UCLA takes control early, blows out North Florida

LOS ANGELES — It looked truthful casual.

UCLA constituent defender Tyger Campbell caught a speedy plaything walk from David Singleton and was acceptable to shoot, but didn’t, due to the fact that moving astatine him was 6-foot-7 Dorian James of North Florida.

Campbell up faked – to nonstop James flying by – took 1 speedy dribble to reset his feet past buried his 3rd 3-pointer of the opening half. It was an denotation of the hard enactment Campbell has enactment into his 3-point changeable this offseason.

“I worked connected my base, my travel through,” Campbell said. “Coach has assurance successful me, helium trusts maine to instrumentality the close ones and the unfastened ones.”

But the chill quality astatine which Campbell did it speaks much to his assurance than thing other arsenic helium changeable a cleanable 4 for 4 from the 3-point enactment to assistance UCLA rout North Florida, 98-63, connected Wednesday nighttime astatine Pauley Pavilion to decorativeness the team’s four-game season-opening homestand.

“I’m not amazed astatine all,” UCLA manager Mick Cronin said of Campbell’s improved shot. “He’s enactment successful an unbelievable magnitude of clip in, and acquisition tells maine that guys sprout astatine higher percentages arsenic they get older due to the fact that the crippled slows down for them . He’s consistently beating guys successful practice. It’s a large positive for us.”

Offensive rebound ➡️ shot question ➡️ unfastened 3-pointer for Tyger Campbell 👍

📺: @Pac12Network
📱: https://t.co/dyx0wUVilm#GoBruins pic.twitter.com/3GWyM4CN4U

— UCLA Men’s Basketball (@UCLAMBB) November 18, 2021

Campbell changeable conscionable 18 for 72 (25%) from beyond the arc past season. Coming into the crippled – albeit a tiny illustration size – helium was 7 for 14. After Wednesday’s performance, he’s 11 for 18 (61%). He finished the crippled with 13 points, six rebounds, 5 assists and nary turnovers successful 26 minutes.

Jaime Jaquez Jr. led the Bruins with 20 points and 8 rebounds. Johnny Juzang scored 17 (with 3 3-pointers) and Jules Bernard added 15 points and 5 rebounds. Myles Johnson scored conscionable 5 points but grabbed 13 rebounds.

“Coach Cronin ever emphasizes however I’m ever the biggest idiosyncratic retired there,” Johnson said. “And I deliberation contiguous I made that truly well-known and decidedly helped the squad retired getting violative rebounds and kicking it out.”

UCLA dominated the glass, outrebounding North Florida 54-24, including 24 violative rebounds. The past clip the Bruins posted a show similar that connected the violative solid was successful 2008, erstwhile they had 25 violative rebounds successful a 72-63 location nonaccomplishment to USC.

After a flimsy bump successful the roadworthy successful regards to antiaircraft anticipation against Long Beach State connected Monday nighttime – adjacent aft a 21-point triumph – the Bruins (4-0) near nary uncertainty against the Ospreys (0-5).

“(North Florida) walk and they don’t jack shots up,” Cronin said. “So, they tried to unit america to play half-court defence which was large signifier for us.”

A Campbell 3-pointer gave UCLA a 32-24 pb earlier Jaquez had a breakaway dunk and a 3-pointer successful succession that made the people 41-26 and forced North Florida to telephone timeout. Out of North Florida’s timeout, Jaylen Clark had a layup and Juzang deed a 3-pointer arsenic portion of a 19-2 tally that led to an eventual 55-33 pb astatine halftime.

UCLA changeable 6 for 10 from down the arc successful the archetypal half, and 23 for 46 from the field.

It truly was much of the aforesaid successful the 2nd fractional with a antiaircraft effort that held North Florida to conscionable 37% shooting overall.

Campbell deed his 4th 3-pointer successful the 2nd fractional to balloon the pb to 78-52 with 10:48 left. A Clark dunk astatine the 4:49 people made it 91-58.

In summation to rebounding, UCLA dominated astir each category. The Bruins owned the overgarment 50-30 and had a 30-6 vantage successful second-chance points to spell with 8 steals.

The Bruins volition present absorption connected their travel to Las Vegas to instrumentality connected Bellarmine connected Monday nighttime earlier their showdown with top-ranked Gonzaga adjacent Tuesday astatine T-Mobile Arena. It seems the occupation volition person to beryllium done without guardant Cody Riley.

“We’re optimistic,” Cronin said of Riley’s genu injury, which helium suffered past Tuesday against Cal State Bakersfield. “There’s a minimal accidental Cody Riley plays adjacent week.”