Jabari Bird powers Cal to 75-63 win over UCLA

During Cal practices, head coach Cuonzo Martin makes sure a certain portion of his offense flows through guard Jabari Bird.

[...] perhaps it’s no surprise that Bird’s emergence has coincided with Cal’s six-game winning streak.

In Thursday night’s 75-63 victory over UCLA, the former McDonald’s All-American again powered the Bears through crucial stretches.

A number of factors are helping the Bears play their best basketball of the season: stingy defense, precise passing and a growing understanding of each others’ roles.

After the Bruins trimmed their deficit to four points with a little more than six minutes left, Cal returned to its inside-out fundamentals.

“They are perimeter-oriented with Wallace driving the basketball and guys all over outside always ready to make shots,” Bruins head coach Steve Alford said.

After making its first field goal nearly five minutes into the game, UCLA (15-13, 6-9) switched to a zone defense and trimmed its deficit to five points.

With less than two weeks until the Pac-12 tournament, they are well-positioned for a first-round bye.