Colorado University Athletics
Colorado
11-10, 4-5
UCLA
13-9, 5-4
Brooks: Bruins Overrun Cold, Inefficient Buffs, 72-59
February 01, 2015 | Men's Basketball, B.G. Brooks
LOS ANGELES – Whether it was a hangover from triple overtime or something altogether different – let's say inconsistency, impatience and nightmarish shooting – the Colorado Buffaloes took a crosstown trip here on Saturday and went nowhere fast.
Two nights after a 98-94 three-OT win at USC, CU showed up in Pauley Pavilion with icy fingers and not much defensive fire. Bad combination, and UCLA made the Buffs pay, romping to an all-too-easy 72-59 Pac-12 Conference win.
Coach Tad Boyle discounted fatigue from Thursday night's drawn out contest as a physical factor for Saturday's performance. As for it contributing to mental fatigue, he wouldn't rule that out.
"There's a possibility, but we tried to do everything that we could to prevent that," he said, noting that Friday's work was tailored toward team and individual recovery. "We're not going to use that as an excuse, absolutely not. These guys are young 20-something year old kids; they can bounce back in two days.
"Now mentally, there might have been a hangover, but physically, I'm not buying it. The second half, it just wasn't there, the spark wasn't there, the fight wasn't there, the determination wasn't there. It's disappointing because this was a winnable game on the road."
He credited UCLA as being a "good home team," but added, "The Buffs weren't very good in the second half."
To his point: Not quite 5 minutes into the second half, the Buffs (11-10, 4-5) tied the game at 33-33 and seemed poised for a competitive final 15 minutes. Instead, the Bruins (13-9, 5-4) took control with a 25-4 run that kept CU winless against UCLA in seven trips to LA.
After shooting 50 percent in the three extra periods at USC, CU's field goal percentage dropped to 36 percent Saturday night. Senior guard Askia Booker followed his career-high 43-point performance against the Trojans with 16 points against the Bruins, hitting 6-of-15 from the field. CU's only other play in double figures was Wesley Gordon with 10.
"I can't score every point," Booker said. "I'm not going to be hot every single night. But I can get guys in position to score. If they don't finish or convert . . . you just got to get in the gym, man. You play the game and have to get better and that includes myself. I wasn't hot tonight so I'll be back in the gym as soon as we get back."
USC shot 48 percent and got double-figure scoring from three players, topped by Norman Powell's 22. Kevon Looney added 14, with 10 rebounds, and Isaac Hamilton scored 12 points.
CU won its early January matchup with UCLA in Boulder game 62-56, beating the Bruins for the first time in Pac-12 play. But any visions of a sweep disappeared early in Saturday night's second half. UCLA, coming off a Thursday upset (69-59) of No. 11 Utah, now leads the series with CU 9-2.
Along with their scoring issues, the Buffs were plagued by turnovers – the Bruins converted 15 into 23 points – and soft inside defense. UCLA outscored CU 36-20 in the paint. By Boyle's count, the Buffs committed six of their nine second-half turnovers in eight possessions and allowed seven layups during one second-half stretch.
"Well, the second half we were atrocious," Boyle said. "We just didn't have it for whatever reason. We didn't have it on offense . . . we didn't have it on defense. In the first half we took three charges, but in the second half I know at one point they had seven layups in the second half alone.
"Point being: we're just not protecting the basket. It's frustrating for me, watching this team in the first half competing, doing the things we ask them to do defensively. But in the second half it just wasn't good enough, on every level, whether it's rebounding, defense, taking care of the ball.
"We had some guys that didn't play very well tonight. For us to be good, we have to do it together, we didn't do it tonight. It just felt like that energy wasn't there in the second half for whatever reason."
 Xavier Talton hit a trey for the game's first points and a 3-0 CU lead, but after that the Buffs spent most of the first half playing catch up. Their 6-minute field goal drought allowed the Bruins to go up 20-14, and they also suffered through a pair of 4-plus minute non-scoring slumps.
But CU snapped back with a 7-0 run and crept ahead 21-20 until UCLA answered with its own 7-0 run and restored its six-point advantage (27-21). Freshman guard Dom Collier snaked through the Bruins zone for a layup that pulled CU to within 27-23 at halftime.
The Buffs' first-half shooting was frigid, with only Talton and Tre'Shaun Fletcher showing any signs of marksmanship. Together they hit five of their eight field goal attempts while their teammates hit a combined three of 18. Booker went 1-for-5 but contributed three of CU's five first-half assists. But the Buffs added only three more in the second half and Talton's eight first-half points were his night's total as were Fletcher's six.
Aside from their errant aim, the first half's big difference was the Bruins getting to the rim. UCLA outscored the visitors 16-4 in the paint – a number CU would have to address in the final 20 minutes. But the Buffs didn't.
Booker also needed to assert himself; that didn't take long but it came in spurts. After hitting a 3-pointer from the left wing, he knifed in for a layup that brought the Buffs to within 29-28. They tied the score at 33-33 on a conventional three-point play by Dustin Thomas with 15:50 remaining.
Just as quickly, though, CU's inconsistency and impatience resurfaced and the cave-in began. A pair of ill-advised perimeter shots produced empty possessions and the Buffs didn't compensate on the defensive end with stops. An 11-2 run provided UCLA with its biggest lead of the night to that point – 44-35 – with 11 minutes left.
Less than two minutes later, a crowd-pleasing Powell stuff made it a double-digit advantage – 48-37 – and the Buffs needed a time out to regroup. They didn't do that either.
The Bruins continued to run, have fun and roll up the score. That 33-33 tie seemed like last week when a Bryce Alford jumper capped a 25-4 surge that sent UCLA comfortably up 58-37 with a couple of ticks above 6 minutes remaining.
CU left Pauley having to be content with an LA split and looking to next season for another shot at winning in Westwood. The Buffs have a mid-week break, not playing again until Saturday when No. 11 Utah visits the Coors Events Center (8 p.m., Pac-12 Networks) to open a three-game homestand.
Contact: BG.Brooks@Colorado.EDUÂ
