LOS ANGELES (AP) — Branden Carlson scored off an offensive rebound at the buzzer, giving Utah a 70-69 victory over UCLA on Sunday night and snapping the Bruins’ six-game winning streak.
Dylan Andrews hit a go-ahead jumper with six seconds remaining for the Bruins, who led by six earlier in the half.
The Utes inbounded and raced the length of the court before Deivon Smith missed a layup. Carlson grabbed the ball in traffic and put it in.
The referees called for a video review, leaving the crowd on its feet waiting. The basket was called good and 0.2 seconds were put on the clock but it wasn’t enough time for the Bruins to get off a decent shot.
Smith and Carlson finished with 17 points each in Utah’s first win at Pauley Pavilion since 2018-19. The Utes completed their second season sweep of the Bruins since joining the Pac-12. They blew out UCLA 90-44 in Salt Lake City on Jan. 11.
Smith had 10 assists as the Utes (16-10, 7-8) ended their three-game skid.
Lazar Stefanovic scored a season-high 19 points playing all 40 minutes for the Bruins (14-12, 9-6), who lost leading scorer Sebastian Mack in the first half after he was ejected for fouling Carlson.
The rematch included poor shooting from both teams and lots of whistles from the referees. Mack, who averages 13.5 points, was ejected after a flagrant-2 foul with 9:53 remaining. He appeared to elbow Carlson in the throat at mid-court, sending Carlson to the floor where a trainer came and checked on him before he left the court.
Stefanovic proved a steadying presence against his old team. He was 8 of 9 from the free-throw line and had eight rebounds.
The Utes tied it 64-all on a layup by Keba Keita after the Bruins had led by six. Keita and Smith combined to score 13 of the Utes’ final 15 points.
The referees were booed off the floor at halftime. Both coaches received technicals in the half, when neither team led by more than seven and UCLA was ahead 36-34 at the break. Neither team shot better than 37% in the half, when the Bruins made 13 trips to the free throw line and the Utes made 11.
BIG PICTURE
Utah: The Utes played it close on their trip to LA, losing by four points at USC on Thursday.
UCLA: The loss prevented UCLA from moving into sole possession of third in the Pac-12. They are hunting for a top-four seed in the league tournament, which would give them a first-round bye.
UP NEXT
Utah: Visits Colorado on Saturday in the Utes’ third straight road game.
UCLA: Hosts rival Southern California on Saturday after beating the Trojans by 15 points last month.
___ Get poll alerts and updates on AP Top 25 basketball throughout the season. Sign up here ___ AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball
