UCLA
7-5
Ohio State
11-1
UCLA Men's Basketball Falls to Ohio State 80-66
December 22, 2018 | Men's Basketball
CHICAGO โ Kris Wilkes scored a team-leading 18 points as the UCLA men's basketball team dropped an 80-66 decision to No. 15 Ohio State at the United Center in a CBS Sports Classic game on Saturday.
ย
Jaylen Hands finished with 13 points, nine assists, five rebounds and five steals for UCLA (7-5).
ย
Ohio State (11-1) received a game-leading 22 points from C.J. Jackson. In addition, Kaleb Wesson registered 15 points and 12 rebounds for the Buckeyes, who snapped a five-game losing streak in the all-time series against UCLA.
ย
After a back-and-forth first half, Ohio State pulled away from the Bruins after halftime. The Buckeyes entered the intermission with a 33-30 lead, before outscoring the Bruins by a 47-36 margin in the second half.
ย
Ohio State pushed its advantage to nine points, at 51-42, before the Bruins answered with a basket by Moses Brown at the 11:59 mark and an ensuing score from Chris Smith with 11:07 to play. One minute later, UCLA had reduced Ohio State's margin to just four points, at 51-47.
ย
The Buckeyes led UCLA, 57-52, with 8:14 to play and used an 11-1 scoring run over the game's next 3:11 to claim a 68-53 advantage.
ย
Wilkes, who shot 7 for 18 from the field, has scored in double figures in all 12 games for UCLA this season. The 6-foot-8 guard from Indianapolis, Ind., has averaged a team-leading 17.8 points per game.
ย
Saturday's game marked UCLA's fifth appearance in the annual CBS Sports Classic, a one-day doubleheader that features the Bruins versus Ohio State as well as North Carolina and Kentucky.
ย
UCLA will return to action against Liberty on Saturday, Dec. 29. Game time in Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom is 3 p.m. (PT). UCLA's game against Liberty will mark the Bruins' final non-conference game of the regular season.
