Jaime Jaquez, Tyger Campbell lead UCLA past Arizona in Pac-12 finale
LOS ANGELES — It was a night to remember for five UCLA seniors.
Jaime Jaquez Jr., Tyger Campbell, David Singleton, Kenneth Nwuba and walk-on Russell Stong were honored on Senior Night. Each time the public address announcer thundered their names, the sold-out crowd roared.
But one intro stood out from them all.
As Jaquez was getting high-fives and walking toward UCLA coach Mick Cronin, he was accompanied by his father, Jaime Jaquez Sr., who bear hugged Cronin and lifted him off the ground.
“It was the UCLA energy,” Jaquez Sr. said. “It gave me super-human strength.”
Cronin – believe it or not – reciprocated the affection with a kiss to Jaquez Sr.’s cheek.
“We have a lot of love for each other,” Jaquez Sr. added. “I love Mick Cronin and what he’s done for my son. I’m very thankful for him.”
In a game that fans started lining up for the game at 7 p.m. Friday night, UCLA shook a shaky start and worked its way to an eventual 82-73 Pac-12 Conference victory over No. 8 Arizona in the regular-season finale in Pauley Pavilion Saturday night.
The win gives the fourth-ranked Bruins a new program record 18 conference victories and moves their home-winning streak to 25, which is the country’s longest.
Jaquez notched a double-double with 22 points and 10 rebounds in his last home game. Tyger Campbell added 21 points and David Singleton had 17 points, including five 3-pointers.
Jaquez could be the first Pac-12 Player of the Year from UCLA since Kevin Love in 2008.
It wasn’t all love, though.
The evening got injected with a nervous energy when star junior Jaylen Clark was helped off the floor and into the locker room. The defensive juggernaut made a steal in the back court and converted a layup before back-pedaling to return into defensive position. After a couple gallops, he quickly reached for his leg and winced in pain.
He collapsed into the aid of an assistant coach before sitting on the bench for a few minutes and being taken back for further evaluation. He was subbed out of the game at the 17:53-mark in the second half and did not return play.
However, Clark did come back out to the floor and join his teammates on the bench, but he was using crutches and had a walking boot on his right foot.
The Bruins started the game 1 of 12 from the field and fell behind 13-2 before battling back to take a 40-37 halftime lead. Singleton delivered timely 3-pointers, including his third of the opening half that capped a 15-0 UCLA run.
UCLA never relinquished the lead in the second half thanks to Jaquez’s 16 second-half points, which paced the Bruins.
More to come on this story …