SoCal NCAA Capsule

LOS ANGELES (Ticker) -- Kevin Love helped show why UCLA is still the king in the Pac-10 Conference. The freshman center scored a season-high 27 points and grabbed 14 rebounds as the fifth-ranked Bruins handed No. 4 Washington State its first loss, holding off a long-range rally for an 81-74 victory on Saturday.

Darren Collison scored 18 points and Josh Shipp added 14 for UCLA (16-1, 4-0 Pac-10), which continued its lopsided history against Washington State at Pauley Pavilion, winning for the 51st time in 52 meetings. With two of the Cougars' key players hampered by foul issues in the first half, the Bruins raced out to a 24-8 start before settling for a 35-22 halftime advantage.

Although Washington State was able to come alive at the end of the first half, it quickly fell back into a deep hole after Love hit a 3-pointer for an 18-point lead just three minutes after intermission. That would end up being the biggest lead for UCLA, which still led by 13 points with 3:21 remaining before Washington State went crazy from the 3-point arc.

The Cougars (14-1, 2-1), who were off to their best start in 91 years, closed within 77-74 with 16 seconds to play after Daven Harmeling hit a 3-pointer - the seventh consecutive basket from the arc for Washington State. Love, who finished 7-of-10 on free throws, made two from the stripe with 13 seconds to play and, after the Cougars missed from the arc, Shipp hit a layup after racing up the court following a rebound.