Feb. 27, 2005

Notre Dame UCLA Box Score

SOUTH BEND Ind. – Arron Afflalo scored 17 points, including all three of his 3-point attempts, as UCLA made 14 3-pointers in all to beat Notre Dame 75-65 on Sunday.

The Bruins (16-9) dominated throughout, opening a 59-39 lead midway through the second half when Brian Morrison hit a 3-pointer. The Irish (16-9) used a 19-9 spurt to close to 68-58 on a slam dunk Torin Francis with 5:19 left. But Afflalo answered with a 3-pointer, and the Irish couldn’t get any closer.

The Irish have had some memorable victories at the Joyce Center over the years, including a 71-70 victory in 1974 that ended UCLA’s 88-game winning streak. But the game Sunday was one the Irish would rather forget as they seek to return to the NCAA tournament.

The Bruins, also seeking a tournament berth, looked impressive throughout, making 14-of-23 3-pointers and outrebounding the Irish 42-34.

Dijon Thompson had 16 points and 10 rebounds for the Bruins, Jordan Farmar and Morrison had 12 points each, and Michael Fey added 10 points and nine rebounds.

Chris Quinn led the Irish with 17 points and six assists, and Francis and Chris Thomas had 10 points each. Thomas also recorded his 800th career assist becoming just the third player in NCAA history to score 2,000 points and have 800 assists.

The Bruins set the tone from the start, quickly opening a 20-11 lead by making 4-of-6 3-pointers. The Irish closed to 25-21 when Francis scored on a rebound with five minutes left in the half, but Morrison answered immediately with a 3. Morrison, Josh Shipp and Farmar hit three 3-pointers in a row to help the Bruins to a 41-26 halftime lead.

The Bruins, playing at Notre Dame for the first time in nine seasons, improved their record in the series to 27-18.

TOM COYNE
AP Sports Writer