UCLA doomed by sloppy stretches of play in season-ending loss to Tennessee

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Tennessee guard Jahmai Mashack and UCLA forward Tyler Bilodeau battle for the ball during the Bruins’ 67-58 loss in the second round of the NCAA tournament on Saturday night. (Brynn Anderson / Associated Press)

Given all the similarities in defense and toughness, the prevailing narrative about UCLA facing Tennessee was that it would be like looking in the mirror.

Except the Bruins kept stumbling into the thing, shattering any chance they had of beating a team possessing far more ammunition in what was supposed to be a rock fight of a basketball game.

Sloppy stretches to close the first half and open the second doomed UCLA in its upset bid Saturday night at Rupp Arena, the seventh-seeded Bruins falling, 67-58, to second-seeded Tennessee in the second round of the NCAA tournament.

“Our offense got us beat tonight,” UCLA coach Mick Cronin said after his earliest postseason exit with the Bruins. “Lack of execution and the end-of-the-first-half stuff.”

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Point guard Dylan Andrews was an especially egregious culprit, throwing a bounce pass out of bounds along the baseline and losing his dribble and then the ball after it got wedged between his feet for a pair of unforced errors.

Those were just two of Andrews’ five turnovers, leading to his extended benching early in the second half during a forgettable performance in which he went scoreless, missing both of his shots and logging two assists.

Given the importance of Andrews’ position and his nearly seasonlong struggles, it’s fair to wonder if the Bruins will go looking for another point guard in the transfer portal that opens Monday. They almost certainly will add a veteran wing player and also could use another 7-footer to match up against some of the Big Ten’s massive lineups.

Tennessee guard Chaz Lanier, right, looks to pass the ball in front of UCLA guard Dylan Andrews during the first half Saturday. (Brynn Anderson /…

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Publish date : 2025-03-23 04:11:00

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