UCLA Secures 57-52 Win Against Oregon State
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LOS ANGELES – The No. 21-ranked UCLA men's basketball team held off a late surge to defeat Oregon State, 57-52, in a Pac-12 contest on Saturday in Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom.
The Bruins (13-3, 9-1 Pac-12) have won eight of their last nine games. In addition, UCLA has won its last 16 home games (dating back to last season).
The 52 points scored against UCLA matched a season-low and represented the fewest points scored by a Pac-12 opponent against the Bruins, this season.
Cody Riley registered his fourth double-double of the season, totaling a team-best 16 points and 10 rebounds. Riley scored 10 of his 16 points in the second half against Oregon State (8-7, 4-5 Pac-12).
"Right now, Cody is a product of his practice habits," said Mick Cronin, The Michael Price Family UCLA Men's Head Basketball Coach. "He is, by far, our best player in practice. He has really learned how to play hard and work himself into condition. He puts a lot of extra time in with Wes Long on his conditioning and expanding his 15-foot shot to where he's money on that. A lot of guys think they're going to score at game time, but they don't give it all at practice so they're going to try and flip the switch."
Coach Cronin Postgame | Riley, Jaquez Jr. Postgame
Jaime Jaquez Jr. finished with nine points and rebounds, while Tyger Campbell and David Singleton each scored nine points.
Oregon State's Ethan Thompson totaled a team-leading 16 points. The Beavers' Maurice Calloo had nine points, all of which came on 3-of-5 shoot from beyond the 3-point arc.
The Bruins led for the majority of the game – taking the lead for good at the 6:46 mark of the first half – but had to grind it out on the defensive end to record the win.
Taking a two-point lead into the locker room at halftime (27-25), UCLA started the second half on a 9-2 run to build a solid margin. The Bruins led by as many as 11 points late in the second half and maintained a five-point cushion until the final two minutes of regulation.
Starting at the 3:26 mark of the second half, the Beavers scored eight consecutive points to make it a one-possession game with just over a minute to play.
Oregon State trailed UCLA, 53-50, with 14 seconds left in the contest. Thompson tripped while trying to drive the lane and UCLA secured possession of the ball. Campbell sank four consecutive free throws over the game's final 10 seconds to help cement the win for the Bruins.
UCLA will play at USC on Saturday, Feb. 6. The Pac-12 contest will begin at 7 p.m. (PT) at USC's Galen Center. The game is scheduled to air on national TV, on either ESPN or ESPN2.