UCLA basketball is a land of contrasts. They can look like a top-five team one minute, then look like a middle-of-the-road Pac-12 team the next. It’s a weird team that has veteran leadership but a lot of unproven talent, which means they’re going to take a while to come together and play consistently great basketball. It’s maddeningly frustrating basketball to watch if one is not in the right mindset.

Fortunately, they also play in the Pac-12, where they can simply out-talent their opponents for most of their wins. And that’s exactly what happened in this game as the Bruins blitzed Stanford early and often en route to an 80-66 victory in Palo Alto.

UCLA came out early and essentially decided they did not want to pretend Stanford could win this game, as they hit Stanford with a ridiculous combination of defensive intensity and offensive execution. UCLA scored the first 17 points of the game, with Stanford scoring their first basket at the 14:44 mark of the first half. The Bruins did not let up, with Stanford finally reaching double-digit scoring at the 7:00 mark with a three-pointer that cut the UCLA lead to *checks notes* 20. From this point on, the game was basically an exercise in maintaining the lead, with the Bruins up 21 at the half and the Cardinal never really looking like a team that was going to seriously challenge.

The second half did see Stanford attempt that challenge, of course. The Cardinal scored the first nine points of the period to bring the Bruins’ lead down to 12, but that just set the stage for the rest of the half, with the Bruins and Cardinal taking turns going on alternating runs to ping-pong the lead from a high of 22 to as low as eight. It was that last run to bring the lead to single-digits that likely caused the most consternation among Bruin fans, but at that point, UCLA remembered they were talented and Stanford was not, and went on one final run to win by 14.

That’s a lot more game recap than I tend to do in…the game recap…but honestly, it’s because I wanted to approach this as clinically as possible. Despite all the wailing and gnashing of teeth, I never really felt like UCLA was in danger of losing this game. Sure, the Bruins had some poor play throughout parts of the second half, but for me, it felt like a clear example of growing pains for a team with a high floor. They had a clear talent advantage and were given the opportunity to work and gain in-game experience in a situation where they were not in danger of losing. It meant things like Adem Bona getting plenty of film on the defensive end that he can study and grow from, or Amari Bailey continuing to look more comfortable with the college game, his 19 points on 7-9 shooting continuing his recent trend of impressive play.

Of course, the Bruins were never in danger of losing because they also happened to have the two best players in the game. Tyger Campbell was a maestro on offense, breaking out of a bit of a mini-slump to score 17 points on 6-13 shooting, including 3-4 from distance. More importantly, his eight assists were closer to the Tyger we’ve seen in the past, the master distributor who drove the offense to be one of the nation’s best. He was flanked by Jaime Jaquez Jr., who again looks like a player possessed on offense, scoring 27 points for the second-straight game on 12-17 shooting. Stanford simply had no answer for Jaquez, especially when he got the ball with position in the paint.

This was the definition of a growing game for the Bruins. They got the win and have some things to work on going forward, which is a good place to be early in the season.

Jaime Jaquez led the team with 27 points. Amari Bailey led the team with six rebounds, while Tyger Campbell led the team with eight rebounds. Spencer Jones led the Cardinal with 18 points.

Three Takeaways

1. Player of the Game: Jaime Jaquez - You could make the case for Amari Bailey here, but Jaquez was really the guy that Stanford could not solve. 27 points against Bellarmine is one thing, but to put that same number up against Stanford was perhaps the biggest sign that Jaime is starting to get back in the swing of the season. That’s huge for the Bruins going into a rather tough stretch of games. I’d still like Jaime to show more effort on the defensive end, but if he’s scoring at this rate then that is enough for now.

2. Issue to Monitor: Defensive Rebounding - UCLA really struggled to rebound in this game, with the Bruins not showing much effort and failing to box out repeatedly. A lot of Stanford’s shots were from the outside which in turn led to a lot of long rebounds, but when someone like Adem Bona ends up with zero rebounds, and Jaylen Clark of all people finishes with only a single offensive rebound, then there’s a major problem that needs to be solved.

3. Pressing for an Advantage - UCLA began this game with a press, something they have never really brought out under Coach Mick Cronin. It was extremely effective, with Stanford unable to generate any sort of rhythm for a good part of the first half. UCLA has the athletes to run an effective press, and while I’m not sure this is something they will break out repeatedly, it gives opponents another wrinkle to consider going forward.

The Bruins have a major game on Sunday when the Oregon Ducks come to Pauley. Tip-off is scheduled for 2:00 PM PT.

Go Bruins!

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