Arizona guard James Akinjo (13) manages to keep control from the lunge of UCLA guard Tyger Campbell (10) in the second half of their Pac 12 basketball game at McKale Center, Tucson, Ariz., January 9, 2021.

 Kelly Presnell / Arizona Daily Star

Seen and heard from Arizona’s 81-76 loss to UCLA Saturday night at McKale Center: 

Tyger King

The shortest player on either team, and the only sub-6-foot player on both rosters, UCLA sophomore guard Tyger Campbell led the Bruins in scoring in the first half. He scored 14 points on 5 of 6 shooting.

Campbell, who is known for his mane-like hair, finished the night with a season-high 22 points.

Campbell is 3-0 against Arizona when he’s healthy and plays.

The big number

25

James Akinjo scored 25 points on Saturday, tying his career-high from his freshman season at Georgetown.

Ex-Wildcat T.J. McConnell welcomes first child

Former UA point guard T.J. McConnell missed the Indiana Pacers’ game on Saturday night against the Phoenix Suns due to personal reasons because his wife, Valerie, gave birth to a baby boy.

The name of baby McConnell is unknown, but it appears Sean Miller has a potential prospect for the 2039 recruiting class.

McConnell is in the final season of his two-year, $7 million contract with the Pacers, and is averaging 3.6 points and 4.4 assists per game.

UCLA just did it

Arizona guard James Akinjo (13) gets only a handful of hair and the foul while trying to stop UCLA guard Tyger Campbell's (10) baseline runner in the first half of their Pac 12 basketball game at McKale Center, Tucson, Ariz., January 9, 2021.

In recent years, UCLA either embraced the three-stripe lifestyle with Adidas or Under Armour. Saturday, the Bruins — who recently signed a contract with Jumpman — entered McKale Center with swooshes on their gear. Sophomore guard Jake Kyman donned the re-released purple and gold Kobe “5 Rings” 5s.

After Under Armour terminated its $280 million deal with UCLA, the Bruins reached a six-year agreement with Jordan Brand, the first major move for new athletic director Martin Jarmond.

UCLA is the only school in the Pac-12 to be sponsored by the Nike offshoot.

Bill's back in McKale (sorta)

ESPN color man Bill Walton, left, and play-by-play announcer Dave Pasch call the first half in wigs as Arizona goes up against UCLA in the first half of their Pac-12 game at McKale Center, February 8, 2020 Tucson, Ariz.

For the second time this season, Arizona played on the ESPN family of networks. Thursday’s 14-point loss to USC was on ESPN2, while Saturday’s contest was on ESPN with Roxy Bernstein as the play-by-play announcer and, you guessed it, Bill Walton.

Walton, whose son Luke played at Arizona under the late Lute Olson, shared a personal message for the coaching icon, who died in August, coming out of the first media timeout.

“No one has been more like John Wooden on and off the court than Lute Olson. Lute Olson was the 21st century version of John Wooden. He’s a pillar of the community and he brought water to the desert,” Walton said. “He was the reason this program is what it is today. He laid the foundation.”

Kentucky transfers

Arizona guard Jemarl Baker Jr. (3) wraps up UCLA guard Jules Bernard (1) trying to get to a pass in the first half of their Pac 12 basketball game at McKale Center, Tucson, Ariz., January 9, 2021.

Although they weren’t teammates and missed each other by a season, Saturday’s game featured a pair of Kentucky transfers — one on each team: Jemarl Baker (Arizona) and Johnny Juzang (UCLA).

Baker transferred from Kentucky to Arizona following two seasons with the Wildcats in 2019, while Juzang was a one-and-done before bolting for Westwood. Baker ended the night four points on 2 of 7 shooting from the field and 0 for 4 from 3-point range, while Juzang was second on the team in scoring with 16 points.

Miller revealed after the game that Baker missed most of the second half with a hand injury.

The last time

As pointed out by Bernstein on ESPN, the last time UA and Arizona State were swept by the L.A. schools at home was when the Wildcats and Sun Devils first joined the Pac-10 in 1978.

The previous time Arizona lost four straight to the Bruins was UCLA’s eight-game winning streak between 2006-09.

He said it

“I need two vaccines: one for COVID and one for the forces of evil.” — Walton

Another big number

46

Combined points Arizona freshman forward Azuolas Tubelis scored against the L.A. schools. Along with his 16 rebounds, Tubelis could be in contention to win Pac-12 Freshman of the Week. Arizona's Bennedict Mathurin won the award following the Wildcats’ trip to Washington last week.

— Justin Spears

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Contact sports content producer Justin Spears at 573-4312 or jspears@tucson.com. On Twitter @justinesports