LIDDELL LIFTS OHIO STATE OVER UCLA

The return of E.J. Liddell helped Ohio State bounce back from its lone loss of the season.

Liddell had nine points and three rebounds after missing two games with an illness, allowing No. 20 Ohio State to hold off UCLA 77-70 at the CBS Sports Classic on Saturday in Cleveland.

The sophomore forward, who leads the Buckeyes in points and rebounds, had been sidelined since Dec. 8 with an ailment unrelated to COVID-19. He played 19 minutes before fouling out.

“When you get a player the caliber of E.J. back, it certainly helps you,” Ohio State coach Chris Holtmann said. “I thought this was our best performance of the year against a quality UCLA team that will either be near the top or win the Pac-12.”

Duane Washington Jr. scored 14 points and made two free throws in the final minute for the Buckeyes (6-1), who were coming off a 70-67 loss at Purdue on Dec. 16. Zed Key added 11 points, six rebounds and an emphatic blocked shot off the bench.

Junior forward Cody Riley had 15 points for UCLA (5-2), which had won five straight. Johnny Juzang added 13, including a 3pointer that gave the Bruins a 54-48 lead with 12:35 left.

“Their physicality bothered us and Zed just destroyed us,” UCLA coach Mick Cronin said. “Our post defense was a big problem, then they had guys making 3-pointers who had barely hit any coming in.”

Eugene Brown III, who had two 3-pointers entering the game, nailed one from the left corner to put Ohio State in front for good at 6663. The freshman made another from the same spot with 4:27 remaining to extend the Buckeyes’ advantage to 69-65.

“It was a great feeling for my teammates to trust me in a tight situation,” said Brown, who had a seasonhigh nine points.

Tyger Campbell’s free throw pulled UCLA within 73-68 with 2:46 left, and neither team scored again until Washington’s free throws with 51 seconds left made it a three-possession game. Neither team led by more than six up to that point.

CJ Walker had 10 points and four assists for Ohio State, which shot 50 percent from the field. The Buckeyes led 39-38 at halftime behind seven points apiece from Liddell and junior Musa Jallow.

“We certainly weren’t perfect, but we got better efficiency from our backcourt tonight,” Holtmann said.

Pac-12 assist leader Campbell had a game-high five but missed nine of his 10 field goal attempts.

Ohio State was initially scheduled to play No. 22 North Carolina, while UCLA was paired up with Kentucky. The matchups were changed Wednesday by promoter Intersport to align the opponents with the most similar COVID-19 testing protocols.

Stanford 78, Arizona 75:

Oscar da Silva scored 21 points and Stanford beat Arizona at Kaiser Permanente Arena in Santa Cruz to snap a 20-game losing streak against the Wildcats. The Cardinal (4-2, 1-0 Pac-12) beat Arizona (5-1, 0-1) for the first time since Jan. 4, 2009, snapping the nation’s fourth-longest active losing streak against a conference foe.

Cal 87, Cal State Northridge 56: Makale Foreman scored 23 points — 11 in a 90-second span in the first half — Ryan Betley scored 19 and California (4-4) beat Cal State Northridge (3-3).

Oregon 80, Portland 41:

Chris Duarte scored 21 points, LJ Figueroa added 15 and Oregon (6-1) walloped visiting Portland on Saturday, winning its sixth straight game after a season-opening loss. Portland (5-2) had been averaging nearly 82 points a game.

Saint Mary’s 53, Colorado State 33: Tommy Kuhse had 14 points and six assists as Saint Mary’s won its eighth consecutive game after an opening loss, romping past Colorado State (2-1).

UC Santa Barbara 75, Pepperdine 63: Jaquori Mclaughlin had 23 points as host UC Santa Barbara (4-1) beat Pepperdine (4-4). Ajare Sanni had 16 points for UC Santa Barbara (4-1).

Fresno State 78, Fresno Pacific 65: Orlando Robinson had 14 points and 11 rebounds to carry Fresno State (2-0) to a win over visiting Fresno Pacific.

Loyola Marymount 76, Cal Poly 52: Dameane Douglas and Eli Scott each scored 16 points as host LMU (5-3) cruised past Cal Poly (2-4).