UCLA
Stanford
Bruins Unable to Halt Streaking Cardinal
June 21, 1999 | Men's Basketball
January 16, 1999
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Just when No. 4 Stanford appeared in trouble, the Cardinal tapped into its vast experience and came up with a zone defense.
The strategy exposed 10th-ranked UCLA's suspect perimeter shooting and helped Stanford stay out of further foul trouble in a 72-59 victory Saturday night.
"We're a straight man-to-man team, but coach thought we could really change the tempo by going to a zone defense," Peter Sauer said. "We knew UCLA was having trouble with a zone and having trouble with their outside shooting."
The Cardinal (15-2, 5-0 Pac-10) won its 11th straight, while their starting lineup of junior Mark Madsen and seniors Sauer, Tim Young, Kris Weems and Arthur Lee improved to 36-5 over the last two seasons.
"It doesn't get tougher than that game," Stanford coach Mike Montgomery said. "It was a grinder."
In addition to the constant bumping on the court, a rowdy crowd of 12,922 created a hostile environment in Pauley Pavilion. The game was declared over with seven-tenths of a second remaining when fans tossed cups of ice on the court.
Stanford's starters played up to their double-figure scoring averages. Madsen had 16 points, Lee 14, Sauer 12, Weems 11 and Young 10 before fouling out late.
"This one definitely wasn't pretty. We knew they had a lot of young talent, but we have senior talent and experience," said Lee, a North Hollywood native. "I love beating UCLA. I'm elated."
The Bruins (12-4, 4-2) kept it close most of the game and briefly led by five points midway through the second half. But foul trouble derailed 6-foot-10 freshmen Jerome Moiso and Dan Gadzuric, leaving the Bruins with no one to counter Stanford's huge frontline of 7-2 Young, 6-7 Sauer and 6-9 Madsen. Moiso had just four points in 14 minutes.
"We didn't execute and we had no confidence. They made us take shots we didn't want to take," said Baron Davis, one of five UCLA players to foul out. "We'll be better next time, but tonight they kicked our butts."
UCLA committed 35 fouls, and Stanford took advantage by sinking 32 of 49 free throws. The Bruins made just six foul shots.
Gadzuric led UCLA with 15 points and Davis added 12. The Bruins started two sophomores and three freshmen.
Gadzuric sparked the Bruins at the start of the second half when they trailed by six. They found him inside and he scored on dunks, including one over Madsen that pushed UCLA to its largest lead, 47-42 with 12:13 left.
"Gadzuric is a demon. He's a beast - very, very good and very tough," Madsen said. "UCLA is the best young group of talented players in the country. They're intense, scrappy and play heady defense."
After Gadzuric hit a turnaround jumper, the Cardinal reeled off six straight points to reclaim the lead, 52-49, with 6:45 remaining.
Gadzuric fouled out at the end of Stanford's spurt, taking with him most of UCLA's energy and forcing Moiso to return with four fouls.
"UCLA was extremely hard on defense, but the zone saved the bacon," Montgomery said. "We had seen tape of them struggling in zone in other games and it ended up working well for us. The zone brought us some time and allowed us to gain the lead."
Earl Watson, whose defense kept Lee in check in the first half, missed a key five-minute stretch while getting his shooting hand bandaged. He tore the webbing on his right hand between the third and fourth fingers and received four stitches. By the time he returned, the Bruins were behind for good.
"They beat us physically. They exposed us," Watson said.
Moiso scored inside to draw UCLA within one with 6:19 left, but after Davis converted two free throws the Bruins went nearly four minutes without scoring.
That gave Stanford the chance to pad its one-point lead. The Cardinal scored 10 straight to go up 64-53 and put the game out of reach with 2:44 remaining.
By BETH HARRIS
AP Sports Writer
