Mack Attack. The Return of the Mack. The Mack Strikes Back.
Every nickname fit Sebastian Mack on Tuesday night, when the UCLA guard came off the bench to spark his team every time it needed a lift in its first-ever Big Ten Conference game.
It wasn’t just Mack’s usual array of drives toward the basket that helped the Bruins hold off Washington for a 69-58 victory at Pauley Pavilion.
The sophomore also was a steadying force with his rebounding and defense. He finished with 16 points, five rebounds, three assists and one steal as the Bruins (7-1) won their sixth consecutive game heading into a road showdown against unbeaten Oregon on Sunday.
“It’s really just, you know, just seeing what we need,” Mack said of how he impacts a game. “If that means steals, rebounding or anything.”
Mack’s three-pointer with 4 minutes 13 seconds left lifted UCLA to an 11-point lead, energizing the liveliest home crowd of the season. The volume rose again when Mack fed teammate Dylan Andrews for another three-pointer that extended the advantage back to double figures with a little more than two minutes to go.
“He’s been the only consistent offensive threat for us on the perimeter,” UCLA coach Mick Cronin said of Mack. “He’s been great. You know, he still needs to improve on the defensive end, but obviously it’s nice to have somebody like him that can create offense for you when you’re struggling.”
Forward Tyler Bilodeau contributed 16 points and nine rebounds and Andrews added 12 points for the Bruins, who shot 41.7% and made eight of 21 three-pointers (38.1%).
After Cronin’s team beat up on practically every nonconference opponent, UCLA’s victories coming by an average of 33 points, the coach wanted to see if the same favorable trends would hold up in the Big Ten opener.
Could the Bruins still force turnovers at an absurd rate?
Could they make scoring a chore?
Could they win comfortably?
No, yes and yes.
UCLA forced only 12 turnovers and made just 11 of 22 free throws but prevailed thanks to its usual suffocating defense that limited Washington to 38.8% shooting. Cronin said his team tallied 28 deflections — 12 short of the minimum he wants in any game in terms of steals, blocks, tipped passes and loose balls collected — but won with relative ease because it committed only eight turnovers and moved the ball well enough to get 16 assists on its 25 made shots.
The Bruins also heated up from long range in the second half, making six of 10 three-pointers.
Forward Great Osobor scored 14 points for the Huskies (6-2), who made only three of 16 three-pointers (18.8%).
UCLA withstood a sloppy stretch in which it went scoreless for more than six minutes to hold a 29-24 halftime lead. It looked like the Bruins might give Washington the same sort of flogging it handed its previous opponents when backup center Aday Mara made a putback to cap a 12-0 run that gave UCLA a 23-12 advantage. The 7-foot-3 Mara had been a huge factor to that point, piling up four points, three rebounds and two blocks in only seven minutes before picking up a second foul and heading to the bench.
The Huskies countered with a 9-0 run fueled in part by UCLA turnovers. Andrews was an especially egregious culprit, losing his dribble for one turnover and failing to get the ball inbounds within five seconds for another.
UCLA was fortunate that Mack went on the attack, repeatedly driving to the basket and getting fouled to help his team extend its narrow cushion. Cronin said he was pleased to be up by five points at the midpoint given that his three starting guards had combined to make one of 13 shots. Freshman guard Trent Perry was limited to two minutes the entire game after being limited in practice the last few days because of back spasms.
After making one of five shots in the first half, Andrews salvaged his performance by making four of seven shots after halftime. Skyy Clark made both of his three-pointers after halftime, but Kobe Johnson never got out of his slump and finished making one of seven shots.
“Those guys are going to have to perform if we’re going to be a high-level team,” Cronin said. “It just is what it is. We’re going to keep trying, playing hard. That’s just the reality of it.”
