Riaan Kwaba ukunyonyoba okwashiya abanye UCLA abalandeli be-basketball bevale amehlo abo.
Imbewu engunombolo 2 esifundeni saseMpumalanga? Ngenkathi i-Arizona inguNo. 2 eNtshonalanga? Kuwenza kanjani umqondo lokho?
Imbewu yomqhudelwano we-NCAA ehlongozwayo yabakwa-Bruins, ekhishwe ngoMgqibelo njengengxenye yombukiso wokubuka kuqala ubakaki, iyona kuphela inombolo engazange ivune ama-Bruins njengoba eqhudelana nama-Wildcats endaweni ephezulu ngaphandle kwe-Pac-12 Conference.
I-UCLA ekleliswe endaweni yesine ingene kumdlalo wangoMgqibelo ibhekene neCalifornia e-Pauley Pavilion enezinga elingcono likazwelonke kune-Arizona ekleliswe endaweni yesishiyagalombili. AbakwaBruins babeyinombolo 3 ezilinganisweni zika-Ken Pomeroy womhlaziyi we-basketball wasekolishi ohlonishwa kakhulu, ngaphambi kakhulu kwe-No. 9 Wildcats. Futhi kumethrikhi eklanyelwe futhi okuthiwa yaziswa kakhulu ikomidi lokukhetha imiqhudelwano ye-NCAA, i-UCLA yaba nguNombolo 4 kuya kunombolo 11 yase-Arizona ku-NCAA Evaluation Tool (NET).
Heck, ama-Bruins abebheke phansi kuma-Wildcats ekumeni kwe-Pac-12 – ehlala imidlalo emibili phezulu kukholomu yokulahlekelwa ebaluleke kakhulu – ngisho nangemva kokulahlekelwa umhlangano wabo owodwa nekhanda, ngenyanga edlule eTucson. I-UCLA igcine leso sikhundla sibonga i-78-43 drubbing yase-California e-Pauley Pavilion enwebe i-streak yesizwe yokuwina ikhaya emidlalweni engu-23.
Umqeqeshi weBruins uMick Cronin akazange afihle ukudelela kwakhe lokho okushiwo kamuva, ephakamisa ukuthi kwakuwumphumela wokuhlubuka kwe-UCLA ku-Big Ten.
“Ngesikhathi sishiya i-Pac-12, ibize abantu abaningi izigidi zamaRandi futhi kuzoba nokuwa,” kusho uCronin. “Ngaze ngakhuluma ne-AD yami endala, uMike Bohn, ngayo, futhi ngicabanga ukuthi iwumphumela oqondile wayo. Manje, ngeke ngikuhlanganisele izingcezu ngokuthi lokho kukuthinta kanjani lokho, kodwa kuyahlekisa – uma ubuza impendulo yami yegama elilodwa kuleso simo? Okuhlekisayo.
“Bekuwukuzijabulisa okuhle. Ngaze ngahleka.”
Umgadli we-UCLA u-Adem Bona ulenga rimu ngemuva kokudlala neCalifornia ngoMgqibelo.
(Allison Dinner / Associated Press)
Ukuhlala eNtshonalanga kuyinto enkulu ku-UCLA nase-Arizona ngoba kusho ukudlala imidlalo yesifunda e-T-Mobile Arena e-Las Vegas, lapho abalandeli banoma yiliphi iqembu bazodlula indawo.
Iyini inkontileka nama-Wildcats anengoma yangaphakathi eya ku-Strip?
Amagama amabili: ikhwalithi iwina. I-Arizona inokuningi, futhi ikomidi lokukhetha lithumele umlayezo ngoMgqibelo ukuthi likwazisa ngokucacile ukunqoba okuhle ngokuntuleka kokulahlekelwa okubi.
I-Wildcats ihambe ngo-6-2 emidlalweni ebizwa nge-Quad 1, echazwa njengaleyo ehlanganisa abaphikisi abanezinga le-NET lika-1 kuya ku-15 ekhaya, 1 kuya ku-50 endaweni engathathi hlangothi noma i-1 kuya ku-75 endleleni. Ama-Bruins (23-4, 14-2 Pac-12) ahlonipheke ngo-4-4 emidlalweni ye-Quad 1 ngenkathi eqongelela irekhodi elihlelekile le-19-0 emidlalweni ye-Quad 2, 3 kanye ne-4 ngokumelene nokuncintisana okuncane.
Arizona? I-Wildcats iphethe ukulahlekelwa kwe-Quad 2 okukodwa kanye nokulahlekelwa okwengeziwe kwe-Quad 3, nakuba ikomidi lokukhetha lihlehla ekutholeni i-Arizona No. 6 iyonke ku-UCLA’s No. 8 njengengxenye yamaqembu angu-16 aphezulu aveze ngoMgqibelo.
Unogada we-UCLA uDavid Singleton uzama ukuntshontsha ibhola kunogada waseCalifornia uMarsalis Roberson esiwombeni sokuqala ngoMgqibelo.
(Allison Dinner / Associated Press)
Ukuze i-UCLA idlule imbangi yayo enkulu ye-Pac-12 ngezinjongo zokutshala, ama-Bruins kufanele awine impinda ngokumelene nama-Wildcats ngoMashi 4 e-Pauley Pavilion. Ama-Bruins nawo ngeke akwazi ukukhubeka ebhekene ne-Arizona emqhudelwaneni we-Pac-12, ozosebenza njengesinqamuleli uma amaqembu ehlangana ngalinye linqoba okukodwa kwelinye.
I-UCLA futhi ayikwazi ukumunca ukulahlekelwa okubi. Isikhungo sokulondoloza asikho Kenneth Nwuba (inqulu yesokunxele) nomgadli oyisipele u-Abramo Canka (ukugula), abakwaBruins basenokuningi okwanele uma beqhathaniswa noCal oweqile.
Impahla yokuqala yayisho. I-UCLA igeje amashothi amathathu yaphinde yabamba i-rebound njalo, yagcina ishaye igoli UJaime Jaquez Jr.‘s buyisela emuva. Ngokushesha amaBruins abengaphambili ngo-12-0 futhi kuzwakala sengathi umdlalo osele uzokuba imininingwane.
U-Jaquez uzinikeze isipho esihle sosuku lwakhe lokuzalwa ngosuku ahlanganisa ngalo iminyaka engu-22, ehlanganisa amaphuzu angama-20 kanye nama-rebound ayisishiyagalombili emizuzwini engama-26 kuphela. Ngaleso sikhathi, u-Amari Bailey wahlehla kakhulu ebhentshini lakhe ebhekene noStanford ngobusuku obubili ngaphambili, unogada omusha waqoqa amaphuzu angu-16 ukuze ahambe nokuphindaphinda okuyisishiyagalolunye, abasizi abathathu, amabhlogo amabili kanye nokweba okubili.
Mayelana nokutshala kukaBruins, uCronin uthe ngeke kunqume isiphetho seqembu lakhe.
“Eminyakeni embalwa edlule, safakazela ukuthi inzalo yakho ayinandaba,” kusho uCronin, ebhekisa eqenjini lakhe elisuka kweyokuQala yesine liye kwelesine njengembewu yenombolo 11. “Kufanele udlale kahle ngesikhathi esifanele, ube wumqemane, uzinikele ekudlaleni i-basketball esezingeni eliphezulu. Nakulo mqhudelwano kuyancomeka minyaka yonke.”
U-One Bruin uvumile ekuqaleni kwaleli sonto ukuthi uzolunguza ukubuka kuqala kukabakaki. Ngaso leso sikhathi, uDavid Singleton waveza ubuwula bakho konke, imidlalo eminingi esele ukuthi idlalwe kanye nokunyakaza okuningi okusele ukuze kwenziwe amaqembu azama ukuzibeka endaweni yemidlalo ebalulekile.
Ikuphi i-UCLA kubakaki kusukela maphakathi noFebhuwari? Ingabe kunendaba ngempela?
“Sibuze ngoMashi,” kusho uSingleton.
