UCLA
Arizona
No. 10 Bruins Down No. 6 Wildcats, 82-75
June 21, 1999 | Men's Basketball
January 2, 1999
LOS ANGELES (AP) - There were sparkles, not tears, in the eyes of Baron Davis this time.
He cried after Arizona beat UCLA in the regular-season finale last year, feeling guilty for his role in the seniors ending their home careers with a loss.
What a difference a season makes.
Davis was all smiles after scoring 20 points and leading an aggressive defense that helped the 10th-ranked Bruins defeat the sixth-ranked Wildcats 82-75 Saturday night in the Pac-10 opener for both teams.
"I was thinking about that before the game, how I missed the shot to send it into overtime," he said of last year's four-point loss. "This year, I felt so much more confidence and so much poise out there on the floor. I just had a confidence about this team that we'd pull it through in the end."
UCLA so dominated the first half, shooting 53 percent in taking a 40-24 lead that the Bruins withstood getting outscored by nine points in the second half.
Jerome Moiso had 21 points off the bench. He and fellow freshman Dan Gadzuric were held out of the starting lineup for a lack of effort at practice this week as UCLA coach Steve Lavin used his ninth different lineup in 11 games.
"You have to bring a high energy, a good work ethic and come to practice on time because I have 14 players who I can play," Lavin said. "You have to show me you're willing to compete every day."
Moiso and Gadzuric didn't have to wait long. Both got into the game within the first five minutes when the Bruins led by nine, thanks to their stifling defense that forced hands into faces of Wildcat shooters.
"They had a lot of fire," said Arizona guard Jason Terry, who was razzed all game for an airball. "We didn't match their intensity or their defense. It took us too long to adjust."
The Bruins (9-2), who lost both meetings to Arizona last season, won their seventh straight in a game that wasn't close until the final two minutes. The Wildcats (8-1), the defending conference champions, faced a vocal, hostile crowd at Pauley Pavilion in only their second road game of the season.
The highly charged atmosphere felt more like a postseason game between the two teams that have won or shared the Pac-10 title every year since 1986.
"I think some (of the freshmen) were overconfident," Arizona center A.J. Bramlett said. "Everybody was saying how we were going to beat them, take it to them in their house.
"Coach, Terry and I were telling them all week, This game isn't going to be easy. Don't underestimate UCLA,"' Bramlett said. "It showed tonight the message didn't get through, but we can become a lot better team after this game."
Desperate for leadership from their only senior starters, Terry played all 40 minutes and had 19 points while Bramlett clocked a minute less with 15 points and 11 rebounds.
The Bruins came out quickly and kept the pressure on for nearly 40 minutes. They led the whole way, and were up by 20 points for much of the second half despite having four players in foul trouble.
"It seemed like everyone was awe struck by the atmosphere of this arena," Terry said of UCLA's 11 NCAA title banners hanging from the rafters. "Sure, a couple of us have been here, but most of them were amazed. If we'd have been at home, we'd have been fine."
The Wildcats cut the lead to eight points with less than two minutes remaining on a 3-pointer by Terry, and got within five in the final minute.
Arizona didn't have an answer for Moiso, the 6-foot-10 1/2 freshman whose inside-outside shooting touch left the Wildcats scrambling on defense.
He picked up his fourth foul with 8:41 remaining, but stayed in the game and made a spectacular block of Bramlett with three minutes left that brought the crowd to its feet. When Davis missed a long-range jumper, Moiso was there to tap it in.
"I don't think I missed one the first half," Moiso said. "The crowd was behind us and pushing us. That was a good feeling."
Arizona trailed by 10 when the Wildcats went 8:52 without a field goal over the end of the first half and start of the second in a costly drought they never recovered from.
"In the first half, our freshmen came out and played like they were scared to death," Arizona coach Lute Olson said. "We need to come out and play with fire in our eyes. We didn't play like an Arizona team in the first half."
By the time Bramlett hit a jumper, the Wildcats were down by 20 with 16:30 remaining. Michael Wright added 14 points and 10 rebounds.
Although the Wildcats controlled the boards 48-31, they had 16 turnovers and shot just 38 percent to UCLA's 50 percent.
By BETH HARRIS
AP Sports Writer
