UCLA gets back in the win column with victory over Arizona State

UCLA picked up a big-time win on Wednesday night against Arizona State at Pauley Pavilion. UCLA moved to 8-3 on the season and played their most complete game of the season against a good Division I opponent. Arizona State was 9-2 and received a few top 25 votes due to their start this season. The Bruins were able to play really well offensively but more importantly defensively. They held the Sun Devils to 40% shooting on the night and a really efficient 4-26 from 3-point range.

UCLA was locked in on both ends of the floor, allowing them to get a 90-77 win. Allowing them to get back on track after letting the Gonzaga game slip away late. UCLA shot 47% on the night including 54% from 3-point land. Led by Skyy Clark who went 6-10 from long distance, continuing his blistering shooting start to the season. Donovan Dent also had one of his best games as a Bruin as he was 9-17 from the floor for 20 points.

UCLA needed a bounce back win in this matchup. As they have been up and down the season. They played well with their backs against the wall and flaws to fix. The bench stepped up with 28 points led by Jamar Brown with nine and Trent Perry with eight. That was one of the areas that they needed to get consistency from. They have also improved their free throw shooting, which has struggled. They went 18-22 from the line on the night.

UCLA will now have matchups with Cal Poly and UC Riverside before 18 straight Big Ten matchups to end the season. They will most likely go back to Big Ten play 10-3 on the season. They will need to build on this win and all the positives that they had. Including fast break points which Gonzaga used to get out in transition. UCLA has three top 10 opponents in Michigan, Michigan State and Purdue all on the schedule still. You want to build on wins and create momentum so that you don't fall back into a place of comfortability. So, any momentum is good momentum.