UCLA
7-2
Michigan
8-3
UCLA Falls at Michigan, 78-69, in Overtime
December 09, 2017 | Men's Basketball
ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Aaron Holiday totaled a career-high 27 points and Thomas Welsh tied his career best with 22 points as No. 23 dropped a 78-69 decision in overtime at Michigan on Saturday afternoon.
Playing before a crowd of 12,137 in Crisler Center, UCLA (7-2) led 30-27 at halftime and pushed its margin to as many as 15 points (46-31) early in the second half.
Holiday led all players with 27 points and added seven assists. Welsh registered his team-best sixth double-double of the season. He shot 8 for 12 from the field, added 10 rebounds and two blocks and was a perfect 2-for-2 from three-point range and 4-for-4 at the free throw line.
"I'm proud of the guys' effort, as this is our first true road game," UCLA head coach Steve Alford said. "I thought that we really did give great effort. But we turned the ball over 20 times. I thought that was the difference in the game. There were a lot of positives, but we just did not make a lot of smart plays. Give Michigan credit, as they made a huge run when they were down by 15. A lot of that credit goes to how hard and smart their guys play."
Moritz Wagner led Michigan (8-3) with 23 points, including a trio of three-pointers. Charles Matthews added 20 points and Zavier Simpson scored 15.
The host Wolverines opened the overtime session with a 6-0 scoring run, capitalizing on back-to-back three-pointers from Simpson and Matthews. Michigan pushed its advantage to eight points – at 75-67 – after a turnover led to a Matthews jump shot. That prompted UCLA to call timeout with 2:21 to go in the extra session.
After having pushed its second-half advantage to 15 points, UCLA led by nine points to play with seven minutes left in regulation. Michigan's Muhammad-Ali Abdu Rahkman's three-pointer was followed by a Wagner steal and dunk, reducing the Bruins' advantage to 54-40 with 5:42 remianing.
Michigan made it a one-point game with 18 seconds remaining. Simpson cut in front of a pass from Holiday and scored an uncontested layup, pulling the Wolverines to within 64-63. After UCLA's G.G. Goloman hit the second of a pair of free throw attempts, Eli Brooks drew a foul at the other end of the court with Michigan trailing, 65-63. He made both free throws to tie the game. UCLA was unable to score in the game's final 10 seconds.
The Bruins had secured their largest lead of the game with 14:48 to play in the second half (leading, 46-31). UCLA used a 16-4 scoring run to earn that 15-point cushion. Welsh opened the second half by hitting his second three-pointer of the game, and the run was capped by a Holiday shot from behind the arc after a media timeout.
Welsh scored 13 of his 22 points in the first half, helping UCLA enter the locker room at the break with a 30-27 lead. In fact, Welsh tallied 11 consecutive points for UCLA late in the first half during a five-minute stretch.
UCLA committed a season-high 20 turnovers, which led to 24 points from Michigan. The Bruins shot 44 percent (25-of-57) from the floor and just 22 percent (4-of-18) from behind the arc, while the Wolverines finished the game shooting 47 percent (30-of-64) from the floor and 34 percent (10-of-29) from 3-point range. The Bruins won the rebounding battle 41-30.
UCLA will return to Pauley Pavilion to face No. 17 Cincinnati (7-2) on Saturday, Dec. 16. The Bruins' home game against the Bearcats will be nationally televised by CBS. Game time is 12:30 p.m. (PT).
