Eric Dailey Jr. scored 16 points and Aday Mara recorded his first career double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds as visiting UCLA held off rival Southern California for an 82-76 win on Monday in Los Angeles.
The Bruins (15-6, 6-4 Big Ten) led almost the entire game, pulling ahead on an early 10-0 run that gave them an edge they never relinquished.
Playing without leading scorer Tyler Bilodeau, who turned his ankle in a win at Washington on Friday, UCLA relied on a balanced scoring effort.
Sebastian Mack posted 14 points off the Bruins’ bench, while Dylan Andrews added 12 points and distributed a game-high-matching six assists. Every UCLA player who saw the floor posted at least four points, including Kobe Johnson in his return to the Galen Center.
Johnson, a transfer from USC, shot 3-for-3 from the floor en route to seven points before fouling out.
Johnson’s fifth and disqualifying foul came on a basket by Wesley Yates III with 1:54 to play. Yates hit the ensuing free throw, cutting the Trojans’ deficit, which had reached as many as 12 points in the second half, down to one.
However, the Trojans (12-8, 4-5) could not fully bridge the gap thanks to Mack’s 3-pointer in response. Maya then rebounded a missed Chibuzo Agbo 3-point attempt on USC’s end, and Mack sank two free throws that effectively put the game away with 46 seconds left.
The win was UCLA’s fourth straight, all in conference play.
USC’s Rashaun Agee led all scorers with 21 points. Yates added 19 points, and Saint Thomas finished with 13 points, eight rebounds and six assists. Desmond Claude 12 points and six assists.
Agbo and Clark Slajchert were the only other Trojans to score, finishing with six and five points, respectively.
USC cost itself at the foul line, going 11-for-19 as a team. UCLA shot 20-for-25 from the charity stripe. The Trojans lost their second straight home game, sandwiching a road win over Nebraska.
–Field Level Media
