LOS ANGELES -- Both No. 25 Cincinnati and UCLA came into Saturday's game at Pauley Pavilion understanding the importance of turnovers.

Just how important became clear from the final stat line following the Bearcats' 77-63 road victory.

"They beat us by 14 (points)," UCLA head coach Steve Alford said. "They beat us by 12 on (points off of) turnovers."

A 23-11 edge in points off turnovers, eight of which came in an 18-0 run in the first half, made the difference for Cincinnati (9-2).

"We used our defense to lead our offense," said Cincinnati forward Kyle Washington. "This is what our program is based on. Our defense makes our offense go."

In addition to turning takeaways into points, the Bearcats also shot well from 3-point range -- particularly over a longer, 21-3 run that gave Cincinnati a double-digit-point cushion. The Bearcats made 3-pointers on three consecutive possessions during the run.

Guard Jacob Evans made 4 of 6 from behind the arc for the game en route to 16 points. His first basket inside the line was critical, coming on a put-back with 5:53 remaining to quiet the home crowd amid a UCLA rally effort.

"We really can't play much better than this on the road," said Cincinnati head coach Mick Cronin. "Once they tried to make their run, I was really proud how we didn't panic and how we used the clock to control the game."

Evans' outside touch and the interior presence of Washington, who scored a game-high 19 points, led Cincinnati. The Bearcats also got 10 points apiece from guard Jarron Cumberland and forward Gary Clark.

UCLA (7-3) went 6:26 without a point during Cincinnati's decisive run. The drought ended on a pair of Alex Olesinski free throws with 17.7 seconds remaining before halftime. The Bruins went 7:40 without scoring a field goal, a drought guard Aaron Holiday ended with a twirling layup early in the second half.

Cincinnati's defense forced 15 of UCLA's 18 turnovers in the first half, employing both full-court pressure and traps in the half court.

Washington said the pressure was designed to exploit UCLA's limited rotation, which remains without suspended freshmen Cody Riley and Jalen Hill.

The Bruins expected as much from the Bearcats.

"Before the game, we talked about that: They force teams to turnover with the pressure they bring," said UCLA guard Kris Wilkes. "We went into the game with the mindset we wouldn't let that happen. Unfortunately, it happened."

The Bearcats held UCLA center Thomas Welsh -- the Bruins' second-leading scorer at 13.7 points per game -- without a first-half point on just two field-goal attempts. His first points came on a hook shot with 15:01 remaining.

"They played Tom well down low," Holiday said. "I was trying to get him involved. Those were a lot of my turnovers, trying to pass it to him."

The Bearcats challenged Welsh with frequent double-teams, swarming the post even before entry passes came in. Alford said that forced Welsh to rush open looks in the second half, as the center finished with just four points on 2 of 7 shooting.

Cincinnati's lead swelled to 19 points twice in the second half before a 21-12 UCLA run trimmed the deficit to 10 points. Holiday and guard Jaylen Hands led the Bruins with 17 and 14 points, respectively, on an afternoon the team shot just 41.1 percent from the floor. Wilkes added 12 points.

NOTES: UCLA's 23 first-half points were a season-low for the Bruins. ... Cincinnati forced 18 turnovers, 15 more than when the two teams played last March in the NCAA Tournament. ... The two teams finished deadlocked in rebounds with 10 apiece on the offensive end, and 35 in total. Cincinnati came in with a plus-9.2 per game rebounding margin on the season, and UCLA with a plus-7.2 per game margin.