BRUINS WARY OF THE WACKY AT MAC.

Byline: Jon Wilner Daily News Staff Writer

Before addressing the present predicament, a few words about UCLA's past failures in this quaint college town on the Willamette River.

The Bruins have lost four of their last five games at Oregon's McArthur Court, where the Ducks play like hawks and the students spew profanity and the unexpected has a season ticket. (See: USC vs. Oregon, Jan. 7, 1999.)

Some of UCLA's best teams have faltered in Mac Court. In 1995, three months before winning the national title, coach Jim Harrick was ejected and the Bruins imploded in the final minutes. At the buzzer, students swarmed the floor and tried to pick a fight with Tyus Edney's mother.

In 1997, two months before their Elite Eight appearance, the Bruins lost in overtime and Ducks fans allegedly showered Kris Johnson with racial slurs. Even mild-mannered Bruin Bob Meyers was on the brink of brawling.

``Bizarre things happen at Mac Court,'' Bruins coach Steve Lavin said.

Last year, UCLA's bus unloaded the players in front of the arena, and they had to walk through a line of angry students. It wasn't exactly a calming experience for five freshmen. ``I thought, `Are you trying to get us killed?' '' guard Earl Watson said.

A few hours later, the Bruins shuffled out with a 16-point loss.

If the savviest UCLA teams failed in the din of Mac Court, how will a team with 10 freshmen and sophomores survive?The answer: It may not, especially if it doesn't correct the myriad problems that surfaced in a stunning 65-63 loss Thursday at Oregon State.

Friday morning, the Bruins acted as if they'd just lost a well-played game at California or Washington - not a horrific defeat to the league's worst team. They usually play their worst game at OSU, but until this year they always found a way to win. They always had an answer. Thursday, no answer. Not even close.

``We didn't play as hard as we could have,'' sophomore guard Rico Hines said. ``We were lackadaisical.''

Lavin blamed UCLA's 28 percent shooting and claimed that if the Bruins had made a few more baskets, they'd be 3-0 in conference play. After reviewing the tape, he said, it was apparent UCLA had plenty of open shots that simply did not fall.

Perhaps. But that does not discount the myriad fundamental problems that must be corrected before tipoff tonight. Against Oregon State, the Bruins were stagnant and impatient on offense. They were lazy and sloppy on defense, opting to foul rather than move their feet. They were intimidated and indifferent and attributed the performance to nerves, since it was their first road game of the conference season.

``The biggest factor was it was our first time in a hostile environment,'' Lavin said.

But Gill Coliseum wasn't ``hostile.'' It was nothing of the sort until the Beavers took a 10-point lead in the final minutes and long-suffering fans smelled victory. For 30 minutes, Gill was as quiet as a neutral court.

Maybe indifference is just what the Bruins need. Maybe indifference will speed their recovery. Lavin constantly warns against mood swings, and there's no better time to avoid an emotional bottoming than after losing the first game of a road trip.

``We have got to flush this out of our system,'' Hines said. ``That's the sign of a mature team. They beat us, and now we have a game less than 48 hours later. It's a business trip now. We've got to get a split.''

UCLA vs. OREGON

Time: 7:05 p.m., at McArthur Court.

TV/Radio: No TV; KXTA-AM (1150).

UCLA (10-3, 2-1) update: Watch for coach Steve Lavin to favor his most experienced players, which means reserves Sean Farnham, Ryan Bailey and Rico Hines may get more playing time than usual. UCLA struggled against Oregon State's zone defense, but Oregon favors a man-to-man, which may help the Bruins regain lost rhythm. UCLA has lost four of its past five in Mac Court and usually cannot stop Oregon from getting whatever shots it wants. Ducks run a disciplined motion offense that can drive UCLA crazy. How will JaRon Rush respond to a 3-of-15 performance Thurdsay night?

Oregon (9-3, 1-2) update: How will the Ducks recover from an agonizing last-second loss to USC? Emotionally, they are ripe for a subpar effort, but are the Bruins good enough - i.e. fundamentally sound enough - to take advantage? If the Ducks play like they did for 35 minutes against USC, the sloppy, scattered Bruins are in deep trouble. UCLA must concentrate on stopping point guard Darius Wright and forward Alex Scales.

- Jon Wilner

CAPTION(S):

Box

Box: UCLA vs. OREGON (See text)