College basketball: UCLA upsets No. 7 Arizona

The gym’s court will be known going forward as Russell Westbrook Court.

“I hit the shot, turned around and he was just screaming at me”, said Alford, who wore giveaway eyeglass frames in honor of Westbrook. Alford had 25 points on 9-for-18 shooting, making 5 of 11 three-pointers, while perimeter mates Isaac Hamilton (14 points) and Aaron Holiday (15) were also unstoppable at times. While it’s nice to have a sniper like Alford steal a victory or two, this game has all the makings of being the high point for the Bruins’ season.

Sadie Stipanovich (Westminster) had 12 points for SLU.

You had the feeling Bryce Alford was going to get the ball.

The 3-pointer by Alford helped UCLA salvage the upset despite blowing a 14-point second-half lead. The Bruins shot 50% from three (11-22) and Arizona, who’s been identified as a team that struggles from three, shot 35% (6-17).

UCLA guard Bryce Alford drained a 3-pointer with 1.8 seconds remaining to give the Bruins an 87-84 win over No. 7 Arizona Thursday night. It proved to be the game victor as Arizona was unable to get a shot of on the ensuing possession. The Sun Devils had won four in a row before losing a 12-point decision to the Wildcats last weekend. The former standout at St. John Bosco High School (Bellflower, Calif.) has made 54.6 percent of his total field goal attempts over UCLA’s last seven games (averaging 20.4 points per game over that span).

The victory continued an enigmatic season.

The total has gone OVER in 4 of UCLA’s last 5 games.

The Pac-12 is an extremely competitive, exciting and passionate conference, especially when it comes to NCAA basketball. Parker appeared sluggish. They are the team’s two most-experienced players: the Bruins usually go as far as those two can take them.

UCLA led for all but 110 seconds, held off a late run, and handed the Wildcats just their second loss of the season. On the ensuing trip down the floor, though, Alford found Jonah Bolden on the perimeter for a big three pointer, which put the Bruins back up by 11. UCLA played three consecutive games in the 2015 Maui Jim Maui Invitational, facing UNLV, Kansas and Wake Forest during the week of Thanksgiving.

In the first few minutes of the game, UCLA showed off the intensity that was absent during last weekend’s sweep by Washington and Washington State. Arizona was led by Anderson, while Allonzo Trier scored 13 and Kaleb Tarczewski came off the bench to collect 12 points and 12 boards.

Arizona defeated Arizona State, 94-82, at the Sun Devils’ home (Wells Fargo Arena) last Sunday afternoon to open Pac-12 action. The Wildcats, under the guidance of seventh-year head coach Sean Miller, have gone 13-1 this season with wins over Boise State, Providence, Gonzaga and UNLV.

Ryan Anderson had 15 points and 15 rebounds to lead the Wildcats (13-2, 1-1), who had their eight-game winning streak snapped. “Even with all the mistakes that we made we were still in it at the end, that’s a big testament to how hard the guys on the team play and how much we all want to win”. The Wildcats are starting Pac-12 play with three straight road games for the first time since 1994-95.