BAY-JA VU FOR UCLA BRUINS DO IT AGAIN, STUN NO. 1 STANFORD UCLA 79, STANFORD 73.

Byline: Billy Witz Staff Writer

STANFORD - The Prozac kids did it again.

The UCLA basketball team, a team whose mood swings are best explained on a psychiatrist's couch, once again struck a definition of unbelievable from Webster's.

Less than 48 hours after losing by 29 points to Cal, the Bruins had this hearty response: a 79-73 victory Saturday over undefeated and No.T1-ranked Stanford that left a network TV audience and sellout crowd of 7,391 at Maples Pavilion in a state of disbelief.

The Stanford student section, supposedly filled by the nation's most brilliant minds, was so dumbstruck it serenaded Lavin with chants of ``Rick Pi-tino'' after the game.

Just how could a team that beat Duke, won in Tucson, walloped Cal and had just two wins by fewer than double digits, lose to UCLA?

Well, then how could Billy Knight, buried on the bench, score a career- high 22 points, including a huge free throw in the final minute?

``This team is unbelievable,'' said UCLA captain Earl Watson, chuckling and shaking his head. ``We lose by 30 and then beat the No. 1 team in the country. Who knows why?

``I'm a perfectionist,'' said Watson, who scored 20 with six assists. ``I'm always trying to analyze things and figure out why we're doing this or doing that. Sometimes I'm confused. To tell you the truth, I'm tired of trying to think about it.''

Here's something else to ponder: At the halfway point of the Pac-10 season, UCLA (13-6, 7-2) is tied for second place with Arizona, a game behind Stanford (20-1, 8-1). And both teams, along with third-place Cal, still must come to Pauley Pavilion.

If the Bruins do win the Pac-10 title, they'll be fitted with mood rings. In the past two seasons, they've lost to Colorado State and Cal State Northridge, and beaten the No. 1 team in the nation twice at Maples.

``I don't understand them,'' Stanford forward Ryan Mendez said of the Bruins. ``They have the talent to play with the best teams in the country and sometimes they play with the worst.''

On Saturday, the Bruins were clearly the better team on the court. Their superior speed and quickness were factors at both ends of the court and they survived a rare poor shooting day from Casey Jacobsen.

Jacobsen led the Cardinal with 17 points, but the sophomore, who was shooting 49.8 from the field this season, made just 4 of 18 shots.

UCLA took control of the game when it went to a small linep midway through the first half and Stanford ahead 19-17.

With Dan Gadzuric on the bench with two fouls, the Bruins put four wing players - from a group including Ryan Bailey, Ray Young, Jason Kapono, Knight and Watson - with either T.J. Cummings or Matt Barnes.

The Bruins were able to increase the tempo and also took advantage of Stanford's man defense, which had 6-foot-10 Jarron Collins trying to guard Kapono.

Kapono hit two long 3-pointers and drove past Collins for another basket in a 15-4 run that put the Bruins ahead for good, 32-23.

Stanford, down 52-43, roared back with a 10-0 run behind Jacobsen's only two 3-pointers, to lead 53-52 with 11:53 left. When Collins' dunk put the Cardinal ahead, Maples was roaring as UCLA took a timeout.

But the Bruins tied the score and answered with an 11-0 run of their own in which Watson's presence loomed large.

He beat Tony Giovacchini off the dribble to draw a foul and made both free throws to put UCLA ahead for good. He then took an inbounds pass and alertly fired a pass half the length of the court to Kapono, who sank a quick 3-pointer against the napping Stanford defense.

Finally, he stole the ball from Giovacchini at midcourt and threw in an acrobatic reverse layup while being fouled by Collins. Watson, who took a knee in the back from Collins, lay on the court momentarily before getting up to make the free throw.

While the Bruins, with few exceptions, played with uncommon poise on offense, their defense unnerved the Cardinal.

The Bruins forced just 16 turnovers, but the Cardinal's rhythm was disrupted by UCLA's fullcourt press. By the time Stanford got into its offensive sets there were often 20 to 25 seconds on the shot clock.

It resulted in the Cardinal shooting just 42.9 percent from the field - their second-worst percentage this season.

``The truth of the matter is they got us playing at a pace we couldn't play at,'' Stanford coach Mike Montgomery said. ``That's why we shot the ball so poorly. They had us taking shots while we were leaning or running full blast.''

Stanford, which trailed 70-59 with 4:43 left, closed within 74-71 with 48 seconds left on Michael McDonald's in-and-out-and-back-in 3-pointer.

But the Cardinal fouled Knight, who made one of two free throws, and then Jacobsen's long 3-pointer barely clipped the rim. The rebound was knocked out of bounds by Stanford and Watson made another free throw to put UCLA ahead by five.

When the game was over, the giddy Bruins ran to midcourt and embraced each other briefly.

This was far from last season's wild celebration here that started with a dogpile moments after JaRon Rush's game-winning shot.

``Last year was so emotional,'' said Watson, whose boyhood friend Rush had just returned from a two-month NCAA suspension. ``I didn't even feel any joy today. I'm trying to put myself in that mindset, but I'm numb.''

CAPTION(S):

2 photos

Photo: (1 -- color) UCLA's Matt Barnes, left, and Jason Kapono converge on Stanford's Jason Collins during the Bruins' win over the Cardinal.

Paul Sakuma/Associated Press

(2) Billy Knight of UCLA tries to get past Casey Jacobsen during the Bruins' 79-73 upset of previously undefeated Stanford.

Paul Sakuma/Associated Press