BRUINS HAVE A SWEET TIME WATSON BLOWS AWAY MARYLAND UCLA 105, MARYLAND 70.

Byline: Jon Wilner Staff Writer

MINNEAPOLIS - A month ago, UCLA lost at Arizona State by 29 points. Two weeks ago, the Bruins were on the brink of NCAA Tournament elimination. Nine days ago, they squeaked past Washington State, the worst team in the Pacific-10.

Today, they're in the Sweet 16 - and playing like a national championship contender.

``It's just incredible,'' Bruins forward Rico Hines said. ``That's the only word I can think of. It's incredible how we've responded the last month. People thought we had given up. Instead, we did some soul- searching. We knew we were better than we showed in Arizona, and we've come out and proven it. Now, we feel like we're unstoppable.''

They'll get no argument from third-seeded Maryland, which watched helplessly as the Bruins rolled to a 105-70 second-round victory Saturday before 26,358 in the Metrodome - a victory as stunning as it was devastating.

No. 6 UCLA will play No. 2 Iowa State on Thursday in the Midwest Sweet 16 at The Palace of Auburn Hills (Mich.).

``I don't know if anyone could beat UCLA tonight,'' Maryland forward Terence Morris said. ``It would be pretty tough.''

Not only was Bruins point guard Earl Watson the best player on the floor, he was perfect: no turnovers, four steals and a school-record 16 assists. He also made four consecutive 3-pointers in a surreal two-minute stretch early in the second half, pushing UCLA's 16-point halftime lead to 30.

``I knew coming into the game that I couldn't turn the ball over,'' Watson said. ``I had six turnovers against Ball State. I came out more conservative, more solid, and it allowed me to focus more.''

The Bruins (21-11) were awesome in the final 30 minutes against Cal and brilliant in the season finale against Washington. But they haven't played this well in the tournament since the 1995 championship charge, when Ed O'Bannon's team smashed Mississippi State by 19 points in the Sweet 16.

Not even the 1997 Bruins, who won the Pac-10 title and came within eight points of the Final Four, put on a show like this. And that team wasn't flirting with tournament elimination on March 1.

``It's crazy,'' forward Jason Kapono said. ``In the middle of the Pac-10 season, people were counting us out. They said we were pansies and we didn't work hard. But we've proven them wrong. We're in the Sweet 16.''

Everything worked for UCLA, which has won eight consecutive games. Big men Jerome Moiso and Dan Gadzuric combined to make 12 of 14 shots, score 27 points and grab 15 rebounds. Wing men JaRon Rush and Kapono made five 3-pointers and scored 25 points. The Bruins shot 72.4 percent in the first half and 62.5 percent for the game. They had 28 assists. Gadzuric made his free throws. Even slumping shooter Ray Young buried a 3-pointer.

``Tonight was a breakthrough game,'' Bruins coach Steve Lavin said. ``I thought our halfcourt offense was as sharp as it's been all year.''

This was the antithesis of the matchup in Puerto Rico in Nov. '98, when the high-flying Terps thrashed timid, grounded UCLA. Saturday, the Bruins did the dunking, with four alley-oops in the first half.

``I think the lobs and dunks mentally take away from the other team's rhythm,'' Watson said. ``They've been there all year, and I've been throwing them all year. It's really nothing new. They just got completed.''

UCLA broke the game open with a 15-2 surge to close the first half. It started when Matt Barnes tipped home a Rush miss. A Maryland turnover became Gadzuric's double-pump layup. Instead of calling timeout, the Terps played on, and Taj Holden missed an ill-advised jumper. Before Maryland crossed midcourt, Watson found Rush for an alley-oop. Suddenly, the three-point lead had expanded to 40-31, and the Terps frantically called timeout.

``UCLA was really sharp,'' Terps coach Gary Williams said. ``They looked quicker tonight than they ever did on tape.''

The timeout did no good. Maryland committed two consecutive turnovers, and with 2:22 left Gadzuric kissed a difficult turnaround off the backboard. The lead was 42-33.

Morris' nifty baseline drive slowed the Bruins' momentum for all of one minute. Then Moiso scored from the low post and Watson hit Rush with yet another alley-oop. A few seconds later, Watson stole the ball from Morris and found Young in the corner for a 3-pointer. His swish gave the Bruins a 49-33 halftime lead.

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photo, chart

Photo: (color) UCLA's Earl Watson, who had a school-record 16 assists, dunks for two of his 17 points.

Associated Press

Chart: GAME RECAP/UCLA 105, MARYLAND 70