UCLA
14-15,9-9Pac-12
Washington State
23-7,14-5Pac-12
Men's Basketball Falls at Washington State, 77-65
March 02, 2024 | Men's Basketball
PULLMAN, Wash. – Dylan Andrews scored a team-leading 21 points as the UCLA men's basketball team lost at No. 19 Washington State, 77-65, before a crowd of 8,096 at Beasley Coliseum on Saturday evening.
Andrews was one of four Bruins to score in double figures. Lazar Stefanovic and Sebastian Mack each registered 11 points and Adem Bona finished with 10 points.
Washington State's Jaylen Wells scored a team-high 27 points and was a perfect 10-for-10 at the free throw line for the host Cougars (23-7, 14-5 Pac-12). He made 7 of 16 shots from the field and was 3-for-7 from 3-point distance.
The Bruins (14-15, 9-9 Pac-12) lost for just the second time in their last eight meetings against Washington State, as the Cougars snapped a four-game losing streak against UCLA. Last season, UCLA went 2-0 against Washington State with wins at Beasley Coliseum and in Pauley Pavilion.
"Our frontline has to be better on the glass," said Mick Cronin, The Michael Price Family UCLA Men's Head Basketball Coach. "You get in games like this against a top-20 team on the road. All of our great effort, all your great defensive effort goes for naught if you can't control the defensive backboard. It just breaks your back, and then you end up getting a foul, or they end up hitting a three, because you can't control your backboard. That was the difference in the game. If you can't control your defensive backboard, it negates all of your effort, hustle and good defense. It's just demoralizing. That's our biggest problem. That's what got us beat, without question."
UCLA led by as many as 13 points midway through the first half. Washington State tied the game, 28-28, and outscored the Bruins by a 12-4 margin over the final three minutes in the opening half to secure a 40-32 halftime lead.
After Stefanovic nailed a 3-pointer as the shot clock expired, the Bruins were ahead, 19-6, with 13:35 to play. From that point in the opening half, Washington State outscored UCLA by a 34-13 margin over the next 13 minutes.
Washington State, which has won 10 of its last 11 games and improved to 15-1 at home, finished Saturday's game having shot 41.8 percent from the field. The Cougars were 24-for-33 at the free throw line (72.7 percent).
UCLA regained the lead midway through the second half. The Bruins scored the first five points in the second half – a basket by Adem Bona and a 3-pointer from Mack – to reduce Washington State's cushion to 40-37. Trailing 48-46, a hook shot by Aday Mara tied the game for the Bruins at the 12:36 mark.
Stefanovic followed for UCLA with a step-back jump shot to put the Bruins ahead, 50-48. After the Cougars tied the contest, 50-50, Mara sank a pair of free throws at the 11:06 mark to put UCLA back on top (52-50).
Leading 58-55, UCLA's Will McClendon was assessed a flagrant two foul (automatic ejection) at the 7:35 mark. Washington State missed both free throws before Jaylen Wells hit a 3-point shot to tie the game, 58-58, with 7:10 remaining.
From that point, the Cougars outscored UCLA by a 19-7 margin to secure the 12-point victory. Washington State's Isaac Jones and Andrej Jakimovski connected on back-to-back shots to give the Cougars a 63-58 advantage. UCLA never reduced the deficit to any fewer than three points.
The Bruins will conclude their regular-season schedule with a pair of home games next week. UCLA hosts No. 6-ranked Arizona on Thursday, March 7, at 6:30 p.m. (PT) in Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom. The Bruins will take on Arizona State next Saturday, March 9, at 8 p.m. (PT) in the final regular-season contest for both programs.
UCLA's game against Arizona will be televised by ESPN, while the Bruins' matchup on Saturday versus Arizona State will be televised by FS1.
