Duck Shooters Have Bruins in Three-Fall

EUGENE, Ore. —  For UCLA, it was like a countdown, stuck at one deadly number:

Three . . . three . . . three . . .

From the corner with a twist, from the top of the key, from the sides, just about from the top row of this throbbing building, Oregon lashed sixth-ranked UCLA from long distance Thursday, 97-81, before 9,087 at McArthur Court.

In a remarkable five-minute, eight-possession stretch, Duck shooters scorched the Bruins for six three-point baskets in seven attempts, turning a tense one-point game into a runaway.

It was UCLA’s fourth loss in its last five trips to Eugene, and it was the Bruins’ first to an unranked team this season.

“It’s more disappointing because we lost to that crew--they’re not a very good team,” said Bruin senior Kris Johnson, who scored a team-high 21 points. “They just kicked our butts, hitting crazy threes, and we just let them.”

After UCLA (17-4, 7-3 in Pacific 10 Conference) took a 63-62 lead with 7:04 to play, Terik Brown made three three-point shots in a row, Yasir Rosemond made two, including a spinning jumper from the corner, and Jamar Curry finished the three-point flurry.

Oregon made 12 three-point baskets overall, going seven for 11 in the second half.

Many of those were open shots, the result of clean picks and lazy UCLA feet; a few were wild, lucky shots. But they went in, most of them, pushing Oregon to a 57-point second-half tally, to UCLA’s 41.

When the flurry was over, with 2:34 left, the Ducks (9-10, 4-6) had an 80-74 lead and the Bruins were left in the dust.

“It’s not surprising,” senior Toby Bailey said. “They always play like that up here against us.”

Said Johnson: “We just didn’t put forth the effort. We just didn’t play hard enough. They got a bunch of open looks, and they made their shots.

“I guess this was their World Series, their national championship. Now they have something to tell their grandkids: They beat UCLA.”

Actually, they beat UCLA . . . again.

Oregon also made 22 of 27 free throws in the second half, and 14 of its last 15 down the stretch to protect and extend the lead.

What happened to UCLA’s perimeter defense?

“We’ve just got to continue to get better and work on our defense,” Bruin Coach Steve Lavin said. “We didn’t plan on giving up 12 three-pointers, if that’s what you’re asking.”

Brown led Oregon with 22 points (five of 10 on three-pointers), Curry had 17 and Rosemond 15.

The loss also put the Bruins three games behind Arizona, the league front-runner. UCLA’s previous losses had been to North Carolina on a neutral floor, at Arizona and at Stanford--all ranked in the top five at the time.

But this game, despite the Bruins’ determination to win in their house of horrors, began at Oregon’s pace.

The Bruins had been getting a jump-start from a furious full-court press in recent games, but they chose to back off in the first half, instead deploying a less active three-quarter court defense.

Meanwhile, UCLA was stuck in the muck offensively, turning the ball over eight times and getting few fastbreak points.

Oregon took advantage of UCLA’s slower tempo by attacking the Bruin inside defenders with hard drives by point guard Mike McShane, quick interior passes and kick-outs to wide-open three-point tries.

The Ducks made five of 14 three-pointers in the first half, and McShane led them with seven points in the half.

“They only have six players,” Rosemond said. “But they have six great players. So Coach [Ernie Kent] kept subbing in, and we wore them down.”