UCLA
7-5
Ohio State
11-1
UCLA Men's Basketball Falls to Ohio State 80-66
December 22, 2018 | Men's Basketball
CHICAGO – 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.
Jaylen Hands finished with 13 points, nine assists, five rebounds and five steals for UCLA (7-5).
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
