For UCLA’s Skyy Clark, the price of an NCAA tourney win was a lost tooth
Clark lost his tooth after battling for a loose ball in the final minutes against Central Florida on Friday. A teammate retrieved his tooth, while Clark went back in the game to seal the win.
Skyy Clark returned Friday night to UCLA’s bench as half of his front tooth was still on the court in South Philadelphia after it was knocked out by an opponent’s elbow.
“They were like somebody has to get it, somebody has to get it,” said Jack Seidler.
So there went Seidler — a UCLA walk-on from Marlboro, N.J. — onto the court to retrieve his teammate’s tooth. He’ll do anything to help the team, Seidler cracked.
A few minutes later, UCLA had a 75-71 win over Central Florida to move to Sunday’s Round of 32. And Clark had his missing tooth.
“I’m going to put it under my pillow tonight,” said Clark, who flashed a bloody grin in the Bruins locker room that would make the Broad Street Bullies proud.
Clark lost the tooth with 2 minutes, 40 seconds left while battling for a loose ball. An errant elbow from a UCF player smacked his mouth and left Clark looking like a UFC fighter. He was attended to on the bench while his teammate grabbed his tooth and returned to the game shortly after.
His return was never a question, Clark said. His mouth was throbbing but Clark managed to knock down a free throw with two seconds left to seal the win.
“That’s toughness right there,” said Seidler, whose phone buzzed after his tooth retrieval was highlighted on the TV broadcast. “Losing half your tooth and coming back into the game to help us get a win.”
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Clark, who scored eight points, said he was due for dental work so he wasn’t too upset about his newly crooked smile.
The sleeve of his white undershirt was dotted in blood and his mouth pain — “a 9,” he said — was no longer countered by the adrenaline he felt on the court.
Clark wasn’t sure if he would have dental surgery before Sunday’s game or just wear a mouth guard. He said the missing tooth gave him a lisp and a teammate said he sounded like Mike Tyson.
“He looked so good in the locker room,” UCLA coach Mick Cronin said. “Looks like a boxer. Keep trying to talk to these guys about my old days. He just looked tough. Looks tough. In the locker room, smiling. There’s blood.”
The Bruins left the locker room after their win to officially mark their place in the next round by updating an oversized March Madness bracket. They handed the UCLA name plate to Clark, the guy with the missing tooth, and he slammed the Bruins into the next round. UCLA is moving on and a missing tooth was the price.
“As long as we’re winning, I don’t care,” Clark said.