We knew it would be a close game, but losing was a complete shock. We thought Luc would be the X-Factor, and he didn’t show up in the first half. He wasn’t even close on his jumpshots, including an airball (his only shot made was a layup) and he also had a few bad decisions after dribble driving the lane. In the 2nd half, he didnt play due to a concussion. If he had played, although his offense was atrocious, I think he would have made enough plays to give the Bruins the win.
Every time UCLA got a lead, they lost their aggression and got sloppy. The last lead was after Love hit a 3 with about 6:00 left. After that, the team seemed unfocused and simply unmotivated. I believe the win against Wazzu (the highly touted #4 vs #5 matchup) and the well documented struggles of the Trojans, made the Bruins overlook SC. Even if its a rivalry game, these are just college kids, and mentally it is very hard to keep your edge.
Losing to SC hurts. But, in the long term, I really dont think this will have a dramatic effect on the Bruins getting the #1 seed in the West. Every Pac-10 team, with probably the exception of Wazzu, will have at least 4 losses. The league is just too tough. As long as the Bruins hold serve at home, they still can lose 1-2 games on the road. I believe the Bruins will beat Wazzu again (in terms of matchups, UCLA is the equivalent of Wazzu on steroids), but could lose one to the Arizona schools. As long as UCLA wins the Pac 10, they will get a 1 or 2 seed in the West (depending on how they do in the conf tourney). This year, it is important to get a 1 seed, as I predict the #2 seeds will be much weaker than the other #1’s (UNC, Kansas, Memphis).
0 Responses to “USC Recap”