Western Kentucky rally falls short, UCLA moves on
Down by 21 at the half, Western Kentucky made a second period rally against #1 UCLA thanks to a 31 point effort by Tyrone Brazelton. However the upstart Hilltoppers fell short, eventually losing 88-78. UCLA advances to the Elite 8 and will take on Xavier on Saturday in the West Regional Final at US Airways Center.
Sophomore James Keefe scored 18 points and collected 12 rebounds off the bench and Kevin Love scored a career high 29 points to lead UCLA (34-3). The majority of the Bruin's 19 turnovers came in the second half, allowing WKU (29-7) to come back. They would cut the lead to six before UCLA pulled away in the closing minutes. UCLA head coach Ben Howland talked after the game about the exciting game.
Keefe saw limited playing time during the regular season, and was even a candidate for a medical redshirt after suffering an injury in August. However the sophomore led UCLA on a night when Darren Collison, playing in foul trouble, struggled and scored only 4 points. Keefe spoke about the opportunity to play and help out the ballclub.
The championship game of the Phoenix West Regional will take place on Saturday at 3:40pm. Check back to The Blaze 1260 AM for updates and analysis.
last updated on 08.03.28 at 1:30 PM