Wilkes scored five consecutive points during that 8-0 scoring run.

UCLA secured its largest lead of the game – 15 points (66-51) – with 9:17 remaining in the second half after Welsh's dunk helped the Bruins cap a 6-0 run.

From that point in the contest, UCLA never trailed. Arizona never cut its deficit to any fewer than nine points.

Arizona led UCLA, 29-27, with 3:14 left in the first half before the Bruins closed the opening half with a 17-5 scoring run. Hands sank three consecutive three-pointers in the final minute of the half, including a three-pointer just ahead of the buzzer.

UCLA opened the game strong on Thursday night, as Holiday and Wilkes combined for eight of the Bruins' first 10 points. UCLA led 10-3 less than seven minutes into the game.

Overall, UCLA shot 52 percent from the field (32-of-62) and made 46 percent of its three-point attempts (11-of-24). Arizona shot 44 percent from the floor (29-of-66) and finished 36 percent from three-point range (8-for-22).

The Bruins will continue their two-game swing through the state of Arizona with a Pac-12 matchup this Saturday at Arizona State. Game time at ASU's Wells Fargo Arena is 4 p.m. PT (5 p.m. MT). The game will be televised by the Pac-12 Networks.

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UCLA Wins Crosstown Showdown Over USC, 82-79

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feb 03, 2018 | UCLA MEN'S BASKETBALL PAGE | POST LINK

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LOS ANGELES - UCLA defeated crosstown rival USC, 82-79, in front of a raucous crowd of 12,837 in Pauley Pavilion on Saturday afternoon. Aaron Holiday and Thomas Welsh each scored over 20 points to lead the Bruins, scoring 23 and 21 points respectively.

On his birthday, Welsh came up big down the stretch, hitting a three-pointer with 51.5 seconds to play to put UCLA ahead, 80-77. Welsh followed by hitting two clutch free throws with 11.2 seconds remaining to give UCLA its final three-point margin.

The Bruins (16-7, 7-4 in the Pac-12) trailed by 11, 27-16, with 11:19 to play in the first half but rallied with a 10-0 run to cut the lead to one. Holiday's three-pointer at 6:27 in the first half gave UCLA the lead, 30-29, and a three-pointer by Jaylen Hands put UCLA ahead 36-34, but USC closed the half with a 7-4 run that gave the Trojans the 41-40 halftime lead.

In the second half, USC (17-7, 8-3) went on a 14-2 run to pull ahead, 69-60, with 8:09 to play, but Holiday keyed a 7-0 Bruin run with a pair of three-pointers to cut the deficit to two.

With USC up 69-67 with 4:53 to play, Alex Olesinski was called for a foul while battling for rebound, and USC's Nick Rakocevic was called for a technical on the same play. The play turned out to be a four-point swing, as Rakocevic missed both of his free throws, while Holiday made both of his, tying the game at 69-69.

The Bruins and Trojans continued to trade leads in the final minutes. Jordan Matthews hit a three-pointer with 3:55 to play to give USC a 75-73 advantage, but Goloman answered back with a three of his own to put UCLA ahead, 76-75. With the game tied at 77, USC missed a layup, and Welsh hit his pivotal three-pointer to put UCLA ahead with 51.5 seconds left.

A pair of free throws by Elijah Stewart trimmed UCLA's lead to one, and G.G. Goloman missed the front end of a one-and-one with 30 seconds remaining. The Trojans were unable to capitalize, however, as Aaron missed a jumper. Welsh grabbed the rebound and was fouled with 11.2 seconds remaining. After Welsh made both free throws, USC missed two potential game-tying three-point attempts before time expired.

Kris Wilkes joined Holiday and Welsh in double-figure scoring with 13 points. Goloman added nine points. Stewart led USC with 20 points, and Chimezie Metu had a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds.

UCLA shot 51.8% from the field, while USC shot 42.9%.

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UCLA Men's Basketball Hosts USC on Saturday

feb 02, 2017 | UCLA MEN'S BASKETBALL PAGE | POST LINK

The Bruins (15-7, 6-4) face USC (17-6, 8-2) on Saturday at 3 p.m. in Pauley Pavilion.

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LOS ANGELES – The Bruins will host USC on Saturday in Pauley Pavilion (3 p.m., PT). UCLA has just eight regular-season games left on its schedule, with three of those to be played at home. Last season, UCLA lost at USC (84-76) in January before responding with a 32-point win against the Trojans in Pauley Pavilion less than one month later (102-70). UCLA edged USC in a quarterfinal meeting at the Pac-12 Tournament, 76-74. UCLA has faced USC three times in each of the last three seasons (that includes the two regular-season meetings plus one game in the Pac-12 Tournament in Las Vegas).

GAME INFORMATION
Venue: Pauley Pavilion (13,800)
Game Time: 3 p.m. (PT)
Television: ESPN2
TV Talent: Dave Pasch (play-by-play), Bill Walton (analyst)
Radio (UCLA Sports Network from IMG): AM 1150
Radio Talent: Josh Lewin (play-by-play), Tracy Murray (analyst)
SIRIUS/XM Radio Channels: Ch. 132/Ch. 198
SIRIUS App Channel: Ch. 960

BLUE OUT
UCLA will be hosting a "Blue Out" this Saturday afternoon, when the men's basketball team faces USC. All fans in attendance at this Saturday's game will receive a "Blue Out" t-shirt, courtesy of Wescom. In addition, the Bruins are encouraging their fans to arrive early and wear blue for this Saturday's crosstown showdown.

DOWNLOAD THE UCLA APP
Be sure to download the UCLA Bruins Mobile App to your device, free of charge (download here). The official app of UCLA Athletics allows fans to receive in-game stats and live updates during events. Fans can also sign up to receive push notifications about gameday promotions, game times, live scoring and more. Fans can shop for UCLA gear with one click in addition to getting breaking news from UCLA Athletics. When searching iTunes or Google Play, use the term "UCLA Bruins" for more direct access.

PURCHASE TICKETS
Fans can purchase tickets to UCLA's upcoming game against USC by clicking here. For tickets to the other remaining home games, visit uclabruins.com/tickets or call (310) 206-5991. Click here to download the men's basketball schedule directly to your calendar.

TOP REBOUNDER
Through games played Jan. 28, senior center Thomas Welsh ranked No. 15 in the country in rebounds per game (10.5) and was one of just eight players in the nation to have recorded at least 13 double-doubles. In fact, Welsh currently ranks second in the nation in total career rebounds (907) among any player from one of the "power six" conferences (ACC, Big East, Big 12, Big Ten, Pac-12 and SEC). Seton Hall's Angel Delgado (1,305) leads all players nationwide in career rebounds. Welsh will enter this Saturday afternoon's game ranking No. 6 on UCLA's career rebounds list (907).

UCLA'S LAST GAME
Aaron Holiday scored a team-leading 21 points as the Bruins built a 22-point lead midway through the second half and defeated Stanford, 89-73, before 10,519 in Pauley Pavilion on Saturday, Jan. 27. UCLA shot 52.8% from the field, made 10 of 19 shots from three-point range and made 23 of 25 free throws (93.1%). The Bruins had their best game at the free throw line – with a minimum of 25 free throw attempts – since making 27 of 29 free throws (93.1%) in a 105-84 win over Nevada in Las Vegas on Nov. 28, 2013 (in what was the sixth game with Steve Alford serving as UCLA's head coach).

FREE THROWS
UCLA has shot 83.5% (86-for-103) from the free throw line in its last four games. Overall, the Bruins have shot 72.0 percent at the charity stripe this season. Aaron Holiday was a perfect 9-for-9 at the line last Saturday, marking his fifth career game where he has made all his free throws (with a minimum of six attempts). Jordan Adams was UCLA's last player to go 10-for-10 from the line, making all 10 attempts in the win versus Nevada on Nov. 28, 2013.

HOLIDAY'S HEROICS
Aaron Holiday ranks fifth among all Pac-12 players in scoring (19.0 ppg), through games played Jan. 28. He has totaled at least 20 points in 11 games. He entered his junior season having scored at least 20 points in just three previous games (all as a sophomore in 2016-17). Holiday has been selected to the 25-man midseason list for the 2018 John R. Wooden Award, presented annually to the nation's top men's and women's college basketball players. Holiday now ranks No. 42 on the Bruins' all-time scoring list with 1,190 points (Holiday is just 13 points away from becoming the No. 40 all-time scorer).

Holiday entered the week (through games played Sunday, Jan. 28), as one of just five players in NCAA Division I men's basketball to have averaged at least 19.0 points and 5.0 assists per game. Others in that group include Trae Young (Oklahoma), RJ Cole (Howard), Junior Robinson (Mount St. Mary's) and Jon Elmore (Marshall).

DOUBLE DIGIT FRESHMAN
Freshman guard Kris Wilkes has averaged 13.8 points and 5.4 rebounds, starting all 22 games for the Bruins this season. Wilkes has scored in double figures in 17 of 22 games. He has scored at least 20 points in four contests, twice logging a season-high 21 points for UCLA. In the Bruins' victory Saturday versus Stanford, Wilkes had 18 points and five rebounds, making 6 of 7 shots from the field. He ranks fifth in scoring among all Pac-12 freshmen. Wilkes has made 76.1% (35/46) of his free throws in UCLA's last 12 games after having shot 53.3% (24/45) from the line in the team's first 10 contests.

DOUBLE-DOUBLES
Thomas Welsh (12.6 ppg, 10.5 rpg) has totaled 13 double-doubles this season. He recorded 10 double-doubles as a sophomore in 2015-16. Welsh is the eighth UCLA player in the past 20 years to have logged at least 10 double-doubles in one season. Since the start of the Bruins' 1998-99 campaign, Kevin Love has registered more double-doubles in a single season than any other UCLA player (23 double-doubles in 2007-08). The school's single-season double-doubles record is 28 by Lew Alcindor (now Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) during the Bruins' 1967-68 NCAA title-winning season.

MORE ABOUT THE BRUINS
Aaron Holiday ranks first among all Pac-12 players (in conference games only) in scoring, having averaged 20.7 points in the Bruins' 10 league games (through games played on Jan. 28). In addition, Holiday has made 25 of 47 three-point attempts in league action, converting at a 53.2% clip (the third-highest percentage among Pac-12 players).

The Bruins have shot 50.0% or better in seven games (going 6-1 in those contests). UCLA shot a season-best 58.2% in the team's 107-84 win at California (Jan. 6). Most recently, the Bruins shot 52.8% (28-of-53) in a home victory against Stanford on Jan. 27. UCLA made 10 of 19 three-pointers in the win over Stanford (52.6% from three-point territory).

Aaron Holiday and Thomas Welsh both reached the heralded 1,000-career-point milestone in a Pac-12 victory against Washington State earlier this season (Dec. 29, 2017). In a 33-point, 11-rebound performance, Holiday crossed the 1,000 point marker in the first half of the game. Welsh reached the milestone in the second half of UCLA's victory that night.

Senior center Thomas Welsh and Arizona's Deandre Ayton are the only players in the Pac-12 to have averaged at least 10 points and 10 rebounds per game (Welsh currently stands at 12.6 ppg and 10.5 rpg). In addition, Welsh ranks second among all Pac-12 players in defensive boards per game (7.8) and is fourth in offensive rebounds per game (2.7).

MOVIN' ON UP
Thomas Welsh ranks third on the school's all-time blocked shots list (137), having surpassed Charles O'Bannon (118) for the No. 3 slot earlier this season. The top two spots on UCLA's career blocks list are occupied by Jelani McCoy (188) and Dan Gadzuric (184). McCoy played at UCLA from 1995-98, while Gadzuric starred for the Bruins from 1999-2002. Welsh has totaled 13 double-doubles in 22 games for the Bruins this season. Please note, UCLA's official "blocked shot" statistic has only been tracked on a consistent basis since the 1978-79 season.

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