CHICAGO — In mid-February, UCLA hit one of its worst lows this season.
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It had lost by 23 points to a fierce Michigan State team in a game that coach Mick Cronin had ejected his own player before lashing out at a reporter for “raising” his voice.
Just a month later, the Bruins (23-10, 13-7 Big Ten) rolled as they grinded their way to an 88-84 Big Ten Tournament quarterfinal victory over the Spartans (25-7, 15-5 Big Ten).
But this occasion presented its own challenge as forward Tyler Bilodeau exited in the first half with a knee sprain that Cronin said would take a “miracle” to return from in the next game.
UCLA got it done anyway, and the team is trending in a completely different direction, having won six of its last seven games
“The guys didn’t flinch,” Cronin said. “I was proud of them for that.”
Guard Trent Perry knocked down all four of his final-minute free throws, while the Spartans fouled and flopped, trying to extend the game the Bruins had put just out of their reach. He finished with 22 points.
Guard Donovan Dent, who recorded the first triple-double in Big Ten Tournament history Thursday against Rutgers, wasn’t far from doing it again, with a team-leading 23 points, 12 assists, plus six rebounds. He has just six turnovers to his 77 assists in the past seven games.
Forward Eric Dailey Jr. had a double-double with 14 points and seven rebounds, but perhaps more important were his team-leading 12 deflections, per Dent, and two blocks.
“He was great,” Dent said of Dailey. “He actually beat me by one in our deflection thing; I'm kind of mad about that. He barely got it, but we'll ignore that.”
Daiely scratched Dent’s head as they complemented each other side-by-side while being the last couple of players remaining in the locker room postgame until the very moment Cronin popped in to tell them they’d answered enough questions.
It was time to go. The Bruins had a game to play the next day against No. 7-seeded Purdue in the Big Ten Tournament semifinals.
UCLA’s lights-out shooting performance earned them that spot, riding a 53.8% first-half 3-point shooting performance to a 44-33 halftime lead. Perry had 10 of the first 22 points.
The Bruins’ advantage had ballooned to 54-39 just five minutes into the second half. The Spartans punched back with a 7-0 run. But the Bruins responded, reestablishing their double-digit lead multiple times in the ensuing minutes.
Even when the Spartans cut the lead to two points, even with Bilodeau on the bench with his knee wrapped in ice and even as a pro-Michigan State crowd roared, they got it done.
Reserve guard Brandon Williams stepped up with nine points and four rebounds, while bench guard Eric Freeny added three rebounds.
“We have so much depth,” Dent said, “to where the next man can step up anytime.”
Dent said UCLA has changed its defensive mindset since the previous Michigan State game and has found resounding success, though it didn't show the entire time Friday. Moments later, Perry largely brushed off a question about offensive improvement, deflecting to the defensive growth.
While the Bruins gave up 84 points, the 33 points they’d conceded in the first half provided them with the advantage they didn’t lose.
“They were rolling, but we kept answering,” Cronin said. “We showed a lot of poise and made big shots.”
Rebounding remained an issue for a team that starts three guards, as the Spartans corralled 34 boards compared to the Bruins’ 26. But that’s just something they are going to have to live with, Cronin said, and they do it with high-level shotmaking and playmaking.
Entering the game as a projected No. 8 seed in ESPN’s Joe Lunardi’s bracketology, who knows where UCLA will land if it keeps up this momentum. No. 7? No. 6? Perhaps, better?
Forward Xavier Booker, who fouled out in just 14 minutes, and forward Steven Jamerson II, who committed a flagrant foul just before halftime, didn’t live up to Cronin’s standard.
But compared to last time, when Cronin threw Jamerson out of the game after committing a chase-down foul, these concerns were a world’s better.
The Bruins might have something with this team.
“It’s March,” Dent said. “This is what we get paid for.”