Love, not Mayo, leaves us wanting more

As one Southland freshman ended his final fade, the other one began his final bloom.

As one Southland freshman waved a desultory good-bye, the other one grabbed us in a sweaty embrace.

On a night when the brief O.J. Mayo era ended in an Omaha stun, the final days of the brief Kevin Love era began with an Anaheim swat.

And another one. And another one.

Three blocked shots in the first three minutes, and he was just getting started, the kid using March to show us how he has become a man.

UCLA’s 70-29 victory over Mississippi Valley State at the Honda Center was boring to some, but the bomb for Love, who treated his first NCAA tournament game like a toddler treats his first recognizable birthday cake.

He dug into it with both hands, made it all messy and sticky and wonderful.

“The atmosphere was different, you could sense there’s a lot more on the line,” Love said. “I like that.”

Five days removed from painful back spasms, he didn’t need to play, but he did.

“I wanted to test it,” he said. “I was fine.”

Two days removed from the Bruins’ first tough tourney test against Texas A&M; on Saturday, he could have left something on the court, but he didn’t.

“He never gives less than everything,” said teammate Darren Collison.

Love not only played, he played full court, he played full speed, he played full blown.

“No mercy,” said Love.

While Mayo’s USC team wilted on his shoulders in a first-round loss to Kansas State, Love’s UCLA team jumped around his shoulders in a first-round victory both historic and hysterical.

With Love’s four blocks setting the pace, the Bruins held the Delta Devils to the lowest NCAA tournament scoring total in 62 years, and the lowest since the shot clock was instituted in 1985.

“When your big man comes out and plays that hard, it’s contagious,” said James Keefe.

With Love’s 20 points in 21 minutes filling the gym, the Bruins’ 41-point victory margin was their biggest tourney blowout in 41 years.

“It doesn’t matter who we’re playing, he always brings his ‘A’ game,” said Josh Shipp.

Then there was the hysterical, that being a creative Mississippi Valley State shot that became stuck high in the metal rods behind the basket.

“That’s a difficult play, but we worked on that,” said Delta Devils Coach James Green humorously.

One of the officials attempted to knock the ball free with another ball. After three failed attempts, amid thousands of boos, Kevin Love stepped up.

“Can I try?” he said.

On his second attempt, he threw one of his outlet passes straight up, connected with the other ball, and knocked it high into space.

The fans roared. Love chuckled and shook the referee’s hand.

“The ref said, ‘You’re not trying to show me up, are you?’ ” recalled Love. “I said, ‘No, sir.’ ”

Not that he didn’t impress the Delta Devils with other things, like a trio of three-pointers, or nine rebounds, or two assists, or one steal, all in barely half the game.

“Oh man, for a freshman, he’s got an outside game,” said adoring Devils forward Eric Petty. “To be that big inside, I mean, man, he’s going to be great. I know that, he’s going to be great.”

Both of the city’s freshmen are probably going to be great one day, but both will be remembered for the different ways they have started their journey.

In the 80-67 loss to the lower-seeded Wildcats, Mayo didn’t embarrass himself. But, as usual, he also didn’t make much of a difference.

He made six of 16 shots, scored 20 points, grabbed just two defensive rebounds, no offensive rebounds.

He will leave USC pretty much as he found it, the Trojans failing again to make a dent in March, their kids not much better for having stood around and watched him play.

Meanwhile, at this rate, Love could leave UCLA as an instant legend, a brief but brilliant light whose glow will remain forever.

“It was fun today, and if we keep playing like this, it will be a lot more fun,” Love said.

There’s a lesson in this for those high school stars who plan on grudgingly spending only one season in college because of the NBA rule that requires it.

Spend that season with a team that is more experienced than you.

Spend that season with a team that already knows how to win.

If they need you to teach them, you don’t need to be there. If they need you to be a cornerstone, you need to search for another foundation.

Mayo was in a tough spot at USC, forced to carry a team while he was learning the game himself.

He was a better Trojan than anyone ever imagined, always giving credit to his teammates with passes and post-game praise, never hogging the spotlight or the ball.

But in the end, the surroundings were too raw, the task was too great, and his impact was but a flick.

Love, on the other hand, is leaving the impact of a flame.

He is in a perfect spot, allowed to be a freshman on a team that thinks and works like a bunch of seniors.

He doesn’t have to be the emotional or game leader, he only has to be himself. And as his brief career here sprints and dives and fights to an end, he has become an absolute blast.

O.J. Mayo, we hardly knew you.

Kevin Love, we can’t wait to know more.