UCLA Basketball Takes Down #20 Gonzaga In First True Road Game of the Season
The UCLA Basketball team defeated #20 Gonzaga up in Spokane, 71-66, in their first true road game of the season. It is the second time in two weeks that the Bruins have beat a Top 25 team after beating Kentucky 10 days ago.
Who saw this coming? The UCLA Basketball (7-3) team, which has had a subpar road record under Head Coach Steve Alford, went up to Gonzaga (6-3) and threw their weight around to get a monumental road victory, which just happened to be the second win over a Top 25 team this season.
As of late, basically since they beat Kentucky, we have seen the Bruins come together as a team and play a less individualized game. We continued to see that as the Bruins played a tough Bulldog team from wire-to-wire.
UCLA had maintained the lead throughout the game, but had their issues early. The Bruins had at one point an 8-point lead in the first half, but Gonzaga fought their way back to take a 32-30 lead at the half.
UCLA Bruins
The game changer in the second half was senior center Tony Parker who only accounted for 4 points in the first, but roared back for 12 in the second half and finished with 8-for-9 shooting. His front court counterpart, Thomas Welsh, had gotten into some foul trouble, but managed to make an impact everytime he was on the floor as he ended with 8 points and 8 rebounds.
Isaac Hamilton continued his breakout party this season as he led all Bruins with 20 points which included 3-for-6 3-point shooting.
The surprise of the night was redshirt freshman Jonah Bolden who had originally came in to help out on the defensive end guarding Gonzaga’s Kyle Wiltjer who was draining shot after shot early. Parker was matched up against him but could not contain him.
Bolden’s athleticism limited Wiltjer in the first half, though he eventually collected 20 points. Despite being out on the court for defensive purposes, Bolden scored 10 of his own and added 11 rebounds for the game’s only double-double.
Down the stretch, the UCLA Basketball team was able to limit the Bulldogs to bad shots with their new found defensive game. Gonzaga had tried everything in their power to stay with the Bruins, but UCLA was too much for the battered Bulldogs.
Not only is this a confidence booster for the Bruins, but they also seem to be righting the ship that took a hit in the Maui Invitational where the Bruins went 1-2 with losses Kansas and Wake Forest.
Next: UCLA Basketball - Good At Pauley, Not So Much On The Road
The Bruins next contest is Tuesday against Louisiana-Lafayette at Pauley Pavilion. Next Saturday, UCLA Basketball travels to Brooklyn to face North Carolina at the Barclay’s Center.