SAN JOSE, Calif. — UCLA coach Ben Howland would do almost anything for his good friend Jamie Dixon.
Almost anything.
But given that only one of them could advance into Saturday's West Regional final, the friendship took 40 minutes off.
And Howland turned his quicker, more talented Bruins loose on his former assistant coach, Dixon, and his former school, Pittsburgh.
The second-seeded Bruins (29-5) never trailed in methodically outplaying Pittsburgh on Thursday and winning 64-55 in front of a pro-UCLA crowd at the HP Pavilion.
GAME REPORT: UCLA 64, Pittsburgh 55
So it will be No. 1 vs. No. 2 in the regional final Saturday with the Bruins, national runners-up to Florida last year, taking on top seed Kansas.
"They're the hottest team in the country," Howland said of Kansas. "And they're as talented as anyone in the country. It will be a difficult challenge for us."
No. 3 seed Pitt (29-8) has been in the Sweet 16 in four of the last six years (two under Howland, two under Dixon) but has lost in the regional semifinals each time.
"It was emotional for me," Howland said of playing Pitt. "There were a lot of close friends here today. I hope we never have to play again, but we probably will at some point if we keep getting into the tournament."
Junior All-America guard Arron Afflalo shook off a poor game (2-for-11 shooting) in the Bruins' lackluster second-round victory against Indiana, getting UCLA going early and finishing with a game-high 17 points.
Sophomore swingman Josh Shipp also got back in the groove, rebounding from a 2-for-7 effort against Indiana with 16 points.
Pittsburgh center Aaron Gray, who was recruited by Howland to Pitt and has developed into a third-team All-American, scored 10 points, four below his average.
Part of that was because of a strong game by UCLA center Lorenzo Mata, who played active defense and contributed eight points and nine rebounds.
"He displayed a lot of mental toughness," Afflalo said of Mata. "And he produced on both ends of the court."
Afflalo, the Pacific-10 Conference player of the year, came into the game shooting 31.9% (15-for-47) in his previous four games.
But he fueled an efficient UCLA offense with 11 first-half points.
Gray had problems asserting himself offensively. Gray, a 7-foot senior, had a tap-in and dunk in the first 51/2 minutes, then didn't score again in the first half.
Pitt couldn't get anything going in the second half — five points in the first nine minutes — while Shipp sank two three-pointers as the Bruins took a 43-31 lead.
Gray and his teammates missed numerous inside shots early in the second half that might have made a difference.
"I can't remember another game that we missed that many layups and easy looks," Pitt forward Levon Kendall said.
Said Dixon, "We played extremely hard, but we didn't play as well as we have been playing."
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