UCLA vs. Kentucky: Score and Twitter Reaction

The UCLA Bruins continued their rapid ascent up the college basketball rankings with a 97-92 victory over the top-ranked Kentucky Wildcats at Rupp Arena. 

Per ESPN, Kentucky probably has a bad case of deja vu:

The key difference is last year's win didn't do anything for the Bruins, who finished a disappointing 15-17 and missed the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2012. Saturday's win marks their ninth of the season already. 

UCLA secured its biggest win of the young season thanks to a balanced offensive attack, with six players, including all five starters, scoring in double figures. TJ Leaf led the way with a 17-point, 13-rebound double-double. 

The magnitude of UCLA's win was not lost on point guard Bryce Alford or his father, head coach Steve Alford, per Ben Bolch of the Los Angeles Times:

The loss marks Kentucky's first of the season and its first home defeat since February 27, 2014, against Arkansas, a span of 42 games.

UCLA Basketball tweeted highlights from the game:

The Bruins nearly let the win slip out of their hands. They took a 60-47 lead thanks to an 11-2 run to open the second half, leaving Kentucky with a steep mountain to climb. UCLA is not a good defensive team, ranked 210th in scoring defense entering Saturday, per Sports-Reference.com. 

That inability to get stops nearly cost UCLA, even though the Bruins still had a nine-point lead with less than two minutes to play. Derek Willis cut the deficit to 95-92 with eight seconds remaining after nailing a three-pointer. 

Kentucky immediately fouled Alford on the inbounds play, and he hit both of his free throws to secure the win for UCLA. 

Per Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports, UCLA's offensive output was uncharted territory for the Wildcats since John Calipari took over as head coach in 2009:

In case anyone wants to start feeling sorry for Calipari or Kentucky, Not Jerry Tipton offered this stat to remind you why this has been college basketball's best program over the last seven years:

Bruins fans were calling for Alford to be fired by flying a banner over the school's campus last March:

Fast-forward nine months: UCLA will leap into the top 10 of both rankings when they are released next week. 

The Bruins have their shortcomings, notably on defense, but Alford has built one of the best offensive units in the nation. That group stunned Kentucky on its own floor, nearly dropping 100 in 40 minutes. 

There are great teams around the country, including the usual suspects like Kentucky, Duke, Villanova, North Carolina and Kansas. UCLA has entered the conversation with those teams on the strength of its 9-0 start and impressive road win against the Wildcats. 

Postgame Reaction

Alford explained his team's approach heading into the game was not to wait for Kentucky's best shot. 

"I don't think there was anything about them today that was a feeling-out process," said Alford, per the Associated Press (via ESPN.com). "We talk about, 'Don't go in and jab around the ring to see if you belong. You're 8-0. You're playing well. Trust that you belong.' That was the key thing that guys did from the tip."

On the opposite side of the spectrum, Calipari wants his team to take this as a lesson moving forward.

"This is a lesson for us," Calipari said. "We didn't have the energy. I had to call a timeout a minute into the game. I mean, just wasn't the same team. There are great lessons out of this. I wish we would have come back and won. ... But sometimes you need to get hit on the chin, especially at home."