By Miguel Mike Medina
Photo: Robert Hanashiro-Imagn Images
Another classic game by the No. 14 Gonzaga Bulldogs and the No. 22 UCLA Bruins. The Bruins defeated the Bulldogs 65-62.
The Bruins improve to 11-2. The Bulldogs fall to 9-4.
Every time the Bulldogs and Bruins face each other, it never fails to live up to the hype.
Eric Dailey Jr. scored 18 points for the Bruins.
In the first half, the Bulldogs had 11 turnovers, which the Bruins took advantage of to score points. The Bulldogs also shot poorly from the three-point line.
In the second half, the Bulldogs were playing much better.
Ryan Nembhard scored 14 of his 16 points in the second half. Nembhard hit a big bucket late in the game to give the Bulldogs a 60-58 lead with 56 seconds left.
Sebastian Mack completed a three-point play afterward. However, Mack initiated the contact and elbowed the defender. The referee didn’t see it and didn’t check the replay. It was the wrong call. It should’ve been an offensive foul on Mack.
The Bruins scored five points in a row, and Skyy Clark, a career-lifetime 69 percent free-throw shooter, made both free throws.
Nembhard, who’s a great free-throw shooter, missed a big one. He made a terrible decision to shoot a three-quarter court when there were enough seconds for him to push the ball further. He shot the ball prematurely.
The Bulldogs will stay in Los Angeles to visit Pepperdine on Monday. The Bruins will play Nebraska on Jan. 4 in Big Ten play.
Miguel Mike Medina is the publisher of The MMM Journal. He can be reached at medinamiguelmike@gmail.com and themmmjournal@gmail.com
X: @mmm_sportnfilms, Instagram: @miguel_passionforsports and @themmmjournal, LinkedIn: The MMM Journal, TikTok: @miguelmikemedina
