UCLA head coach Mick Cronin discusses the challenges of containing Gonzaga's Drew Timme

UCLA head coach Mick Cronin doesn’t need a reminder that Gonzaga center Drew Timme is one of the most difficult players to defend in college basketball. Timme gave the Bruins’ and their head coach a quick reminder early on in their Sweet 16 matchup in Thursday night’s NCAA Tournament contest. Timme dominated in the first nine minutes of the game, scoring 12 points in the paint and 15 points total. CBS sideline reporter Lauren Shehadi asked Cronin about how the Bruins could contain the Zags’ star center and he stated the obvious. “Well, if we not let him get it [the ball] that might help,” Cronin joked.

“Look, we gotta contain, we can’t let him get 40 [points]. We gotta get [Kenneth] Nwuba back in the game. He’s a little tired, Obviously, we’ve gotta get some more help there quicker,” the UCLA head coach said.

UCLA was leading Gonzaga 22-19 with 11:10 remaining in the first half. It’s looking like an excellent game early on. The game is being nationally televised on CBS.

UCLA closed the first half on a 15-4 run, leading Gonzaga 46-33 at halftime. The Bruins are 48-1 all-time in the NCAA Tournament when leading by 10 points or more at the half.

UCLA did an excellent job on Timme for the rest of the first half, but he still had 19 points and five rebounds. The rest of the Bulldogs’ roster only had 14 points combined in the opening half. They’ll need somebody else to step up to get back in it in the second half.

The Bruins forced nine turnovers in the first half. Amari Bailey (13 points), Jaime Jaquez, Jr. (12 points), and Tyger Campbell (13 points) each pumped in double digits in the first half for UCLA.

The end of Thursday night’s game was a classic in the second half, as the Bruins clawed their way back into it in the final minute. UCLA erased an eight-point deficit in the final 1:05 of the game. They were carried down the stretch by Jaime Jaquez, Jr., who delivered a number of critical buckets driving to the hoop. Then, in the final seconds, Amari Bailey delivered a clutch three-pointer to put the Bruins up by 1 with 12.2 seconds left in the game.

Gonzaga’s Julian Strawther delivered one of the biggest daggers of the tournament thus far, a three-pointer for the ages, when he drilled a deep shot from the March Madness logo to lift the Bulldogs to a wild 79-76 victory. He hit the shot with six seconds left on the clock.

While UCLA got an excellent look in the closing seconds from Tyger Campbell, his three-point attempt bounced off the rim, and Gonzaga officially advanced to the Elite Eight. It was a classic finish and one of the better games of this year’s NCAA Tournament. Gonzaga will face the UConn Huskies on Saturday in their Elite Eight matchup.