UCLA Basketball: Bruins Drop Final Non-Conference Game to Maryland
Those operating with a glass-half-empty view of this year's UCLA team were worried this scenario could occur.
The Baby Bruins -- featuring seven true freshmen and eight new faces collectively -- set out to compete against a gauntlet of a non-conference schedule. The hope was for Mick Cronin's team to nab a win or two against a worthy opponent.
Up to this point in the year, UCLA has had numerous opportunities to grab a signature win. This includes games against Marquette, Maryland Villanova, Gonzaga, and Ohio State. Unfortunately for Cronin's bunch, the Bruins are 0-5 versus these teams.
On Friday night, UCLA (5-6) dropped its final non-conference game of the year to Maryland (8-4) by a score of 69-60.
The first half was ugly. UCLA couldn't hit a shot, and Maryland guard Jahmir Young was unconscious. The Terps' best player got to the rim at will. When he wasn't finishing at the rim, he was burying threes.
Down 15 at the half and down 20 within the first few minutes of the second half, UCLA mounted a big comeback. The Bruins got the game down to four after holding Maryland without a field goal for 11 minutes.
Sebastian Mack was his usual slashing self -- forcing the issue at times yet leading the Bruins with 17 points on 5-of-14 from the floor. Interestingly enough, much of the run was led by 6th-year senior Kenny Nwuba and true freshman Brandon Williams. Both play exceptionally hard, and Williams in particular offered a nice scoring punch.
Even then, UCLA couldn't get over the hump. With four minutes to go, Young took over -- finishing with a game-high 37 points on 13-of-19 from the field.
The Bruins finished 1-of-14 from beyond the three-point line. Lazar Stefanovic had another rough game, going 0-of-6 from the floor. He finished with 1 point. Dylan Andrews had 11 points in the defeat, though he did struggle yet again with cramps. This is becoming a somewhat abnormal trend for him considering he's left other games this year with the same cramping issue.
On December 28th, UCLA will begin its conference schedule with a road trip against the Oregon schools.
This team is swimming at the moment. It'll be interesting to see what sort of adjustments Cronin can make.
