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UCLA Basketball: Men’s and women’s team split opening night results

By Mike Regalado

SACRAMENTO, CA - MARCH 17: Head coach Steve Alford of the UCLA Bruins reacts against the Kent State Golden Flashes during the first round of the 2017 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Golden 1 Center on March 17, 2017 in Sacramento, California. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
SACRAMENTO, CA - MARCH 17: Head coach Steve Alford of the UCLA Bruins reacts against the Kent State Golden Flashes during the first round of the 2017 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Golden 1 Center on March 17, 2017 in Sacramento, California. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images) /
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It was opening night for both the men’s and women’s UCLA basketball teams with one getting a win in their own abode and the other getting shocked on the road.

It was opening night for UCLA basketball with the men’s team taking on Purdue Fort Wayne at Pauley Pavilion and the women’s team 11 miles south at Loyola Marymount University. Both squads had differing results.

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In the house that Wooden built, the men’s team took down the Mastodons, 96-71. Steve Alford’s team had amazing performances by several players, including a solid freshman outing. Down in the Lion’s Den, Cori Close’s Bruins had a tough time in a 69-63 loss.

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Back in Westwood, it was all about preseason Naismith Trophy and Wooden Award nominee Kris Wilkes who went off for a career-high 27 points on 11/19 shooting with 3/7 coming from the outside. He was also able to pull down 10 rebounds for his first double-double of the season. But he wasn’t the only one to accomplish that feat.

The 7’2 freshman Moses Brown was able to make a big impact in his college debut with 19 points (9/10)  and 17 rebounds, clearly a strong addition to the frontcourt.

The Bruins also looked comfortable with Jaylen Hands running the team. The sophomore floor general contributed 18 points and 7 assists to the Bruins’ winning efforts. UCLA also had a surprise from another sophomore as Chris Smith dropped in 13 points backed by a 3/3 effort from behind the arc.

Another pleasant surprise came in the form of UCLA’s defense. They were able to play tighter and limit IPFW’s shooting. In the first half, the Bruins only allowed 30% shooting from the Mastodons. The Bruins also had 8 steals, 4 blocks, and 11 points off turnovers. Though it wasn’t suffocating, it was an improvement. One thing the Bruins have to pay attention to is the individual efforts. IPFW’s John Konchar went off for 25 points last night. Though one player cannot play all five spots, they can make an impact on the game and UCLA has to learn how to shut down their opponent’s best players when they start to get hot.

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It was a different story down in Playa Vista. Cori Close was concerned about her team’s defense without Jordin Canada and Monique Billings. Though these Bruins had limited LMU to 35.5% shooting on the night, it was the offense that had a hard time getting into a groove without the now WNBA players.

Despite four Bruins scoring in double figures, UCLA’s shooting efforts were limited to 35.4%. It also did not help that the Bruins shot a paltry 20% (5/25) from beyond the arc.

Kennedy Burke led the charge for the Bruins as she also collected her first double-double of the season with 13 points and 13 rebounds. Freshman Ahlana Smith also showed her talents as she matched Burke’s point total with 13 of her own.

Point guard Japreece Dean led all Bruins scores with 16 points. Though she is the team’s new floor general, it was Lindsey Corsaro who turned out to be the team’s best distributor with 4 assists. She also added 13 points and 6 rebounds.

There was another Bruin that had a big rebounding game as Michaela Onyenwere showed why she can be one of the best frontcourt players on not just the team, but in the Pac-12. The sophomore grabbed 13 boards, six of them coming on the offensive glass. If she can convert those to points, she will be deadly as the season progresses.

Still, it was not the effort Close hoped for, but one she can build off of. It is not easy losing multiple superstars, just ask Alford after he lost Lonzo Ball and TJ Leaf.

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The men’s team next play on Friday night as they take on Long Beach State at Pauley Pavilion at 7:30 p.m. The women’s get their first game at home on Sunday against Rice at 2 p.m.