UCLA eases by UC Davis 74-67

On Saturday, UCLA needed a one-man show, and quite the one-man show it was, freshman center Joshua Smith pouring in a career-high 19 points and 12 rebounds in the Bruins' 72-61 win over Cal Poly.

Two days later, UCLA needed a balanced effort.

Junior guard Malcolm Lee had a team-high 15 points, leading four Bruins in double-figures, as UCLA sweated out a 74-67 win over visiting UC Davis on Monday night at Pauley Pavilion.

Sophomore power forward Reeves Nelson added 13 points and sophomore small forward Tyler Honeycutt and junior point guard Lazeric Jones added 10 each as the Bruins won their second straight after a four-game losing skid.

"It's good showing that we're starting to come together and sharing the ball," Honeycutt said. "Initially, we thought they were going red in the post, which they didn't. Our posts are doing a good job of getting attention inside."

Lee had 10 points in the first half on four-of-five shooting, but the Aggies tightened up on Lee in the second half, holding him to just four attempts.

His 15-point performance, though, was his second-highest scoring output of the season, after a 23-point outburst in the Bruins' 89-85 loss to Virginia Commonwealth in the preseason NIT third-place game.

"He really shot it well, shot it with confidence," Howland said. "When he cut the lead late in the game, he hit a big three. He's worked very hard on his shot, so it's nice to see him get his just rewards for it."

UCLA survived a late flurry by UC Davis backup forward Josh Richart that brought the Aggies close at the end.

Richart had three 3-pointers in a two-minute stretch as the Aggies came from 14 behind to cut it to six. Richart hit five-of-six 3-pointers to finish with a game-high 23 points, as he was able to get around sound screens on the perimeter for open looks.

"We really had a hard time playing against them in terms of helping too much off of shooters," Howland said. "We're being told stay at home, don't help, but the natural reaction is to want to help. The one kid had a great game today and really shot it well."

UCLA will face another hot-shooting team on Saturday at the Honda Center in the Wooden Classic, with No. 18 BYU and standout Jimmer Fredette.

The matchup with the Cougars will be the Bruins' last tough test before Pac-10 play begins on Dec. 29 against Washington State. UCLA needs a big win for its resume, as none of its victories have come against top programs.

"I would say we haven't done well, we've just come out with victories," Honeycutt said. "This is real important. They have a great player, a great shooter who we'll have to keep an eye on."