A look at the Pac-12 standings this afternoon isn’t very encouraging. After last night’s three games, UCLA is currently sitting in ninth place in the conference. The only teams trailing the Bruins in the conference standings are Arizona, Washington State and UC Berkeley. That’s the bad news. UCLA Men’s Basketball (13-13, 6-7) Opponent: Oregon State Beavers (16-8, 8-4) Series Record: UCLA leads, 96-39 When: 8:00 pm PT, Thursday, February 21, 2019 Where: Pauley Pavilion, Los Angeles, CA TV: FS1 with Tim Brando and Casey Jacobsen Live Stream: FoxSportsGo.com and the Fox Sports Go app Radio/Audio: AM 570 in Los Angeles with Josh Lewin and Tracy Murray Sirius Channel 84/XM Channel 84 (UCLA feed) And, of course, here in the Bruins Nation Game Thread! Live Stats: UCLA StatBroadcast Game Notes: UCLA Oregon State The good news is that the conference is still wide open. UCLA only trails second place Oregon State by two and a half games heading into tonight’s game against the Beavers and they trail fourth place Utah by a game and a half. So, a win tonight would go a long way towards that goal of finishing in the top four. Meanwhile, a loss won’t mathematically eliminate the Bruins, but it will leave them a full two games behind Utah with just four games to play. It will also leave UCLA two games under .500 in conference play, meaning that UCLA would have to win three of their final four games just to get to .500. But, if the Bruins can’t find a way to beat the Beavers at home—and I’m not sure they will—it’s probably likely that UCLA will limp their way to the end of the season and a probable first round loss in the Pac-12 Tournament. a<doc-sep>The crowd’s audible unease signaled that it sensed, and feared, what was coming. UCLA held a double-digit lead Thursday night in its first game on its home court since losing a 22-point cushion in an unfathomable defeat. The Bruins lost the lead again at Pauley Pavilion before fashioning a different, merciful ending against Oregon State. Chris Smith put the finishing touches on his first start than more than a month, banking in a spinning layup with 21 seconds left to put UCLA ahead by a point. Everybody in blue and white could finally let out a long sigh of relief after the lead held up and the Bruins held on for a 68-67 victory over the Beavers. “It’s a huge play,” UCLA interim coach Murry Bartow said. “You want a guy that can go in and make a big play like that.” Advertisement Smith was fouled on the shot but missed the resulting free throw, giving the Beavers an opportunity to complete their comeback from 12 points down early in the second half. But forward Tres Tinkle shot an airball on a three-point attempt and Oregon State fouled UCLA’s Jaylen Hands with one second left. Hands missed both free throws, but Tinkle could make only an awkward heave that fell well short after grabbing the rebound. UCLA had survived two Oregon State 7-0 runs in the second half, showing some poise and growth for a team that has repeatedly lost leads late in games this season. “We really have to step on their throats from now on,” Smith said, “instead of giving up leads like that.” Center Moses Brown finished with 14 points and 11 rebounds to lead five Bruins in double-figures scoring. Hands had 12 points and eight assists with only one turnover and Jules Bernard made eight of 10 free throws on the way to 10 points. What qualified as UCLA’s best victory of the season pulled the Bruins (14-13 overall, 7-7 Pac-12 Conference) to within one game of fourth-place Utah and USC in the Pac-12 standings, which is significant because the conference’s top four teams receive a first-round bye in the Pac-12 tournament. The Bruins’ bid to get that extra day off will be challenging considering their final four regular-season games come against Oregon, USC, Colorado and Utah, teams they have gone a combined 1-3 against this season. Advertisement The Bruins looked like they were comfortably on the way to beating the Beavers (16-9, 8-5) when Hands stole the ball in the Oregon State backcourt and went in for a layup that gave UCLA a 60-49 lead with 8:01 left in the game. But the Beavers immediately commenced their second 7-0 run of the second half to pull within 60-56. They eventually pulled even at 65-65 on reserve Antoine Vernon’s three-pointer. When Stephen Thompson Jr. (21 points) made a floater with 1:22 remaining to give the Beavers a 67-65 lead, it was their first advantage of the game. Hands made one of two free throws to pull the Bruins within one point and they got the ball back after Tinkle airballed a three-pointer. That set up Smith’s go-ahead basket. Sign up for our daily sports newsletter » Advertisement “When I got it across [midcourt], I looked up and it was just me and Thompson,” Smith said. “So I figured, just attack and make something happen either for myself or my teammates.” Bartow made two changes in his starting lineup, inserting David Singleton and Smith in place of Prince Ali and Jalen Hill. Ali was sidelined with plantar fasciitis in his left foot that Bartow said could keep him out of the Bruins’ game against Oregon on Saturday. Smith replaced Hill, Bartow said, because it gave his team “a more skilled guy at [power forward].” Smith put the second-biggest charge of the night into the crowd early in the second half when he drove for a ferocious one-handed dunk over Oregon State’s Kylor Kelley to put the Bruins ahead by 12 points. “We were on the bench when it happened,” Bernard said. “I ran down the bench and I was going crazy. It was an amazing play.” Advertisement Then came the loudest cheers when Smith drove for the winning basket. “What about this guy,” Bartow said with a pat on Smith’s chest as he passed him on his way out of the postgame news conference. UCLA next Saturday vs. Oregon, 7 p.m., Pauley Pavilion, ESPN2 — The Ducks will be looking for payback after their 17-point collapse in the second half of the teams’ meeting last month in Eugene, where the Bruins prevailed with an improbable 87-84 victory in overtime. Advertisement ben.bolch@latimes.com Follow Ben Bolch on Twitter @latbbolch<doc-sep>Credit to the UCLA Bruins for always finding a new and interesting way to make me completely baffled. The Bruins played extremely well for much of this game and carried an 11-point lead with under 8 minutes to play. They, then, proceeded to let the Oregon State Beavers get back into the game. That’s not a new story. If anything, I feel I’ve written that story way too many times at this point. No, the new part is where UCLA didn’t immediately fold late and continued to fight. Chris Smith, who had a really solid game, drove in with aggression and made a tough shot while getting fouled to put the Bruins ahead by one. On the ensuing Beavers possession, the Bruins played extremely good defense, forcing Tres Tinkle into a bad three-point shot that completely missed the rim with one second left and the Bruins were able to pull away with a 68-67 victory. One of the biggest factors in this game was that Murray Bartow finally listened to the chorus of Bruin fans and started David Singleton. It certainly helped that Bartow’s hand was forced by Prince Ali being unavailable for the game, but Singleton more than held his own, putting up eight points and three assists. Crucially, Singleton’s steady game acted as a great complement to Jaylen Hands, who was able to open up and become more aggressive while sharing the court with a more natural ball-handler. Hands had eight assists and 12 points, to go along with two steals and only a single turnover, which is just another data point in what has been a surprisingly strong season from the sophomore. Of UCLA’s three potential early-departures, Hands has looked the most NBA-ready. Let’s talk about another one of those potential early-departures real quick, as Moses Brown also had himself a solid game. The true freshman big man had 14 points on 5 of 8 shooting, including an impressive 4 of 5 from the free throw line, to go along with 11 rebounds. Crucially, against Oregon State’s strong interior game, Brown played smart, technically-sound defense and only committed one foul, which allowed him to play a team-high 37 (!) minutes. UCLA’s offense was about what you’d expect at this point. The fade down the stretch can be attributed in part by an offensive system that thrives at pace but has no concept of how to effectively work when slowed down. The nice wrinkle in this game was the aggression that the offense showed in driving, as the Bruins worked their way to 28 free throws, 10 of which were shot by Jules Bernard, who seemed to have a stretch where every UCLA offensive possession seemed to end in Bernard driving to the basket and getting fouled. Weirdly enough, I thought the UCLA defense actually played much better than the stats would suggest. Oregon State shot 50.8% from the field and had a dominating 40-26 advantage in the paint, but my lasting memory of this game might be the series of long, difficult three-point shots that the Beavers were forced into taking. Oregon State went 6 of 20 (30%) from distance, which definitely helped keep things close. Moses Brown led the Bruins with 14 points and 11 rebounds. Jaylen Hands led the team with eight assists. Stephen Thompson Jr. led the Beavers with 21 points. Three Takeaways Player of the Game: David Singleton - Did Singleton have the best night statistically? No, but Singleton was a steadying presence throughout the game and was a perfect complement to Jaylen Hands in the backcourt. Hopefully this starting lineup sticks when Ali is able to play, because it was a refreshing change of pace in a lost season. The Least-Shocking Event of the Game: Bruins Let Beavers Back in Late - Honestly, if you were shocked that UCLA would play extremely well for 3⁄ 4 of the game only to let an opponent back into the game, then I don’t know what to tell you. Hey, Let’s Talk About Those Rotations Real Quick - Can I just say how baffled I was by the bench usage in this game? Jules Bernard got a solid 19 minutes, which is good, but Alex Olesinski played more minutes than Cody Riley and Jalen Hill combined. And while Brown’s 37 minutes was impressive, there were moments where Brown seemed to be struggling and really looked like he could use a few minutes on the bench just to regroup. Oh yeah, and did you know Kris Wilkes was actually on the court for 35 minutes? Because it honestly felt like he just wasn’t there for most of the game. UCLA next plays on Saturday, when they go for the season sweep against the Oregon Ducks. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 pm PT. Go Bruins!<doc-sep>
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - JANUARY 05: Jaylen Hands #4 of the UCLA Bruins and head coach Murry Bartow of the UCLA Bruins watch from near the bench during the second half against the California Golden Bears at Pauley Pavilion on January 05, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Katharine Lotze/Getty Images) The UCLA basketball team is able to hold off the Oregon State Beavers as they avoid another double-digit comeback at Pauley Pavilion. This win keeps UCLA in the hunt for a first-round Pac-12 Tournament bye. This was a good win. The UCLA basketball team did what the could to secure the victory against one of the hottest teams in the Pac-12 and it paid off in the end. Oregon State Beavers 67 UCLA Bruins 68 It was going to take a certain amount of effort to beat the Beavers and the Bruins matched it despite nearly throwing it away. But you have to hand it to UCLA who did not give up. In fact, one of the reasons the Bruins were in this game was because they were hustling and making the effort to keep their team in the game. For the most part, UCLA was in control for the majority of the game as the Bruins had the lead for about 90% of the game. A quick start propelled them to a comfortable lead early which was sustained until just under three minutes left in the game. In that time, the Bruins had pushed their lead to as much as 12 as they held the veteran-laden Beavers at bay. Jaylen Hands and David Singleton (who made his first start of the season in place of the injured Prince Ali) had made a few quick baskets early in the game. Singleton, who has been playing at the top of his game as of late, finished with eight points and three assists. Hands finished with 12 points and eight assists and was one of five Bruins to score in double figures. Moses Brown had a challenge on his hands trying to defend Oregon State’s leading scorer Tres Tinkle, who added in 19 points, but made a mark of his own as he claimed another double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds. Though he came on late, Kris Wilkes was able to contribute to the scoring party with 10 points. The Bruins also had an awakening off the bench as Jules Bernard dropped in 10 points and brought down 6 rebounds. The most surprising scoring surge came from Chris Smith who had one of his best games of the season with 10 points that came at key points in the game. One of the highlights of the game came on the second half when he went right at Oregon State with a monster tomahawk dunk that brought Pauley Pavilion to its feet. He also scored the game-winning layup with 20 seconds left. Just showing off. Chris Smith with the 🔨 dunk and @UCLAMBB holds off Oregon State at home. pic.twitter.com/pSLMW9fKGL — Pac-12 Network (@Pac12Network) February 22, 2019 This was definitely a satisfying win. After the Bruins gave up a 22-point lead to Utah in their last game at Pauley Pavilion, it felt like the same thing was about to occur against Oregon State. Luckily, UCLA learned from their mistakes and was ready for this late onslaught to get the much-needed victory. They didn’t give up any bad shots, did not make crucial mistakes and got points when they needed to. It was not pretty, but it was something to build off of. With this win, UCLA is now one game outside that coveted 4th place spot which will get them a bye in the first round of the Pac-12 Tournament.