The Cougars couldn’t hold on down the stretch and came up empty against UCLA.

WSU (12-16, 6-10 Pac-12) held the lead for the majority of the first half and through the first eight minutes of the second, but they couldn’t sustain it as UCLA (18-12, 10-7 Pac-12) came back to defeat the Cougars 72-67. Sophomore forward Josh Hawkinson led the Cougars with 21 points. Hawkinson also added 14 rebounds – his 18th double-double of the season, which moved him into sole possession of the school’s single-season record.

UCLA’s senior guard Norman Powell scored a career-high 28 points on 10-17 shooting. The Bruins shot 44 percent from the field and capitalized on the Cougars’ inability to take care of the basketball, as they had 16 turnovers. Junior forward Tony Parker dominated down low, grabbing 10 rebounds, including several big offensive boards down the stretch.

Senior guard DaVonté Lacy scored 19 points for WSU, but his biggest highlight came with 3:59 to play when he passed Cougar icon Klay Thompson’s career three-point field goal record (243). He also had five rebounds and five assists. Sophomore guard Ike Iroegbu led the Cougars with seven assists and 10 points.

The Cougars played a solid first half, but they did commit 10 turnovers that led to eight UCLA points. Hawkinson played exceptionally well in the first half, scoring 11 points and grabbing seven rebounds on his way to the double-double. Lacy added nine points in the half on 4-7 shooting.

Powell led UCLA with 12 points on 5-7 shooting from the field. The Cougars held the Bruins to a 45 percent shooting clip while beating them on the glass 19-13.

The Cougars kept up their pace at the beginning of the second half. Lacy tied the school record for most three point field goals made in a career (242) at the 15:31 mark of the second half. The three put the Cougars up 41-36.

However, the Bruins took the lead for the first time in the half with 11:41 to go and they never looked back. The score was 62-59 with just over 1:30 left in the game when Powell hit a clutch three that ended up being the dagger in the game. The Cougars played from four or five points down for the majority of their time trailing.

WSU will return home for one final two-game home stand in the regular season. They’ll host No. 13 Utah on Thursday night.

Reporting by William Cheshier