UCLA Handles Colorado, 72-59
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Norman Powell scored 22 points and UCLA broke open a tie game with a 25-4 blitz in the second half to beat Colorado 72-59 on Saturday night.
Kevon Looney had 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Bruins (13-9, 5-4 Pac-12), who have won five of seven.
UCLA's Bryce Alford finished with eight, after scoring in double figures in 19 of the team's first 21 games. It matched the second-lowest total of the season for coach Steve Alford's son, who played 32 scoreless minutes on Jan. 4 in a 71-39 loss at Utah and was 0 for 10 from the field.
Alford missed his first six shots before hitting a 16-footer from the left of the key to extend the Bruins' margin 54-37 with 7:47 left.
Colorado (11-10, 4-5 Pac-12) got 16 points from Askia Booker, who scored 43 on Thursday night in a 98-94 triple-overtime win at USC.
Neither team led by more than six until Powell's fastbreak layup capped a 7-0 spurt that gave UCLA a 40-33 lead with 12:43 to play. He drove the left baseline for a dunk that extended the margin to 48-37 with 9:32 left, and Alford made it 58-37 on a jumper with three minutes later.
The Buffaloes got no closer than the final margin, and made only one field goal throughout a 9:36 stretch during the Bruins' decisive rally.
UCLA, coming off a 69-59 upset win over No.11 Utah on Thursday night, held Colorado to one field goal during a 10-minute span of the first half en route to a 27-23 lead at intermission. The Bruins held a 14-0 advantage in points in the paint before Wesley Gordon's dunk with 5:52 left in the half trimmed the margin 20-16. Booker followed with a jumper and Tre'Shaun Fletcher added a 3-pointer to put the Buffaloes ahead 21-20, their last lead of the game.
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TIP-INS
Colorado: The Buffaloes are 1-5 against teams coached by Steve Alford. The only victory was Jan. 2, a 62-56 decision at home in the Pac-12 opener for Colorado and UCLA. Gordon, who blocked seven shots in that game, had two blocks in the rematch. ... Colorado trails the all-time series 2-9, and is 0-7 against the Bruins in Los Angeles. ... No Colorado player has had 10 or more assists since Feb. 13, 2014, when Booker had 12 against UCLA. That also was the last time a Bruins opponent had double digits.
UCLA: The Bruins' first two NCAA championship teams were honored in a halftime ceremony. The 1963-64 squad was 30-0 under John Wooden, finishing their season with a 98-83 victory over Duke. They finished the following season 28-2, wrapping it up with a 91-80 win over Michigan. Among the players on hand for the ceremony were Gail Goodrich, Keith Erickson and Rich Levin, who went on to become a sportswriter for the old Los Angeles Herald-Examiner and eventually became Major League baseball's senior vice president for public relations before retiring in 2010. ... The Bruins have four road games left before the Pac-12 Tournament begins on March 11 at Las Vegas. Their only win on the road this season was against USC. ... Looney entered Saturday as the nation's only freshman averaging double digits in points (12.7) and rebounds (10.0). This was his 11th double-double in 22 games, including a 27-point, 19-rebound performance on Jan. 8 in an 86-81 double-overtime win over Stanford at Pauley Pavilion. ... The Bruins are 42-6 at Pauley Pavilion since the arena was renovated and reopened in November 2012.
NEXT UP
Colorado: Hosts Utah next Saturday night.
UCLA: At Stanford Thursday night.
