The long road back to prestige started at home, against a largely anonymous opponent.
Having failed its first test against a mid-major, UCLA took a step down in competition Monday night and didn’t do a lot to convince anyone it belonged back in the national rankings.
Many of the same problems that plagued the Bruins last week were present again during a disjointed 71-40 victory over Boston University at Pauley Pavilion.
There were turnovers galore, long scoring droughts and more struggles making shots from long range.
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Fortunately for the Bruins, their defense proved too much for an opponent incapable of handling active hands and backcourt pressure. UCLA (2-1) forced 28 turnovers that it converted into 36 points in taking a small step forward after its loss to New Mexico.
Most of those points came on layups and dunks in transition, the rewards of expending all that effort on defense.
“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,” Bruins coach Mick Cronin said after his team piled up a season-high 59 deflections, which are defined as tipped passes, blocks, steals or loose balls collected. “In the first half, we surpassed our dives on the floor for the year.”
The Bruins hadn’t been able to do nearly as much with the 24 turnovers they forced against the Lobos, those miscues translating to just 15 points.
In a more encouraging development, it’s the first time UCLA has forced 20 or more turnovers in back-to-back games since it did against Wyoming, Louisiana Tech and Oregon State during the 2008-09 season.
After his team was bullied by New Mexico, Cronin said he was sick to his stomach and couldn’t sleep for two days. So he challenged his players to get tougher.
“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,’” Cronin said. “I know our football team’s on a winning streak, but I can always go grab some guys when they’re done.”
UCLA guard Kobe Johnson had four steals and forward Eric Dailey Jr. added three for a team that finished with 14. The most impressive might have belonged to guard Skyy Clark, who dove into the broadcaster’s table near midcourt to save his steal from going out of bounds. Clark finished the game with 16 deflections, which Cronin said was one short of the most any player had ever logged for him.
Read more: UCLA showcases the depth of its talent in season-opening victory over Rider
“He’s wrecking havoc all over the place,” Cronin said of Clark, who added six rebounds, four points and two assists. “I mean, he’s got games where he’s gonna score plenty of points. But he’s really trying to embrace … what we’re trying to do with his effort.”
Boston (0-3) had trouble merely getting the ball into the frontcourt during the Bruins’ 9-0 and 10-0 runs early in the second half that turned the game into a blowout.
Dailey said the team’s turnaround started in practice with a combined resolve to fix what had gone wrong against New Mexico.
“It was pretty intense,” Dailey said. “I mean, you know, we don’t like to lose, and we’ll do everything in our power to change mistakes that we made.”
Things were not nearly as pretty for UCLA on the offensive front.
Dailey and Lazar Stefanovic scored 13 points apiece for the Bruins, who made only five of 22 three-pointers (22.7%) and committed 11 of their 15 turnovers in the first half. Sebastian Mack added 12 points, two assists and two steals off the bench for UCLA.
Cronin said he didn’t care about the inaccuracy given the way his team responded on defense.
“I can deal with missed shots,” Cronin said. “I can’t deal with not competing physically.”
Cronin was especially pleased with big man Aday Mara grabbing seven rebounds in 10 minutes off the bench. Forward William Kyle III also dazzled during a sequence in which he materialized to block what looked like would be an uncontested layup. A few seconds later, he grabbed a miss from Mack and elevated for a ferocious putback dunk.
One change for the Bruins came at tipoff, Cronin going with Stefanovic over Dylan Andrews as part of his starting lineup. Andrews was out with a left groin injury that is not considered serious, leaving his status as day to day.
There was an early Dominick Harris sighting, the transfer from Loyola Marymount given playing time before halftime for the first time this season. But Harris didn’t make much of an impression in his 15 minutes, missing all six of his shots.
Cronin told his sharpshooter that was OK. The only number that really mattered was Boston’s total on the scoreboard.
“If we hold everybody to 40,” Cronin said, “we’re going to win every game the rest of the year.”
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
