FEY IS BRUINS' CENTER OF ATTENTION UCLA HOPES POST PLAYER CAN FIND AGGRESSIVE STREAK, HELP PERIMETER GAME.Byline: Brian Dohn Staff Writer CORVALLIS, Ore. - Freshman guards Jordan Farmar Jordan Robert Farmar (born November 30, 1986) is an American professional basketball player at starting point guard for the NBA's Los Angeles Lakers. He was previously the starting point guard for the UCLA men's basketball team. and Arron Afflalo Arron Agustin Afflalo (born October 15, 1985) is an American professional basketball player, currently with the Detroit Pistons. He recently completed a three-year career at University of California, Los Angeles in the Pacific Ten Conference of the NCAA as the starting shooting both committed to UCLA UCLA University of California at Los Angeles UCLA University Center for Learning Assistance (Illinois State University) UCLA University of Carrollton, TX and Lower Addison, TX before their senior prep seasons, so for a year the duo represented hope for the program's future. Another freshman, guard/forward Josh Shipp Josh Shipp (born 23 January in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma) is an American motivational speaker and author focusing on youth and college-aged audiences. He is noted as being one of the youngest speakers ever accepted into the National Speakers Association. , wasn't as touted, but has been the biggest surprise among UCLA's newcomers. And then there is Dijon Thompson Dijon Lynn Thompson (born February 23, 1983 in Los Angeles, California, USA) is an American professional basketball player for Alba Berlin of the German Bundesliga. , a senior guard/forward, and the Bruins' leader scoring and rebounding. Yet, ask any of those four starters, or UCLA coach Ben Howland Ben Howland (born May 28, 1957 in Lebanon, Oregon) is an American college head coach of men's basketball. He has been the head coach of the University of California, Los Angeles since 2003, and recently signed a contract extension through 2013. , about the key to the Pacific-10 Conference The Pacific-10 Conference (Pac-10) is a college athletic conference which operates in the western United States. It participates in the NCAA's Division I. Membership Full members season, which begins today at Oregon State, and each point to Michael Fey. ``He has to (develop) for us to have success,'' Howland said. ``He has to, and he's getting better.'' Fey, the 7-foot center, could be the difference between a postseason berth and a third consecutive losing season. It sounds strange, but as good as any of UCLA's other starters can be, Fey is the only person in the program capable of scoring regularly in the low post. And that is a necessity if the perimeter-oriented Bruins are to loosen up the perimeter. ``I feel I can play a big part,'' Fey said. ``I know our guys are good outside, but for any team to be successful in the Pac-10, you have to have a good inside and outside game. With me being the starting center, and one of the better low-post scorers on the team, a lot of it falls on me.'' There are no other real alternatives to Fey. Lorenzo Mata, while a hard worker, is a rebounder first and learning the offensive part of the game. And 7-footer Ryan Hollins Ryan Hollins (born October 10, 1984) is an American professional basketball player. At 7 foot, 225 lbs, he is a center from the University of California, Los Angeles. He was selected in the second round of the 2006 NBA Draft by the Charlotte Bobcats. , who was moved to power forward, is unproductive to the point Matt McKinney could pass him in the rotation. So the responsibility to score inside rests squarely on the 255-pound Fey, a big kid with a strong work ethic work ethic n. A set of values based on the moral virtues of hard work and diligence. work ethic Noun a belief in the moral value of work and a big smile, but without ferocity or meanness on the court. For Fey to be successful, his teammates must show confidence to give him the ball frequently. But Fey also must ask for the ball with consistency, which he does not do, and such aggressiveness is not natural for him. After all, he has taken just 41 shots in eight games this season. He also hasn't dominated smaller, weaker opponents. He has scored double digits Double Digits was a pricing game on the American television game show, The Price Is Right. Played from April 20, 1973 through May 18, 1973's show, it was played for a car and used small prizes. in only nine of his 56 career games, and his career high for rebounds is nine. But it's not as if Fey doesn't have talent, or lacks scoring touch. He is fourth on the Bruins in scoring at 8.5 points per game, but is making 58.5 percent of his shots. He shot 56.1 percent last season, and he also has a nice touch for a big man from the free-throw line free-throw line n. See foul line. , making 20 of 28 (71.4 percent). However, his lack of shot attempts is a problem. Earlier in the season, he gained position in the low post, but couldn't maintain it long enough for the guards to get him the ball. Fey also has a propensity to drop passes, and there are also times when he is open but doesn't get the ball. ``We don't even give (the post guys) an opportunity to make the mistakes where we need to go away from them,'' Afflalo said. ``We have to give them a chance. For the most part, they do a good job, and without them, we're not going to win. ``We're not going to win, or get as far as we want to go in the season if we don't have a low-post game. You can't just get it all done on the perimeter.'' Fey's nice-guy demeanor is also an issue. When he is open, it's not in his personality to demand the ball. ``This is a new role for me,'' Fey said. ``This is the first year where I have to get the ball more, and the first year I can be a big part of our success. It's something I'm trying to get used to, and something I'm trying to work on in practice.'' As a sophomore, playing meaningful minutes, Fey averaged 6 points and 2.4 rebounds per game. However, even those numbers dipped in league games, where Fey averaged 4.7 points, and his rebounding average of 1.5 per game had a dual effect of making Howland cringe cringe intr.v. cringed, cring·ing, cring·es 1. To shrink back, as in fear; cower. 2. To behave in a servile way; fawn. n. An act or instance of cringing. , and wonder how a 7-footer could have a four-game stretch and snare snare (snar) a wire loop for removing polyps and tumors by encircling them at the base and closing the loop. snare n. one rebound. Teammates said Fey is very good in practice, but his style changes in games. ``From what I see, I think the game just goes a little faster,'' Thompson said. ``In practice, everybody knows the plays, and everybody is just moving and relaxed and you know each other. ``But in games, the lights are on, the other team is running their plays and it's at full speed. There's a lot more to think about, and it's a little more difficult to concentrate. I think that might be it, but I don't know Don't know (DK, DKed) "Don't know the trade." A Street expression used whenever one party lacks knowledge of a trade or receives conflicting instructions from the other party. exactly what he's thinking.'' If Fey can become a threat on offense - not a dominant player but just a threat - it would open up opportunities for Farmar to penetrate and pass, or for the Bruins to feed the ball into the post, wait for the double team and kick it outside for an open 3-point shot. ``I know he can do it,'' said Farmar, the point guard. ``I'm going to keep doing my job, which is to give him the ball and show everybody he can get it done. If he scores inside, it just opens up the whole game.'' Brian Dohn, (818) 713-3607 brian.dohn(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): photo, box Photo: (color) UCLA center Michael Fey is working on being more aggressive in the low post. Bruins coach Ben Howland says Fey ``has to (develop) for us to have success.'' Edna T. Simpson/Staff Photographer Box: UCLA AT OREGON STATE - Brian Dohn |
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