The UCLA men’s basketball team failed to advance past the first weekend of the NCAA tournament for a second consecutive season, losing 73-57 to Connecticut in a second-round contest Sunday at Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia.

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Missed opportunities

The Huskies made eight of their last 10 first-half shots to take a 38-33 lead into halftime.

The Bruins failed to take advantage of a quick start, including a six-point lead midway through the half. UCLA was hurt by giving up six 3-pointers and turning the ball over seven times through the opening 20 minutes.

The Bruins quickly scored the first six points of the second half to pull back in front. Again, though, UConn used a 14-0 run to open up a 56-44 lead — the largest of the game to that point — before the midway point of the second half.

Scoring lull

It was always going to be an uphill battle for UCLA without leading scorer Tyler Bilodeau, who missed the NCAA tournament with a right knee injury suffered in the Big Ten tournament.

During the decisive Huskies run, the Bruins went scoreless for 5 1/2 minutes and more than six minutes between made shots from field.

UCLA wing Eric Dailey Jr. did his best to fill the void. He had all but two of his 12 points in the second half to lead the last charge, including a 3-pointer and a traditional three-point play during a spurt to help trim the deficit to 56-52 with 8:11 left.

No answer for Karaban’s career night

UConn forward Alex Karaban scored 16 of his career-high 27 points in the second half. He was 9 of 16 from the field including 4 of 8 on 3-point attempts.

UCLA guards Donovan Dent and Trent Perry both struggled with their shot. The duo combined to shoot 4 of 17 from the field, and Dent had 11 of the 16 points between the two players.

As a team, the Bruins shot 39% (19 of 49) from the field and just 5 of 13 on 3-point attempts.

Stay tuned to Bruin Report Online for a more detailed review and analysis.