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It still isn’t quite a return to normalcy, but for this beleaguered Bruin bunch, it’s a start. “We’re all smiling again,” sophomore Ryan Walcott said after UCLA (1-2) disposed of Long Beach State 81-58 before 6,358 people at Pauley Pavilion Sunday to grab its first victory in a season feared to be headed southward fast. The Bruins played with an energy largely absent in their previous losses, pressing the 49ers (1-4) for a good part of the game, doling out 22 assists and out-rebounding the 49ers 44-21. Jason Kapono returned to his old self with 28 points and 7 rebounds. “We made a little bit of progress today on both ends of the floor,” UCLA head coach Steve Lavin said. Walcott’s return from a two-game NCAA-imposed suspension injected new life into the defense, which allowed a season low for points and provided UCLA with its largest margin of victory since the 2000-2001 season. Lavin, who had said that he was reluctant to utilize a full-court press without Walcott, brought him in midway through the first half. But his presence in transition truly came to the fore as the game wore on and the 49ers buckled under Bruin pressure. UCLA went on a 22-6 run to open the second half, with much of the firepower ignited by open-court steals. “One mistake tends to compile on another one,” LBSU head coach Larry Reynolds said. “I think we handled their pressure well until (point guard) Darnell (Thompson) got worn down and some other people had to make passes.” The win marked the first time this year that the Bruins have played against a team they truly outsized. LBSU’s tallest starter was 6 feet, 8 inches, yet UCLA continued to get second and third scoring chances. “We thought we had a good chance of beating them,” 49er guard Darnell Thompson said. “What killed us was their offensive rebounding.” Seven-foot freshman Michael Fey found his way into the starting lineup, as sophomore forward Dijon Thompson had been nursing an injured thumb all week. But Lavin took him out and opted for a smaller, three-guard set that featured Walcott, Cedric Bozeman and Ray Young. Fey’s size was hardly necessary to easily overmatch LBSU in the paint and on the glass. Lavin said he plans to use Walcott and Bozeman together in the backcourt while he continues to tweak lineups. “They give us two playmakers that can play at high speeds,” he said. “They definitely disrupt what teams want to do.” The Bruins’ last win outside of scrimmage was Mar. 17, over Cincinnati in the NCAA Tournament. UCLA opened the season with two exhibition losses and a pair of regular-season losses, making it the worst start in 41 years. “We felt like a different team out there,” freshman center Ryan Hollins said. The LBSU game begins the soft underbelly of the UCLA schedule. The Bruins host Portland and Northern Arizona in the coming weeks. “The kids were glad to be done with the month of November,” Lavin said. So were Pauley Pavilion fans, able for the first time in months to leave early with the Bruins on the good side of a blowout.

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