Pac-10 : Ducks upset No. 1 UCLA

In 1974, Ernie Kent played for an Oregon team that upset No. 1 UCLA.

Thirty-three years later, Kent sobbed when his Ducks again knocked off the top-ranked Bruins.

“This is a together basketball team,” the Oregon coach said Saturday after the 16th-ranked Ducks handed UCLA its first loss of the season, 68-66 in Eugene, Ore. “Their spirit is unbelievable.”

Aaron Brooks scored 25 points, including the game-winning jumper with 13 seconds left for Oregon (14-1, 2-1 Pac-10). That was the Ducks’ only field goal over the final 7 minutes.

“It just shows that we can play with anybody, regardless of who we played at the beginning of the year,” Brooks said. “People talked about our schedule, but we got to put the system in, and the system’s working, and it will work against anybody if we play hard.”

Darren Collison hit a 3-pointer to bring the Bruins (14-1, 3-1) into a 66-all tie. Brooks, who had 31 points Thursday night in the 84-82 loss to Southern California, the Ducks’ first this season, hit the baseline jumper to give Oregon the lead.

UCLA worked the ball around in the final seconds and instead of going toward the basket for a chance at tying it, Josh Shipp’s 3-point attempt at the buzzer was short, setting off a celebration on McArthur Court.

UCLA coach Ben Howland said he was concerned because Collison, the point guard, had four fouls, and top-scorer Arron Afflalo had three, meaning the Bruins could have had issues if the game went to overtime.

“The last play of the game was really my fault. I wanted to go for the win,” Howland said. “I thought we would be able to penetrate and kick out for a 3, and it wasn’t there. We were really tentative and did not get a good shot at the end of the game.”

Maarty Luenen was on Shipp for the final play.

“I actually turned my back on him because I thought Collison was going to shoot it, and it went back out to Shipp and I just had to play good defense,” Luenen said. “I knew the clock was running down and he had to put something up pretty quick.”

The Bruins had not opened 15-0 since 1972-73, when they went 30-0 and won the national championship.

Shipp and Afflalo both finished with 14 points for the Bruins, who trailed 40-30 at halftime, while Collison had 11.

The last time the Bruins lost was to Florida in the national championship game.

“I never thought I’d feel like this again in my entire career here,” Afflalo said. “I truly thought this team couldn’t be beat. The way we played and the type of heart we play with, and the type of leadership we have on this team – I wouldn’t say we’re invincible (but) I didn’t think we could be beat.”

Luenen had 18 points and seven rebounds for the Ducks, who were off to their best start since 1937-38, when Oregon won its first 14.

It was the first time a top-ranked team had visited Eugene since Arizona beat Oregon 70-54 on Jan. 16, 1988.

USC 91, Oregon State 46: At Corvallis, Ore., Lodrick Stewart had a career-high 28 points, including 20 in the first half, to lead the Trojans to a win over the Beavers.

Taj Gibson added 20 points and five rebounds for the Trojans (13-4, 3-1), who completed a Beaver State sweep that started Thursday with an 84-82 victory at No. 16 Oregon.

Angelo Tsagarakis had 10 points to lead Oregon State (8-8, 0-3), which opened the conference schedule with three straight home games.

Stewart’s steal and basket with 11:39 remaining in the game gave him 28. He left the game soon after and didn’t return.

The final score provided the most points scored by USC this season and the most allowed by Oregon State.