UCF center scores on own basket in crushing blunder during team's first round loss to UCLA
In March Madness, it often comes down to the little things, but for UCF center John Bol, his blunder was not a little thing: he scored on his own basket.
In the first half of No. 7 UCLA’s 75-71 win over No. 10 UCF on Friday night at the Wells Fargo Center, Bol tapped a rebound into his own basket.
With just under two minutes left in the first half and the shot clock winding down, UCLA guard Donovan Dent shot a desperation 3-pointer. Bol, instead of corralling Dent’s miss and turning the other way, tapped the ball into his basket to increase UCLA’s lead to 35-21.
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The points were not credited to a UCLA player.
It was the beginning of a rough night for Bol, who went 0-5 from the free throw line with an unorthodox free-throw motion. The 7-foot-2 center scored two points on the night, contributing as many points to his own team as he did to the other team.
Bol’s own basket was not the only odd event during the game, as UCLA guard Skyy Clark also lost a tooth during the game.
UCF made it close late, erasing a double-digit deficit from the first half, but was not able to cap off the comeback, adding more significance to Bol’s own basket.
Jordan Burks led UCF in the loss with 22 points and six rebounds. Jamichael Stillwell (10 points), Themus Fulks (10 points) and Riley Kugel (13 points) were the only other players to score in double figures in the loss.
Eric Dailey Jr. led the Bruins with 20 points and five rebounds, while Trent Perry and Xavier Booker each had 15 points in the win.
UCLA will play No. 2 seed UConn in the Round of 32 on Sunday at 8:45 p.m. ET.
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