A NEW BREED IN WESTWOOD; WITH ITS NUCLEUS GONE, UCLA STARTS OVER.

Byline: Jon Wilner Daily News Staff Writer

The spigots on the right side of UCLA's shower room are reserved for All-Americans. Everyone else uses them to hang towels. No one has showered on the right side since Ed O'Bannon, and each season the upperclassmen explain the tradition to freshmen.

Brandon Loyd has done a lot of explaining lately.

Loyd is UCLA's only senior and one of two upperclassmen, with walk-on junior Sean Farnham. They are two against 12 freshmen and sophomores - and loving it.

``It's a good change,'' Loyd said. ``We've got a new personality, a new attitude and there's new conversation in the locker room.

``It's hard to explain, but the whole feel is different. There are no cliques. Last year, with the seniors and all the freshmen, we had a little of that. This will be a great team to play for, even if we don't win that many games.''

And that - not their off-court trauma, aversion to defense and petulant personas - is the legacy of Toby Bailey, J.R. Henderson and Kris Johnson. In four years, they won 92 regular-season games, 11 NCAA Tournament games, three Pac-10 titles and one national championship. They were frustrating and confounding and often eschewed coaching, but they won.

The current Bruins follow coach Steve Lavin's every order like a Romper Room class. They do not talk back, they play unselfishly and they hustle. But will they survive a brutal Pac-10 and earn the school's 11th consecutive NCAA Tournament berth?

In past years, UCLA's participation in March Madness was a given. Not so this season, because the Bruins cannot assume 12-15 victories in Pac-10 play. In fact, these baby Bruins may do well to finish 10-8 in a league as competitive as the Atlantic Coast Conference.

More than any year in recent memory, UCLA's postseason fate may depend on its pre-conference success. The Bruins must hoard victories this month and next and brace themselves for a wild winter.

Much depends on sophomore guard Baron Davis' reconstructed left knee. Even if he returns in December, he'll need weeks, perhaps months, to regain timing and confidence in the knee. It's unlikely he'll be as effective as he was last year - at least not now, not this season.

How will he respond? If Davis tries to be what he was and gets frustrated because he isn't, UCLA's fledgling confidence and chemistry may suffer. Like USC and Arizona, the Bruins will lean heavily on freshmen and sophomores. Unlike USC and Arizona, the Bruins start the season with their best player recovering from major surgery.

``It's the hardest thing I've ever been through,'' Davis said. ``It's hard, it's tough, it's frustrating.''

The Bruins probably will start at least two freshmen, center Dan Gadzuric and forward JaRon Rush, and two sophomores, guard Earl Watson and forward Travis Reed. Watson is the most improved player and the floor leader, but Rush must carry the scoring load in Davis' absence. There's no one named O'Bannon or Bailey to make big shots in enemy arenas with the pressure on and the crowd screaming.

Last year, the Bruins played just well enough for 35 minutes to stay within range of their foe, because Bailey, Johnson and Henderson knew they'd make the decisive plays down the stretch. That is not true this season. UCLA cannot waste a minute, not the 11th or the 31st. There's no telling how Watson and Reed and Rush will react in the final minutes. Every week, every game, will bring something new.

``I think coach Lavin is getting a couple gray hairs in his head,'' Reed said. ``It's like playing in a park with a bunch of young guys. We're all real excited.''

If the freshmen are getting acclimated, Lavin and his staff seem comfortable with their new surroundings. For two years they've waited for this moment, when their recruits dominated the roster. They've instilled energy and selflessness. Now, we'll see if they can coach - if they can build a system to suit their talent, if they can devise game plans to attack weakness, if they can make their players better over time.

Henderson, Bailey and Johnson had the same strengths and weaknesses when they arrived in 1994 as when they departed last spring. Will Lavin's recruits follow the same path?

The coaching staff often talks about ``reloading,'' about keeping UCLA at an elite level season after season. But Duke had a few bad years. Indiana and Georgetown have had plenty. Michigan, North Carolina and Arizona lost key players and may struggle to win 20 games this year.

With a team as young as UCLA's in a conference as good as the Pac-10, it seems inevitable UCLA will lose 10, 12, perhaps 14 games. But to judge Lavin on temporal success alone ignores the building blocks (ie: discipline, strategy and player development) necessary for long-term prosperity. That's where he must succeed.

What's at stake in Westwood this season isn't an NCAA Tournament berth, but a glimpse into the program's future.

Note: Davis has been cleared for full contact scrimmaging but is not expected to play Thursday against Santa Clara.

``Once he starts scrimmaging, the only thing left is games,'' Lavin said. ``My inclination is he will not play Thursday.''

UCLA BRUINS

Coach: Steve Lavin

1997-98 record: 24-9 overall, 12-6 Pac-10.

Top returners: Baron Davis (11.7 points, 5.0 assists); Earl Watson (5.8 points, 3.1 assists); Travis Reed (4.0 points, 2.4 rebounds); Rico Hines (1.9 points, 1.5 rebounds).

Key newcomers: F JaRon Rush, Pembroke School, Kansas City; C Dan Gadzuric, Gov. Dummer Academy, Byfield, Mass.; F Jerome Moiso, Milford (Conn.) Academy; F Matt Barnes, Del Campo H.S., Citrus Heights, Calif.; G Ray Young, St. Joseph-Notre Dame H.S., Alameda, Calif.

Strengths: The Bruins have size, depth and athletes. They can play big or small, they can play halfcourt or fullcourt. Watson is a tenacious floor leader, while Gadzuric gives them a shot-blocking presence in the lane. Rush is a polished scorer despite his inexperience. If healthy, Davis is one of the Pac-10's top playmakers.

Weaknesses: Inexperience, inexperience and inexperience. The Bruins have 12 freshmen and sophomores, and the two upperclassmen, junior Sean Farnham and senior Brandon Loyd, are reserves. If exhibition games are any indication, the Bruins will struggle at the foul line. Gadzuric is aggressive but raw, while Moiso is skilled but passive. Davis, seven months removed from knee surgery, probably won't have the quickness and explosion that made him great.

ROSTER

No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Year

0 Jerome Moiso F 6-10 230 Fr.

3 Billy Knight G 6-5 195 So.

4 JaRon Rush F 6-6 210 Fr.

5 Baron Davis G 6-2 210 So.

11 Todd Ramasar G/F  6-5 210 So.

13 Travis Reed F 6-7 237 So.

20 Brandon Loyd G 5-11 190 Sr.

21 Ryan Bailey G 6-1 210 So.

22 Rico Hines G/F 6-4 213 So.

23 Matt Barnes F 6-7 230 Fr.

25 Earl Watson G 6-0 185 So.

30 Sean Farnham F 6-5 213 Jr.

34 Ray Young G 6-3 195 Fr.

50 Dan Gadzuric C 6-10245 Fr.

SCHEDULE

Thursday Santa Clara 7:30 p.m.

Nov. 26 San Francisco (x) 3:30 p.m.

Nov. 27 TBA (x)

Nov. 28 TBA (x)

Dec. 2 Delaware State 7:30 p.m.

Dec. 5 Oklahoma State (xx) 4:15 p.m.

Dec. 12 UNLV  2 p.m.

Dec. 19 Cal State Northridge 7:30 p.m.

Dec. 23 American7:30 p.m.

Dec. 29 Loyola Marymount 7:30 p.m.

Jan. 2 Arizona 7:30 p.m.

Jan. 4 Arizona State 7:30 p.m.

Jan. 7 at Oregon State 7 p.m.

Jan. 9 at Oregon 7 p.m.

Jan. 14 California 7:30 p.m.

Jan. 16 Stanford 7:30 p.m.

Jan. 20 at USC 7:30 p.m.

Jan. 23 at Louisville 10 a.m.

Jan. 28 at Washington State 7 p.m.

Jan. 31 at Washington 12:30 p.m.

Feb. 4 Oregon 7:30 p.m.

Feb. 7 Oregon State 12:30 p.m.

Feb. 11 at Stanford 7:30 p.m.

Feb. 13 at California 1:30 p.m.

Feb. 17 USC 7:30 p.m.

Feb. 21 Syracuse 12:30 p.m.

Feb. 25 Washington State 7:30 p.m.

Feb. 27 Washington 3 p.m.

Mar. 4 at Arizona State 5:30 p.m.

Mar. 6 at Arizona 12:30 p.m.

(x) - Puerto Rico Shootout 

(xx) - Wooden Classic in Anaheim

CAPTION(S):

Photo, 2 Boxes

PHOTO (Color) Steve Lavin will work with 12 underclassmen against a loaded Pac-10.

Kirby Lee/Special to the Daily News

BOX: (1) UCLA BRUINS (see text)

(2) SCHEDULE (see text)