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UCLA Fall To Colorado, 62-56, In Pac-12 Opener

BOULDER, Colo. (AP) -- Askia Booker scored 20 points, including a pair of free throws in the final seconds, and the Colorado Buffaloes hung on to beat UCLA 62-56 on Friday night.

It was their first win over the Bruins in nearly 53 years.

Xavier Johnson added 14 points and Wesley Gordon had 11 points and 14 rebounds for Colorado (8-5, 1-0 Pac-12), which overcame the absence of star forward Josh Scott. He missed the game because of back spasms.

The victory was Colorado's first in five tries against UCLA since joining the Pac-12 four years ago. It was Colorado's second victory in 10 meetings all time against UCLA. The Buffaloes only previous victory over UCLA came on Dec. 7, 1962 (82-60).

Norman Powell had 22 points to lead UCLA (8-6, 0-1), which lost its fourth in a row. Isaac Hamilton added 16 points.

Powell's third 3-pointer of the game gave UCLA a 43-37 lead with 11:58 left to play. The Buffaloes responded with an 11-0 run that carried them to a 48-43 lead.

Johnson scored seven of his points during the surge, including a rim-rattling dunk off a feed from Dominique Collier.

Powell's layup pulled UCLA to 53-51 with 4:06 remaining but the Buffaloes scored the next five points, capped by a dunk by Jaron Hopkins.

Powell sank a last-gasp 3-pointer to get UCLA within four points with 37 seconds left. The Bruins couldn't capitalize on Buffaloes turnover and then fouled Booker, who sank both free throws with 19.3 seconds in what proved to be the final points in the game.

Tory Miller converted a three-point play in the final minute of the opening period, and Colorado took a 28-27 halftime lead.

The Buffaloes led by as many as six points in the closing minutes of the first half but Powell cut the deficit by connecting on a pair of 3-pointers.

TIP INS

UCLA: Norman Powell's 22 points boosted his career total to 1,003. He's the 51st player in UCLA's history to reach or surpass 1,000 points in his career. ... Bryce Alford was held to 8 points, snapping a 13-game streak in which he had scored in double figures. Alford went 0-9 from 3-point range.

Colorado: Josh Scott missed a start due to injury for the first time since Feb 27, 2013. ... The win was coach Tad Boyle's 100th at Colorado.

UP NEXT

UCLA plays at Utah on Sunday.

Colorado hosts Southern Cal on Sunday.

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