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UCLA surges in second half to defeat Kent State, 97-80

For more than 30 minutes Friday night, UCLA appeared in danger of a first this season: a bad loss.

The Bruins struggled mightily on defense against a heavy underdog, allowing Kent State to hang around until an amazing run of accuracy carried third-seeded UCLA to a 97-80 victory over the 14th-seeded Golden Flashes in an NCAA tournament first-round game at the Golden 1 Center.

The Bruins made 12 consecutive field goals and 13 of 14 starting midway through the second half, finally pulling away toward the end of the run after their lead had remained stuck in single digits because of their inabilty to get stops.