Norman Powell is closing his career at UCLA with another journey into the NCAA Tournament, getting to the Sweet 16 for the second straight year after Saturday’s 92-75 win over UAB. Asked whether this run has been more satisfying than last year’s, the senior said both feel great.
“I’m just glad that the freshmen were able to have their first season hitting the Sweet 16,” Powell said. “I was joking around with Tom (Welsh) — my freshman year, I was at home watching March Madness. For him to experience that, it’s great to see these guys excited.”
Norman Powell scored 19 points in UCLA’s 60-59 win over SMU in the NCAA Tournament’s round of 64. It was the senior who broke UCLA out of an 8:40 scoring drought in the second half, hitting a layup with 4:16 on the clock.
He then assisted on Bryce Alford’s sixth and seventh 3-pointers, and finished with four assists, six rebounds, a block and a steal. He was responsible for nine of UCLA’ 14 free throw attempts, and was perfect at the line.
“We’re going to enjoy tonight,” Powell said. “Coach said we’re going to relax, have fun, and just enjoy this win. We have a day to prepare for (UAB in the next round). It’s getting focused on them the next morning.”
Too bad he had to take a final at the team hotel after the game.
Senior Norman Powell is nearing the end of his UCLA career, and with the No. 11-seed Bruins poised as an underdog against sixth-seeded SMU, he said he and his teammates just need to relax.
“The great part of this is you’re one of the teams left able to play,” he said. “Go in there, have fun, play loose. Nobody expects us to win, so it’s all about just playing UCLA basketball.”
The guard also talked about how the Bruins need to attack SMU’s big men with ball screens, potentially guarding point guard Nic Moore, and the improvement of the team’s zone defense.
Heading into last night’s game between UCLA and Arizona in the Pac-12 Tournament semifinal, ESPN’s Joe Lunardi had the Bruins as one of his first four teams out of the Big Dance. Their eventual 70-64 loss at the MGM Grand Garden Arena likely seals that fate.
Here’s a roundup of our coverage from Las Vegas on Friday night:
UCLA arrives in Las Vegas for one last chance to show that its worthy of a spot in the Big Dance.
The Bruins enter the Pac-12 Tournament likely needing two wins to feel secure heading into Selection Sunday, but that would almost certainly mean knocking off top-seeded Arizona in the semifinals.
“This team has a lot to prove, I think,” said UCLA point guard Bryce Alford. “We know what we’re capable of. I don’t know if the nation knows that yet. We haven’t really done all that much to show what we’re capable of. But we know it as a team. We’ve seen glimpses of it. … I think we can beat just about anybody on any given night. We’ve got to go out there and prove it.”
The competition starts today at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, with a first-round game between USC and Arizona State that will determine who UCLA faces at 2:30 p.m. on Thursday. The Trojans and Sun Devils tip off at 2:30 p.m. today.
“I’d want to play against Arizona State, just because we let one slip away up there,” said senior Norman Powell. “It was a close game. Honestly, whoever wins that game, we’re just going to go at it the same way.”
RELATED:
— Norman Powell reflects on his UCLA career, one that saw him blossom in transitioning from Ben Howland to Steve Alford.
— UCLA heads to Las Vegas still hoping to pad its NCAA Tournament resume.
