Leaf and Ball lead No. 16 UCLA past Long Beach State 114-77

LOS ANGELES -- Once UCLA got going, there was no stopping the Bruins.

T.J. Leaf scored 21 points and fellow freshman Lonzo Ball added 20 in 16th-ranked UCLA's 114-77 victory over Long Beach State on Sunday night.

"If we hit a couple early, we can get really hot," said Bryce Alford, who finished with 15 points. "We become really hard to guard because guys get in a rhythm."

The Bruins dominated from the opening tip, topping 100 points for the third time in four games. They raced to a 19-5 lead while the 49ers missed six of their first seven shots and committed six turnovers.

"They're the best offensive team we've seen," Long Beach State coach Dan Monson said.

Leaf had nine rebounds and Ball had 11 assists for the Bruins (4-0), who have blown out their first four opponents by an average of 27.7 points.

"I don't put any pressure on myself," said Ball, who arrived in Westwood amid great expectations. "The game of basketball is fun to me, and I go out there and do what I do."

The Bruins hit 12 3-pointers, including five by Alford, who made his first five before missing once.

"This was the best we played," UCLA coach Steve Alford said. "We had great energy, great focus, did tremendous things offensively. Defensively, this was the best that we've been."

Loren Jackson scored a career-high 15 points to lead the 49ers (1-4), and Noah Blackwell added 12. They had a season-high 11 3-pointers.

"We know now what we need to do," Monson said. "We are getting some resistance from guys not doing what they need to do. We've been exposed, which is why you play this schedule."

Leaf and Ball had five dunks between them in the first half. Leaf had the first three and then Ball scored off an alley-oop pass from Isaac Hamilton and had a one-handed fast-break jam.

With the Bruins leading by 40 in the second half, Ball and Aaron Holiday wowed the crowd on a fast break. Holiday tossed the ball off the glass, and Ball, trailing behind, caught it and slammed it in.

"I think it was his third-best dunk," Leaf said. "The other two should definitely be in SportsCenter' top 10. They were three pretty crazy dunks."

Alford hit four of UCLA's seven 3-pointers in the first half to help the Bruins lead 56-37 at the break.

The 49ers also made seven 3s in the half, getting three in a row late, but that didn't help them reduce their double-digit deficit.

Leaf came out shooting to open the second half, scoring the Bruins' first seven points.

Alford and Hamilton hit back-to-back 3-pointers from the right corner. Hamilton finished with 18 points and Holiday had 16 points.

Big man Thomas Welsh launched the Bruins on an 18-5 run that stretched their lead from 24 points to 37 points. Hamilton scored eight points and Welsh and Holiday chipped in four apiece to keep the Bruins ahead 87-50.

POLL IMPLICATIONS

The Bruins could move up a spot or two in the rankings after losses by No. 13 Michigan State and No. 15 Purdue.

TIP-INS

Long Beach St: F Gabe Levin, who came in averaging a team-leading 13.3 points and 7.5 rebounds, was held to eight points. G Evan Payne had seven, under his 10.8 average. ... The 49ers fell to 1-15 all-time against the Bruins, having lost at Pauley Pavilion for the third straight year. ... They had a season-high 23 turnovers.

UCLA: The Bruins had 27 assists on 46 field goals. ... They made 10 of 11 free throws and are close to averaging 80 percent from the line, a major improvement from previous seasons. ... The elder Alford turns 52 on Wednesday.

BIG PICTURE

Long Beach St.: The 49ers have lost to three straight ranked opponents -- No. 5 North Carolina by 37 points, No. 12 Louisville by 32 and now UCLA -- while traveling 4,492 miles to play four consecutive road games. In all, they will travel over 23,000 miles by the time their nonconference schedule is completed, including a trip to the Battle4Atlantis in the Bahamas.

UCLA: The Bruins have enjoyed a favorable schedule so far in November with five home games and a trip to nearby Orange County on tap. They'll find it much tougher to start December with a visit to No. 2 Kentucky, a neutral court game against Ohio State in Las Vegas and a trip to No. 4 Oregon to open Pac-12 play.

UP NEXT

Long Beach St.: The 49ers visit their second straight Pac-12 opponent, Washington, on Tuesday, capping five consecutive road games.

UCLA: The Bruins play Portland in an opening round game at the Wooden Legacy on Thursday in Fullerton.

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