Maui invitational: UCLA Basketball Defeats UNLV In The Thomas Welsh Show
The UCLA Basketball team was able to squeak out a 77-75 win over UNLV in the first round of the Maui Invitational behind a solid 20-point performance by center Thomas Welsh.
UCLA Basketball is now in the midst of some proper competition as they began play in the Maui Invitational. The Bruins took on the UNLV Rebels in the final game of the first day of the early season tournament and came through with a 77-75 victory. A big part of that was from 7’0″ sophomore center Thomas Welsh.
The Bruins looked like they were going to have a long night as UNLV pounced on the Bruins early. The Rebels jumped out to a 9-point lead as they pressured the Bruins from every in-bound to every drive of the lane and seemed to hit everything from the field. UNLV had held off the Bruins but broke down midway through the first half.
The main contributing factor in this game was Thomas Welsh who took control of the front court with the semi-absence of senior Tony Parker. Parker had played only 11 minutes due to foul trouble, which has plagued his career.
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Parker had picked up his third foul before halftime and then 19 seconds into the second half, he picked up his fourth. Fortunately, there was Welsh.
Thomas Welsh was once again on fire as he was hitting short to mid-range jumpers all game long and was essentially killing UNLV from the baseline. Welsh finished the night with 20 points on 7-for-12 shooting with 8 rebounds and 2 blocks in tow.
Bryce Alford was another weapon for the Bruins as he had 20 points, though it did not come from the floor as he was 5-for-15. The majority of his points came from the free throw line where he hit 9-for-10 which was part of a streak of 22 free throws by the entire squad that propelled the Bruins to victory late in the game.
It was a sloppy game in general for both teams, but in the end, the Bruins pulled through and got the victory. They now advances to the next round of the winner’s bracket of the Maui Invitational where they will be taking on Kansas who defeated host school Chaminade 123-72.