UCLA men’s basketball holds off Oregon

LOS ANGELES — UCLA men’s basketball has avoided a complete 40 minutes like the plague, but it got pretty close Saturday.

With a fully healthy roster for just the third time in nine games, the Bruins were cruising. Throughout the first half, they cycled through multiple defensive looks and got contributions from a variety of offensive sources. But as things got tight in the second half, and the refs’ whistle buttoned up, they let Oregon creep back.

The Ducks (4-5, 0-2) cut the margin from as high as 17 to a one-possession game. The Bruins (7-2, 2-0), again needing their backs against the wall to discover their resolve, shut the door and closed out a 74-63 win.

All five of UCLA’s starters finished in double-digits. Eric Dailey Jr. quickly rebounded from a scoreless game on Wednesday to deliver a season-high 18. Tyler Bilodeau continued his consistent play with 12 points and eight rebounds. Skyy Clark, again, provided an early spark, scoring 10 of his 13 points in a flurry to end the first half.

Clark dribbled around a screen for a left-wing 3-pointer and tossed in a sky-scraping floater to help give the Bruins a 13-point halftime lead.

After the break, he and Bilodeau fell into foul trouble with unnecessary reach-ins and late contests. The Ducks capitalized at the line.

With Clark on the bench, Oregon pushed the pace. Sean Stewart hit a turnaround hook and Jackson Shelstad dribbled into a 3 to cut the margin to five.

UCLA had chances to extend its lead as Shelstad threw the ball to Clark on consecutive possessions, but the veteran guard blew a pair of bunnies.

Oregon eventually cut it to a one-possession game, and that’s when UCLA answered. Xavier Booker floated home a late shot-clock basket, Bilodeau crashed down the paint for an and-one and finished off a fast-break to extend the lead to nine.

Head coach Mick Cronin took a risk keeping Bilodeau on the court after picking up his fourth foul with nine minutes to play, but his presence calmed the Bruins, quenching each surge the Ducks made.

He converted on two more free throws to extend the lead to double-digits with 2:49 left, helping the Bruins to feel comfortable down the stretch.

While it got nip-and-tuck midway through the second half, the Bruins controlled the flow of Saturday’s game.

They increased the frequency of the 2-1-2 press and 2-3 zone they showed against Washington. The full-court pressure messed with Oregon’s ball-handlers. The zone forced them to shoot unwanted perimeter shots and throw errant passes.

They took advantage of Oregon’s zone as Bilodeau and Booker were equipped to shoot over the soft coverage. They held the Ducks’ most veteran player, Nate Bittle to three points on 0-of-10 from the field.

They won the rebound battle and took better care of the ball. They did about everything sound, except they took their foot off the gas and almost let it slip.