Bruins’ Win a Nail-Biter

Dan Gadzuric, the center from the Netherlands so often lost in Never Never Land, kept UCLA from slipping into the Pacific 10 Conference abyss with a dominant performance worthy of his 6-foot-11 frame and astonishing athleticism.

Gadzuric’s power inside kept the Bruins close enough for Jason Kapono’s three-point basket with 19 seconds to decide the outcome, a 77-76 victory against No. 9 Arizona on Thursday night in front of 11,960 at Pauley Pavilion.

Instead of sliding alone into sixth place, No. 20 UCLA (17-7, 9-4 in the conference) is one of six teams with four losses, five of which trail Arizona (17-7, 10-4) by a half-game.

So UCLA remains in the running for the conference title and a favorable seeding in the NCAA tournament--by rebounding from a dispiriting road loss to Villanova to knock off a team that overcame a 20-point second-half deficit to beat the Bruins a month ago.

“The last two weeks have been really challenging for our program,” Coach Steve Lavin said. “I’m proud how our team bounced back.”

It was reminiscent of last season’s meeting here between these teams, a 79-77 UCLA victory in overtime. Gadzuric had 22 points and 17 rebounds in that one, and he had 22 points and 16 rebounds in this one.

“I got off out there the same way,” he said. “I thought about it and had the same opportunities.”

He stayed out of foul trouble, yet did not compromise his aggressiveness. Too often, striking that delicate balance has been difficult for a player foreign to finesse.

“I’m learning the game,” he said. “I just have to keep my poise.”

That trait he can pick up from Kapono, who gave UCLA its first lead since 13-12 with a three-point basket with 1:06 to play. After Arizona’s Jason Gardner made a 24-foot three-pointer with 36.4 seconds left, Kapono drilled another for the winning points.

“I just did what I do best,” said Kapono, who had 20 points and made six of 11 from long range.

Arizona had a chance to win, but freshman center Channing Frye missed an open jumper from five feet, got the rebound and missed again. Wildcat forward Rick Anderson ended up with the loose ball, but Gadzuric forced a jump ball as the buzzer sounded.

Frye did not miss a shot and scored 19 points in Arizona’s victory over UCLA at Tucson, outplaying Gadzuric. This time the tables turned--Frye scored only five points.

Arizona found it difficult to double-team Gadzuric because UCLA went to a motion offense early in the game for the first time all year, spreading four players on the perimeter and giving the center room inside.

He was inspired from the outset, scoring 13 points and grabbing nine rebounds in the first half. He had three dunks and four of his six baskets came after he grabbed offensive rebounds.

Matt Barnes also had nine rebounds, but committed four of UCLA’s nine turnovers. Barnes finished with 15 rebounds, helping the Bruins to a 45-28 advantage on the boards, one of their most decisive margins of the season.

“We hit the boards hard,” Barnes said. “We haven’t done that much of the year and we knew it would be a big key.”

Reserve point guard Ryan Walcott made a difference too. Starter Cedric Bozeman struggled, missing his four shots and committing three turnovers in 21 minutes, so Walcott played most of the second half, contributing six points and three assists.

He also slowed Gardner, who scored 25 but did not get open on Arizona’s last possession.

Arizona stepped on the accelerator whenever possible and scored in transition. The fast pace also enabled the Wildcats to get open looks from three-point range, and they made 11 of 22. Gardner hit seven of 10.

After a three-point basket by Kapono tied the score, 28-28, with five minutes left in the first half, Arizona rattled off 12 of the next 14 points for a 10-point lead. A dunk by Dijon Thompson off an inside pass from Gadzuric and a post move by Barnes pulled the Bruins within 40-34 at halftime.

In the second half, Gadzuric’s muscle kept UCLA within reach until Kapono’s touch tilted the scale.

Kapono was reluctant to shoot early, passing up an open look on UCLA’s second possession and throwing the ball away, causing assistant coach Jim Saia to pantomime a shooting motion to him. Seconds later, the junior forward dribbled to get an open three-point basket for the first Bruin points.

In the final seconds, Kapono needed no such prompting.

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