UCLA
11-10, 4-4
Colorado
16-5, 5-3
UCLA Defeats No. 20 Colorado, 72-68
January 30, 2020 | Men's Basketball
LOS ANGELES โ Junior guard Chris Smith recorded a career-high 30ย points to lead the UCLA men's basketball team to a 72-68 upset over No. 20 Colorado on Thursday night at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom.
With the win, UCLA (11-10, 4-4) snapped a four-game losing streak to the Buffaloes (16-5, 5-3) dating back to Jan. 12, 2017. The victory also marked the first time that the Bruins defeated a ranked team since toppling then-No. 13 Arizona on Feb. 8, 2018. The Bruins improved to 11-0 on the campaign when limiting the opposition to 73 points or fewer.
Smith's 30-point effort was the first by a Bruin since Kris Wilkes had 34 against Arizona on Jan. 26, 2019. Smith shot 8-of-16 from the field and sunk his first 11 free throw attempts in a row before missing a pair in the game's final minute to finish the night at 13-15. He also posted nine rebounds, finishing one short of his third double-double of the year.
He was one of several Bruins to have solid nights on Thursday. Redshirt senior guard Prince Ali provided a shot in the arm off the bench, notching 11 points including a 3-for-3 performance from beyond the arc. Freshman guard Jaime Jaquez Jr. added 13 points, his fifth consecutive and ninth game overall finishing in double digits.
UCLA built up a 12-point lead by halftime thanks to an efficient first-half effort. The Bruins played a solid two-way game in the opening 20 minutes, shooting 44.8 percent from the field and outrebounding Colorado 20-10. The Bruins were also on fire from the charity stripe, hitting all nine of their attempts from the free throw line, and committed just four turnovers compared to seven by the Buffaloes.
Ali helped ignite the key run of the first half for the Bruins, hitting a pair of threes as part of a 14-0 swing that made it 23-10 in favor of UCLA. A pull-up three by Ali from the right elbow off a Tyger Campbell outlet pass capped that rally and forced a timeout from the visitors.
Colorado responded in the second half, going on a 12-0 run early to trim UCLA's lead to just three points. A clutch three from the top of the key from Chris Singleton following a Cody Riley offensive board helped stem the tide and re-establish a 47-39 lead with 13:47 remaining.
The Buffaloes continued to push and eventually got within two points at the 7:22 mark, but UCLA would not allow them to get any closer, going on an 11-2 run โย featuring six points from Smith and four from Jaquez Jr. โ to push the lead back into double digits. A pair of desperation three-pointers late by Colorado provided the game's final scoreline.
The Bruins finished the night with a 39-29 advantage in rebounding, the team's largest differential against a Pac-12 opponent this season. Four separate players had at least five rebounds: Smith (9), Jaquez Jr. (7), Riley (5), and Ali (5).ย
UCLA returns to action on Sunday afternoon by hosting league rival Utah in an FS1-televised game. Tipoff is scheduled for 12:00 p.m.
