Johnny Juzang returns from ankle sprain, lifts UCLA over BYU in NCAA tournament

The ball came off the rim and Jaime Jaquez Jr. powered his way toward it, ripping it away from the counterpart who held a nine-inch height advantage.

The overmatched 7-foot-3 center fell to the court in agony along the baseline. Jaquez and UCLA were on the attack once again, taking it to Brigham Young.

The Bruins built a double-digit halftime lead on the strength of Johnny Juzang’s shot-making and prevailed thanks to the toughness of Jaquez and others, pulling out a 73-62 victory in the first round of the NCAA tournament Saturday night at Hinkle Fieldhouse.

UCLA point guard Tyger Campbell shrugged off a one-for-11 shooting start to make two late baskets and help the No. 11 seed Bruins (19-9) subdue the No. 6 Cougars (20-7).

Returning from a severely sprained ankle, Juzang scored 19 of his 27 points in the first half, getting help from Jules Bernard (16 points) and Jaquez (13 points, eight rebounds) after Jaquez played nearly every minute for a second consecutive game.

The Bruins’ magical mystery tour of storied Indiana venues will last at least two more days. After moving from one arena where a statue of John Wooden stood outside to another where its legendary coach once played while in high school, UCLA will play No. 14 seed Abilene Christian, which stunned No. 3 seed Texas late Saturday, in the second round Monday at a site to be determined.

Juzang was a straggler to pregame warmups, walking over to a courtside chair to tie his shoes while his teammates started stretching on the court.

There was reason to wonder whether he would get up to join in the exercises or remain an observer.

He had been carried off the court against Michigan State with his ankle injury only two days earlier, leaving his status in doubt for UCLA’s biggest game of the season. The uncertainty was answered when Juzang bounded over to the baseline and joined his teammates, moving fluidly and showing no lingering signs of his injury.

In a sign of things to come, Juzang sank a three-pointer less than a minute into the game and powered UCLA to a 38-27 halftime lead after making eight of his first 11 shots, including three of four three-pointers. His early scoring outburst helped the Bruins withstand a decided rebounding disadvantage and having all three of their big men in foul trouble.

Bruins forward Cody Riley picked up his second foul less than three minutes into the game and went to the bench, never to be seen again in the first half. Forwards Mac Etienne and Kenneth Nwuba also picked up two fouls in the first half, but coach Mick Cronin had no choice but to leave Nwuba in the game.

The move worked out when Nwuba backed into his man underneath the basket, clearing a path for Jaquez to drive for a ferocious two-handed dunk that gave the Bruins a 38-25 lead.

Things would have been much worse for the Cougars in the first half had they not pulled down six more rebounds than the Bruins. BYU also grabbed seven offensive rebounds, leading to six second-chance points, but stumbled its way into seven turnovers. UCLA had only four turnovers in the game.

UCLA arrived here hoping to complete a clean sweep of the first round for the Pac-12 Conference. Colorado and USC had won earlier in the day, and Oregon had advanced after Virginia Commonwealth was forced to withdraw because of COVID-19 issues.

Notching a comeback victory over Michigan State two days earlier had erased any worry the Bruins would close the season on an extended losing streak and wipe out the strides they had made under Cronin in his second season.

There was no doubt about their direction when players gathered for a celebratory jig in front of their bench late Saturday before heading gleefully toward their locker room.