In the chaos of March Madness, it’s often the seemingly minor mistakes that stand out. For UCF center John Bol, however, a particular blunder was anything but minor—he accidentally scored a basket for the other team.
During a first-half play in the game between No. 7 UCLA and No. 10 UCF, Bol inadvertently shoved a rebound through his own hoop, contributing to UCLA’s 75-71 victory at the Wells Fargo Center.
With just under two minutes remaining before halftime, UCLA guard Donovan Dent took a risky three-point shot that missed. Instead of redirecting the rebound, Bol, unfortunately, directed the ball into his own basket, which pushed UCLA’s lead to 35-21.
It’s worth noting that UCLA players were not credited for the points from Bol’s mistake.
That night was tough for Bol overall; he went 0-5 from the free-throw line, using an unusual shooting technique. Ultimately, he managed just two points, which weren’t exactly helpful for his team.
Interestingly, Bol’s mishap wasn’t the only odd occurrence in the game—UCLA guard Skye Clark lost a tooth during the match.
Despite UCF making a late push and narrowing the gap from the double-digit deficit in the first half, they couldn’t finish the comeback, making Bol’s error all the more significant.
Jordan Burks led UCF with 22 points and six rebounds. Additional contributors included Jamecha Stillwell and Temas Foulkes, both with 10 points, and Riley Kugel, bringing in 13.
UCLA was led by Eric Daley Jr., who scored 20 points and grabbed five rebounds, while Trent Perry and Xavier Booker each added 15 points.
Next, UCLA is set to face second-seeded UConn in the Round of 32 on Sunday evening.
