Two days after a spirited victory over Arizona, the Bruins experienced a debacle in the desert during an 88-79 loss to Arizona State at Wells Fargo Arena.
A triumph over the Sun Devils plus a USC victory over Arizona later in the day would have given the Bruins a share of the lead in the Pac-12 standings while holding the tiebreaker.
UCLA had to settle for something closer to a heartbreaker given the opportunity for a breakthrough, though the outcome was hardly in doubt in the final minutes.
Bruins guard Aaron Holiday was having such a dreadful game that coach Steve Alford subbed him out for nearly two minutes with 10 minutes left and his team down by 10 points.