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UCLA beats Oregon State to remain unbeaten

Jan 5, 2007 - 6:20 AM CORVALLIS, Oregon (Ticker) -- Josh Shipp and UCLA still are floating along.

Shipp scored 18 points as top-ranked UCLA remained unbeaten with a 71-56 Pac-10 Conference victory over Oregon State.

Arron Afflalo added 14 points for the Bruins (14-0, 3-0 Pac-10), who held just a 36-30 halftime lead before gradually pulling away over the final 20 minutes in their first true road game of the season.

"It's always tough to play on the road," UCLA coach Ben Howland said. "We came out in the second half and played better than the first."

Shipp's layup with under 15 minutes remaining capped an 11-6 surge to open the second half, which gave the Bruins a 47-36 advantage. They led by double digits thereafter.

"We came out to a slow start during our first true road game," Shipp said. "We didn't get out to the start we would have liked, but we came out in the second half and pushed tempo a little bit, got some turnovers and extended the lead."

Afflalo, who had just one basket in the first half, sank two free throws with 7:01 left to give the Bruins their biggest lead at 56-40. He finished 4-of-8 from the floor.

Luc Richard Mbah a Moute and Darren Collison added 11 points apiece for the Bruins, who are 14-0 for the first time since 1993-94. UCLA and Clemson (15-0) are the nation's only unbeaten teams.

Sasa Cuic and Marcel Jones scored 13 points each for the Beavers (8-7, 0-2), who have lost 27 of their last 33 meetings against the Bruins.

"They fly around. They get to every spot needed," Jones said. "There is a reason they are the number one team in the country."

Getting a spark from the home crowd, the Beavers held a 15-11 lead midway through the first half. However, the Bruins used a 16-4 run to move in front for good.

"I believe we outplayed UCLA in the first half, but unfortunately we did not finish plays," Oregon State coach Jay John said. We had a number of opportunities missed."