The Oregon men’s basketball team played with heart, emotion and intensity against No. 15 UCLA Thursday night at McArthur Court.
But just when it looked as though the Ducks might pull even with the Bruins, “the paint can lid slammed shut” over Oregon’s rim, as Ducks head coach Ernie Kent put it.
Oregon (13-11 overall, 4-10 Pacific-10 Conference) dropped the first game of its final homestand of the season, 88-73, to UCLA (18-6, 11-2). It was the sixth straight win for the Bruins, who held on to sole possession of second place in the Pac-10.
Midway through the second half, the Ducks made a valiant run at the Bruins. With 14:48 showing on the clock in the second frame, Oregon’s Freddie Jones hit a free throw to bring the score to 62-43 in favor of UCLA. Seconds later, Jones stole an alley-oop pass with a leaping grab. He gave the ball to freshman James Davis on the other end, who hit a three-pointer to bring the crowd to its feet.
“Jones just went up like Batman and intercepted that thing,” UCLA head coach Steve Lavin said.
Davis’ three started an 18-5 Oregon run that brought the score to 69-61 UCLA with 6:25 left in the game.
But during the last minutes of the contest, the Ducks shot long ball after long ball, and that was when Kent’s proverbial lid covered the hoop. Oregon went 3-17 from three-point land after ending the 18-5 run, and UCLA hit its free throws down the stretch to win by 15.
“We got a lot of open looks,” Kent said about the Oregon drought in the last six minutes. “It was just one of those times that the ball didn’t go down.”
Bruin forward Matt Barnes was UCLA’s catalyst Thursday night, just as he was when the Ducks traveled to Los Angeles earlier this season. Barnes scored 21 points and grabbed eight rebounds, almost matching his 26-point, seven-rebound performance against the Ducks Jan. 27.
“He causes a lot of problems for us,” Kent said.
UCLA forward Jason Kapono also had a good night, scoring a double-double with 20 points and 13 rebounds.
Kapono’s most important shots came in the first half, when UCLA cracked open a big lead on Oregon.
The game’s momentum had shifted toward Oregon when Lavin was whistled for a technical foul after arguing an out-of-bounds call. Bryan Bracey hit one of the ensuing pair of free throws, and the Ducks were unable to convert the next possession, but Mac Court was rocking all the same.
“I thought we came out a little too worked up,” Kent said.
The crowd and the Ducks settled down, however, as UCLA’s full-court trap forced the Ducks into sloppy play and turnovers. At the same time, the Bruins and Kapono started to get hot on offense.
With 10:21 left in the first half and the score 17-15 UCLA, Kapono hit a three-pointer and scored four more points in the next minute-and-a-half to put the Bruins ahead for good, 26-19.
For the Ducks, Bracey scored a double-double with 21 points and 10 rebounds. Anthony Norwood pulled out of a recent slump to score 12 points and was the only other Oregon player in double figures.
The loss puts the Ducks a step back in their postseason hopes, but the players are still optimistic about making it to the NIT.
“Tonight hurts, but there’s no quit in anybody on this team,” freshman Luke Jackson said.
Oregon will take on Southern California in the Ducks’ last home game of the regular season Saturday at 6 p.m. on Mac Court.