HOWLAND STILL BRUIN HIS TEAM OTHERS AT WOODEN READY TO SERVE.Byline: Brian Dohn Staff Writer ANAHEIM - Kentucky, Kansas and 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 have been synonymous with synonymous with adjective equivalent to, the same as, identical to, similar to, identified with, equal to, tantamount to, interchangeable with, one and the same as college basketball College basketball most often refers to the American basketball competitive governance structure established by the National Collegiate Athletic Association, or NCAA. History
Those four schools will participate in the John Wooden Classic today at the Pond, but with a twist. The Bruins, who play No. 9 Kentucky in the opener, are considered fourth among the teams in talent. While top-ranked Kansas, No. 21 Stanford and Kentucky all have national-title aspirations, the rebuilding Bruins will consider it a success just to reach the NCAA Tournament NCAA Tournament can mean: Men's Sports
Unknown to fame; obscure. - Glanvill. See also: Unheard Unheard during Wooden's 27-season run. Kentucky, Kansas and Stanford will try to iron out their kinks in the next month before making a run at a favorable postseason seed. But UCLA, which could be embarrassed on national television this morning by Kentucky, is left envying the rest of the Wooden field. ``We know where we are right now,'' Bruins 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. said. ``Our program is building. We're on the way, on and upward, and I feel good about the direction we're heading in. Our last game, I was happy we shot 60 percent (from the field) for the game and outboarded our opponent by (15). They're trying to do what I'm asking them to do, and we'll get better throughout the year.'' Kentucky went 32-4 last season, Stanford was 24-9 and Kansas, which lost the national-title game, was 33-4. UCLA was 10-19. ``I'm going to sit here and watch these teams,'' Kentucky coach Tubby Smith Orlando "Tubby" Smith (born June 30, 1951 in Scotland, Saint Mary's County, Maryland) is the basketball coach at the University of Minnesota. He previously served in the same role at the University of Tulsa, the University of Georgia, and most recently, University of Kentucky. said. ``I'm sure this is going to help us out in a lot of ways.'' The Bruins (2-0), who beat Vermont by a point and pulled away from UC Riverside only in the second half, get the opportunity to see what the top teams in the country look like, including Kansas, ranked No. 1 in the polls. Each team plays defense with incredible intensity and has few lulls. They also have an inside-outside presence and the type of mental toughness Howland demands from his team. Although Stanford's matchup with Kansas is the marquee game, the defensive pressure and speed Kentucky generates promises to make it difficult for a UCLA team thin on ball-handlers. ``We're looking at this game to help us down the road,'' Howland said. ``This game is a great opportunity to play against an outstanding team, but this game is going to help us prepare for our games down the road, when we get into Pac-10 play.'' It won't help UCLA that point guard Cedric Bozeman Cedric R. Bozeman (born March 7 1983 in Los Angeles, California) is an American professional basketball player, formerly of the Atlanta Hawks of the NBA. Bozeman averaged 1.1 points in 23 games with five starts with the Hawks before being waived in January 2007. is hampered by an ankle injury, which could be a factor if Howland asks the junior to play more than 35 minutes like in the first two games. Bruins backup point guard Ryan Walcott has played a combined five minutes in two games. Any success this season could depend on the academic status of T.J. Cummings, who might regain his eligibility after the fourth game, and the health of Trevor Ariza Trevor Anthony Ariza (born June 30 1985 in Miami, Florida) is an American professional basketball player in the NBA for the Orlando Magic. After a college career at UCLA, Ariza was a second round draft choice (43rd overall) of the New York Knicks in the 2004 NBA Draft. , who is out after suffering a collapsed lung. And there is a reason Howland constantly speaks of his first recruiting class, which consists of point guard 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. , post player Lorenzo Mata, guard Josh Shipp and wing Arron Afflalo. It could be among the top 10 classes in the nation, and each could gobble up minutes as freshmen because the team now lacks overall talent. ``When you look at the long term, we signed four very good players,'' Howland said. ``We're excited about our recruiting. ... This is more like an NCAA NCAA abbr. National Collegiate Athletic Association Tournament-type field. I wish we were at the regionals right now because that's the type of competition you're going to see, these types of teams.'' Brian Dohn, (818) 713-3607 brian.dohn(at)dailynews.com WOODEN CLASSIC UCLA vs. No. 9 Kentucky: 10:30 a.m., Ch. 2 No. 21 Stanford vs. No. 1 Kansas: 1 p.m., Ch. 9 Where: The Pond in Anaheim CAPTION(S): 2 photos, box Photo: (1) UCLA coach Ben Howland hopes today's game against Kentucky will help the rebuilding Bruins. Edna T. Simpson/Daily News (2) UCLA point guard Cedric Bozeman is hampered by an ankle injury, which could be a factor today against No. 9 Kentucky. Jill Connelly/Associated Press Box: WOODEN CLASSIC (see text) |
|
||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion