TUCSON, Ariz. (`) — Oumar Ballo scored 16 points, Azuolas Tubelis had a double-double and No. 11 Arizona withstood a late rally to end No. 5 UCLA’s 14-game winning streak with a 58-52 win to finish on Saturday.
The Wildcats (17-3, 5-3 Pac-12) looked set for their biggest win of the season, going 56-44 on Ballo’s alley-oop dunk with 2:07 left.
The Bruins (17-3, 8-1) fought back and managed four straight turnovers to draw within 56-52. UCLA then blocked back-to-back shots — one after a review waved the goalie down — but failed to convert two of their own shots.
Arizona’s Pelle Larsson hit two free throws with 0.9 seconds to finish it. Tubelis sparked an 11-3 run to give Arizona 10 points early in the second half and finished with 14 points and 10 rebounds.
UCLA on Thursday achieved its longest winning streak since 2007-08 by breaking away late and beating Arizona State 74-62. The Bruins had a lot more problems with Arizona, especially on the offensive end.
UCLA scored 31% and went 4-of-20 from 3-point territory to lose for the second straight season as a top-five team at McKale Center. Tyger Campbell led the Bruins with 13 points and Jaime Jaquez Jr. added 12 with 11 rebounds.
Arizona hit then-No. 3 UCLA last season in a charged atmosphere that included an attacking quote for UCLA forward Mac Etienne after he appeared to spit toward Arizona fans as he left the field.
On Saturday, the Bruins and Wildcats went toe-to-toe in color and in the perimeter, bodies bouncing off the ground on a physical, defensive afternoon. The Bruins batted at Ballo and Tubelis at the post with every touch, inflicting numerous close-range misses – and many fouls.
UCLA backup big man Kenneth Nwuba had four fouls in the first half and Ballo made 8 of 10 free throws to earn 12 first-half points.
Arizona hit 7 of 23 shots and was the better shooting team, leading 26-23 at halftime.
BIG PICTURE
UCLA: Pushed the Wildcats around early and wreaked havoc late with their defensive pressure. In between, the Bruins didn’t hit enough shots to leave the desert with a win.
The story goes on
Arizona: Weathered the ups and downs of UCLA in the first half, then withstood a furious rally to claim the win that would put it back in the top 10.
NEXT
UCLA: Thursday at rival USC.
Arizona: Plays in Washington State on Thursday.
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` College Basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25
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