A Brief History of UCLA’s NCAA Tournament Matchups With Gonzaga
It has been two years since the Bruins and Bulldogs faced off in one of the most iconic college basketball games of the 21st century, but that wasn't the first March Madness meeting between the two programs.
And as it turns out, it won't be the last.
No. 2 seed UCLA men's basketball (31-5, 18-2 Pac-12) will take on No. 3 seed Gonzaga (30-5, 14-2 WCC) in the West regional semifinals of the NCAA tournament in Las Vegas on Thursday night. The Bruins are trying to advance to the Elite Eight for just the second time in the last 15 years, while the Bulldogs are looking to make it for the fifth time in nine years.
With Thursday's game standing as one of the premiere matchups of this year's Sweet 16, it's time to take a look back at the last few times UCLA and Gonzaga went head-to-head on the national stage.
2006 Sweet 16: UCLA def. Gonzaga 73-71
Thursday just so happens to be the 17-year anniversary of UCLA and Gonzaga's first Sweet 16 matchup, when the No. 2 seed Bruins came back from down 17 points to stun All-American Adam Morrison and the No. 3 seed Bulldogs.
That team was full of eventual UCLA legends – Arron Afflalo, Ryan Hollins, Darren Collison and Lorenzo Mata-Real, just to name a few – since they wound up sparking a run of three consecutive trips to the Final Four from 2006 to 2008. The run would not have been possible if not for Jordan Farmar, though, who stole the ball and found Luc Richard Mbah a Moute underneath the basket for the go-ahead field goal with 8.6 seconds remaining.
Gus Johnson's "Heartbreak City" play-by-play call immediately became almost as iconic as the ending itself, and the game stands as one of the defining moments of the last 25 years of UCLA basketball.
The Bruins prevented the Bulldogs from reaching the Elite Eight for the second time in program history that day, but the Zags would be back many times in the near future.
2015 Sweet 16: Gonzaga def. UCLA 74-62
The second NCAA tournament matchup between the Bruins and Bulldogs was far less engaging and memorable as the first.
For one, the two teams combined to miss 19 shots in a row at one point in the first half. Also, it didn't end up being a particularly close game, as the finish wasn't anywhere near as interesting as the 2006 or 2021 matchups.
No. 11 seed UCLA did compete with No. 2 seed Gonzaga for long stretches, even opening the second half on a 6-0 run to cut the Bulldogs' lead down to one. Center Przemek Karnowski started to take over, though, and Gonzaga staged a 12-0 run that put them back ahead by double digits.
The two sides combined for go 6-for-32 from deep, and the Bulldogs ran away with it behind the strength of their bigs – Karnowski and Domantas Sabonis. Norman Powell, Isaac Hamilton, Bryce Alford, Tony Parker and Kevon Looney ultimately weren't able to keep pace.
For the second year in a row, the Bruins had been bounced in the Sweet 16, and they would find themselves in the same position two years later. Throughout the 2010s, Gonzaga had a superior NCAA tournament resume to UCLA, and the 2015 matchup embodied that dynamic on the court.
2021 Final Four: Gonzaga def. UCLA 93-90 (OT)
UCLA was a No. 11 seed again in 2021, barely sneaking into the NCAA tournament by making the First Four. The Bruins then pulled off upset after upset to reach their first Final Four in 13 years, and they were posed with their biggest test yet.
Gonzaga was trying to become the first undefeated team in the sport since Indiana in 1976, and they were firing on all cylinders thanks to a lineup chock full of All-Americans and future NBA Draft picks.
The midmajor was suddenly the Goliath in this showdown, with UCLA uncharacteristically taking on the David role.
What followed was a tight, back-and-forth contest where everyone was hitting shots and neither team was able to pull away for even a minute. Drew Timme and Joel Ayayi were carrying the Bulldogs offensively, while Johnny Juzang and Jaime Jaquez Jr. were doing the same for the Bruins.
Juzang nearly won the game with a floater just before time expired, but Timme drew a charge to force overtime. In that extra period, the teams stayed hot, and Juzang hit a putback layup with 3.3 seconds left to potentially force another.
Jalen Suggs had other plans, though, and he banked in a half-court buzzer-beater over David Singleton to end UCLA's Cinderella run.
Of course, the Bruins and Bulldogs have faced off since the 2021 Final Four. No. 1 Gonzaga beat No. 2 UCLA 83-63 in Las Vegas a few months later during nonconference play the following season.
The Bruins will have a chance to avenge not only their two tournament losses to the Bulldogs, but also that drubbing at T-Mobile Arena, come Thursday night.
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