INGLEWOOD, Calif. -- After squandering a 12-point first-half lead, No. 22 UCLA fought back down the stretch with big plays from guards Sebastian Mack and Skyy Clark to secure a 65-62 instant-classic rivalry win over No.
14 Gonzaga in the Intuit Dome Saturday. "We knew it was going to be war," UCLA coach Mick Cronin said. "We knew they weren't going to go anywhere.
Although they're ranked (No. 6) in KenPom, they really don't have a big win outside of Baylor at home. .
.. We knew they were coming to get us.
" The game's intensity matched Cronin's sentiment. Gonzaga guard Khalif Battle was ejected in the first half after he was tagged with a Flagrant 2 foul. UCLA forward Eric Dailey Jr .
and Ryan Nembhard each received technical fouls after a brief scuffle. Neither team led by more than four points during the final 13 minutes. No.
22 @UCLAMBB takes down No. 14 Gonzaga in a doozy at the Intuit Dome 💥 #B1GMBBall pic.twitter.
com/vBBaSiZYiy Mack converted old-fashioned three-point play with 33 seconds remaining to give UCLA the lead for good. Nembhard missed a free throw after getting fouled on a layup that would've tied the game, then missed a half-court heave at the buzzer. The win snapped UCLA's four-game skid against Gonzaga, which included two NCAA Tournament losses in the last five years.
In 2021, Gonzaga guard Jalen Suggs hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to eliminate UCLA in the Final Four. Two years later, Gonzaga guard Julian Strawther knocked down a 3-pointer in the closing .
