Corvallis, OR – The Oregon State Beavers had one of their best efforts of the season Thursday night in their double-overtime loss to USC. The Beavers looked to follow that with another strong performance as they faced the No. 12 ranked UCLA Bruins this afternoon. UCLA is coming off a tough loss to Oregon in which they lost their leading scorer Johnny Juzang to an ankle injury in the first half. Juzang was unavailable for today’s game. The Bruins were effective on offense throughout the game and were never seriously challenged in a 94-55 win.
Point guard Tyger Campbell was the best of the Bruins, hitting from outside consistently and running the offense well. Campbell finished with 20 points on 8-of-10 from the field, including 4-of-6 from deep and added five assists to no turnovers. Jaime Jacquez Jr. helped out with 17 points, hitting both his three-point attempts and added four rebounds and three assists.
With Juzang unavailable the Bruins needed to find their offense from a variety of sources. That’s what happened as the game got underway as David Singleton and Jules Bernard (16 points) connected on early three-pointers. Jaquez Jr., bothered by ankle issues recently looked looser today, scoring in the post as well as hitting a three-pointer. Campbell took on more of the offense as well, hitting an early three and connecting on several mid-range jumpers. The Bruins gradually built their lead and extending it to 17 points (41-24) on a Campbell three-pointer with 1:14 remaining. UCLA led at the break 43-28.
The Bruins were efficient on offense in the half, connecting on 55.6 percent of their shot including 5-of-9 from deep. Bernard hit two 3s in the half and scored eight points. Campbell also hit two 3s and scored 10 while Jaquez Jr. led with way with 14 points on 4-of-8 shooting. The Beavers were fairly effective on offense, shooting 45.8 percent but making only 2-of-7 3s. UCLA had a +7 rebounding advantage including 6-3 on the offensive glass and had a 10-2 edge in points off turnovers.
The second half was more of the same as UCLA was very crisp offensively. Things deteriorated for the Beavers as the second half progressed with UCLA’s defense forcing them into six turnovers over the first ten minutes of the half. UCLA continued their offensive surge highlighted by three-pointers from Campbell and Jaquez Jr. as their lead ballooned to 75-39 after Peyton Watson made a free throw. The Bruins coasted to the impressive win from there.
The Bruins shot an impressive 59 percent in the game including 13-of-20 from deep. They out-rebounded the Beavers 35-18 including 12-5 on the offensive boards. They forced only 12 turnovers but that resulted in a 25-7 edge in points off turnovers. The Beavers cooled off in the second half, finished the game at 41 percent including 5-of-16 from deep.
Oregon State (3-24, 1-16) will face Washington State in a make-up game on Monday night at home before traveling to face the Washington schools next week to close out their regular season. UCLA (21-6, 13-5) will face USC on March 5th in a game that could decide the No. 2 seed in the Pac-12 tournament.
This article was written by Carl Berman, Managing Partner of NetScouts Basketball. You can follow us on Facebook, or on twitter.
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