TUCSON -- Suddenly it seemed Arizona's destiny was to upset UCLA.
Six seconds left, a rebound fumbled out of bounds off the entwined fingers of Kevin Love and Russell Westbrook, a scrambling movement of Bruins defenders and Arizona's acclaimed freshman Jerryd Bayless with the basketball, twisting his body between Luc Richard Mbah a Moute and Darren Collison, propelled forward by the desperate cheers of the McKale Center crowd.
With a second left and his team behind by two points, Bayless flung the ball at the basket and for a second, before the ball clattered off the front of the rim, Love said it felt as if time had stopped. "That took a couple of weeks off my life," Love said.
When time started again, this basketball game was over.
Fourth-ranked UCLA beat Arizona, 68-66, Sunday in a pivotal Pacific 10 Conference matchup. Despite losing an 11-point first-half lead, the Bruins (26-3, 14-2) kept a one-game lead over Stanford atop the conference because Love owned the area under the basket.
The 6-foot-10 freshman had 24 points and 15 rebounds. He made 10 of 11 free throws and had three blocked shots. Whenever the Wildcats grabbed the momentum, after a Chase Budinger three-pointer or a Jordan Hill hook shot, after Arizona had drawn to within a point, 62-61, there was Love, with his legs stretched out, his shoulders swinging, his blocky body filling the lane and clearing space.
"We did one of the better jobs we've done all season getting the ball inside," UCLA Coach Ben Howland said. "And I thought Kevin responded well."
This game had postseason meaning for both teams but in different ways.
The Bruins are eager to earn a No. 1 seeding in the NCAA regionals and keep themselves on a path of playing two games in Anaheim and a possible regional semifinal and final in Phoenix, something that may not happen if they don't win the conference regular-season title.
The Wildcats are desperate to make the NCAA tournament for the 24th consecutive time. It was also senior day for Arizona, an emotional afternoon when Coach Lute Olson, who has been on a season-long leave of absence for undisclosed personal reasons, presented awards to the five seniors.
Olson didn't speak to the media, but he spoke privately with the players. "It was the right thing to do, having him show up to give the seniors their awards," Arizona interim Coach Kevin O'Neill said. The Wildcats (17-12, 7-9) need inspiration from somewhere.
