Back from the dead...

that’s how the UCLA Bruins came back from a pathetic game where at one time they trailed by 17 points, to come back and win against Gonzaga 73-71.

All day long on sports radio they were replaying the 1995, second-round game when Tyus Edny raced across the court with 6 seconds remaining, to lay up the winning two points against Missouri to win 75-74. I remember where I was when that play happened: I was driving, I had to pull over in a parking lot to hear the rest of the game standing up in the parking lot, with the radio blarring, without having to give any more of my attention to the road and I jumped up and down as we won that game. With that game, we ended up winning the tournament and that was the last time we ever became NCAA champions. I thought well, of course they’ll play that clip to hype up the crowd and hype up the game but I know the Bruins will dominate against Gonzaga…

In the first 11 possessions, UCLA score a big fat zero points, with the first point coming at the 9 minute mark into the game by a free throw. Farmar couldn’t dribble, Afflalo couldn’t hit a basket, and the Bruins looked as pathetic as the Bad News Bears coming to Oakland to play Gonzaga.

I wasn’t really worried, I mean for a team that hadn’t scored in 8 attempts, we were only down by 5 points, then 6, then 10…. Then 17. Then I became worried. For the rest of the game I was clutching my stomach, biting my fingernails and holding my breath at every attempt that the Bruins were trying to make to chip away at the lead. Apart from many outlandish calls by the officials, UCLA had no one to blame but themselves.

Slowly they came back, and in the last three minutes, the Bruins scored 8 points and shut down the Gonzaga offense to come within striking distance. Then Farmar, with a steal from Batista, passed to Luc Richard Mbah a Moute for an easy shot under the basket giving the Bruins the lead for the first time with only 9 seconds to go, 72-71. The Bulldogs in-bounded to Raivio who ran with the ball only to have it stolen for a jump ball from Luc Richard Mbah a Moute with the possession arrow going to UCLA. UCLA then inbounds to Afflalo who gets fouled and makes one free throw to make the score 73-71. Gonzaga had one last chance, but Batista missed a desperate throw at the buzzer and the heartbreak was final.

It was UNBELIEVABLE.

It will go down as one of the most thrilling and unbelievable comebacks in Bruin history. It doesn’t really do it justice to just watch the last three minutes. You had to go through the excruciating, painful game for the first 37 minutes that allowed you to appreciate and marvel at the last three minutes. This will be another game that will be engraved in my mind.

The next UCLA game is on Saturday against #1 seed Memphis.
A win there will take them to the Final Four.
GO BRUINS!

March Madness

March Madness has finally started and UCLA has been getting a lot of love lately. No doubt that they have improved as the season progressed. I'm glad that they didn't have a perfect record this year, they've had their ups and downs and learned how to play with pressure, injured players, keeping things real. It's good experience for a team that is young. And I give real props to Coach Howland who has brought the team back to the basics of defense, defense, and defense. I think if the Bruins play their best basketball they will make it to the final four, but they won't win this year. Maybe in a year or two. But overall, I'm so glad to see the Bruins back where they should be.