If this is as bad as it gets for Lonzo Ball and TJ Leaf, they might look back on it like world-class marathoners who stepped on a few wayward water cups in Mile 17.
Oh, yeah. They remember that. Barely.
The UCLA freshmen who maintained such a frenzied pace to start their college careers finally stumbled a bit recently.
Leaf grabbed a season-low three rebounds while being manhandled by Arizona’s Lauri Markkanen and then scored a season-low eight points four days later while struggling against USC’s four-guard lineup. Ball logged a season-worst seven turnovers against the Trojans while being the focal point of a pesky 2-3 zone defense.