LOS ANGELES, Calif.- Lafayette men's basketball led No. 25 UCLA throughout the first 30 minutes of Friday evening's contest, before falling by a 68-50 final inside a brimming Pauley Pavilion.
"I feel like we played with a competitive spirit, especially defensively," said head coach
Mike McGarvey. "We just played a good brand of basketball."
Lafayette featured an even offensive attack with seven players putting points on the board, hoisting well from beyond the arc. Two Leopards scored in double figures, namely senior guard
Eric Sondberg, who notched a team-high 11 points, followed by classmate
Kyle Jenkins with 10.
Justin Vander Baan and Jenkins teamed up to give the Leopards a starting lead, 6-3, at the 16-minute mark.
Jon Brantley put up six points on a flurry of shots, keeping the Leopards afloat, 18-14 at 7:56.
Chris Rubayo sank an additional eight points over the next eight minutes for a 27-23 flow in favor of the Maroon and White. The Bruins got as close as 31-30 in the closing 40 seconds before Jenkins sealed the first half with a layup in the paint as the clock ran out.
Lafayette battled the Pac-12 foe on both sides of the court to keep the Bruins at bay, continuing to compete as the second half opened. Sondberg sank two shots from beyond the arc to aid in Lafayette's largest lead, 43-34, at 12:12.
The Bruins offense woke up around the 11-minute mark, making a game-best 17-0 run down to 3:13 to take the program's first lead of the game. Lafayette went cold from the field in the remaining span besides a Jenkins layup and a 3-pointer by freshman
Luke Rasmussen with 21 seconds on the clock.
Lafayette held its own on the glass, picking up eight offensive and 22 defensive rebounds to UCLA's 6 and 24, respectively.
The Leopards travel to Pepperdine in Malibu, Calif. on Sunday with a 4 p.m. tip-off.
For the latest on the Lafayette College men's basketball program, follow the Leopards on Twitter
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@lafayettembb.
