Nearly five minutes had elapsed in the second half when Lazar Stefanovic took a pass from Skyy Clark in the corner and rose for a three-pointer that extended UCLA’s massive lead in its season opener.
Having barely played to that point, it was Stefanovic’s first shot of the game.
Perhaps nothing better illustrated the Bruins’ offseason makeover than the mainstay from a year ago being relegated to a bit player as part of this new ensemble cast.
Stefanovic didn’t need to play a starring role given the abundance of talent around him. Kobe Johnson, who took his spot in the starting lineup, was a two-way force with his scoring, passing and active defense. Tyler Bilodeau showed his dazzling offensive skill set with 10 points in a five-minute flash to start the second half. William Kyle III got the crowd going with three blocks.
It was a pleasurable introduction for a new and vastly improved team Monday night at Pauley Pavilion, No. 22 UCLA rolling to an 85-50 victory over Rider.
A year after his team struggled to score, Bruins coach Mick Cronin watched several newcomers have little trouble putting the ball in the basket. Bilodeau scored 10 of his 18 points in the second half to lead four players in double-figure scoring. Johnson added 12 points after repeatedly driving for layups, Dylan Andrews made two three-pointers on the way to 14 points and Sebastian Mack added 12 points to go with his trademark grit off the bench.
Stefanovic contributed six points in his 17 minutes, making two three-pointers.
The challenge facing Rider was evident in the opening minutes. Bilodeau stole a pass on the Broncs’ second possession, leading to an Eric Dailey Jr. driving layup for the game’s first points. After the Bruins picked up full-court defensively, Johnson and Andrews eventually trapped Tyriek Weeks, leading to a Johnson steal and another Dailey layup.
Rider forward Tariq Ingraham then threw a cross-court pass out of bounds and Clark soon came up with a steal in the backcourt. Less than four minutes into the game, the Broncs had four turnovers and were trailing 10-3.
UCLA forced 11 of Rider’s 14 turnovers in the first half on the way to a 41-23 advantage.
T.J. Weeks Jr. scored 15 points to lead Rider, which shot just 32.3% but somewhat offset its inaccuracy with 18 offensive rebounds leading to 13 second-chance points.
Part of that might have been attributable to Cronin going with his small starting lineup that featured Bilodeau and Dailey as the big men — big, in this case, being relative since they are 6-feet-9 and 6-8, respectively — alongside guards Andrews, Clark and Johnson.
Cronin supersized his lineup later in the half when Aday Mara, a 7-3 sophomore, entered the game and quickly made his gargantuan presence felt. The center blocked two shots — including a mid-range jumper — and was a favorite target of teammates for passes in the paint. Mack found Mara for a dunk and Johnson drove and dished to Mara, leading to a foul on the Broncs as Mara went up for a shot.
One player who did not get into the game until UCLA was ahead by 25 points was Dominick Harris, a transfer from Loyola Marymount who was expected to add three-point shooting after ranking No. 3 in the nation last season by making 44.8% of his shots from long range.
Harris missed his only three-pointer Monday but grabbed four rebounds and played fairly active defense in his seven minutes.
A stickler for defense, Cronin had yelled at Harris and threatened to throw him out of a recent practice that was open to reporters because the guard was not executing traps to the coach’s liking. Harris has nearly a full season to get back in his coach’s good graces.
