PULLMAN, Wash. (AP) — Prince Ali, Moses Brown and Kris Wilkes each scored 16 points and UCLA beat Washington State 87-67 on Wednesday night.
Jaylen Hands added 10 points with eight assists for UCLA (12-9, 5-3).
Robert Franks scored 21 points and CJ Elleby added 15 points and eight assists for Washington State (8-13, 1-7).
UCLA went on a 13-3 run, taking its first lead of the opening half at the 8:34 mark on a layup from Hands. Ali set the pace for UCLA in the first half, scoring 10 points with two big 3-pointers. One 3 came during the run and another before the halftime buzzer, giving the Bruins a 44-37 halftime lead.
Franks kept it close for the Cougars with 15 first-half points, going 6 of 8 from the field and 3 of 4 from 3-point range.
UCLA created some distance in the second half with a 13-2 run over 4:33, led by Wilkes and Brown. Wilkes nailed a 3-pointer and had an acrobatic layup while Brown had two powerful dunks, one off an alley-oop pass from Hands giving UCLA a 62-49 lead.
The Bruins went on a 14-3 run with easy layups and free throws for a 76-55 lead with 7:58 remaining and cruised from there. UCLA finished shooting 59 percent from the field.
BIG PICTURE:
UCLA: The Bruins have won two games in a row with the conference race heating up. This win gives UCLA a step forward for a higher seed come conference tournament time.
Washington State: The Cougars are on a four-game losing streak after the win against California.
UP NEXT:
UCLA: The Bruins will finish their road trip at Washington on Saturday.
Washington State: The Cougars will host USC on Saturday.
