UCLA ALL HONED IN ON HIRING HOWLAND PITT COACH COULD BE HEADING TO WESTWOOD QUICKLY AS TALKS HEAT UP.

Byline: Billy Witz Staff Writer

A representative of Pittsburgh coach Ben Howland spent Monday hammering out details of a contract that would make the Southern California native the next basketball coach at UCLA, according to two sources close to the negotiations.

If the two sides reach an agreement, an announcement could come quickly - perhaps as soon as today.

``It's going to happen,'' said one source, who added that an offer has not yet been made. ``To my understanding, this was their guy. He fits what they're looking for. They're trying to work out the details.''

Howland, who in four years at Pittsburgh has turned it from Big East doormat to a top-10 team, met with UCLA athletic director Dan Guerrero and associate athletic director Betsy Stephenson on Sunday at a hotel in Santa Barbara, where Howland grew up and where his parents live.

Howland returned to Pittsburgh later Sunday night and met Monday with Pittsburgh interim athletic director Marc Boehm before addressing his players in a mid-afternoon team meeting.

``He said he might be coming out there,'' said the parent of one Pittsburgh player who asked not to be identified. ``He's waiting to hear what the offers are going to be. He's just waiting to make sure everything is covered.

``If it's covered, of course he'll go. Why else would he call the boys in and say we've got a situation?''

Howland, who did not return calls Monday, issued a statement through Pittsburgh acknowledging his meeting with Guerrero and Stephenson.

``Given that my family roots are in California and my parents live there, I felt compelled to look at this potential opportunity,'' Howland said. ``That being said, I want to emphasize that I have a tremendous situation ... and it would take an extraordinary set of circumstances for me to leave.''

Howland, 45, has a reputation as a tough negotiator. He was preparing to receive his third contract in three years from Pittsburgh and was the first coach at Northern Arizona, his previous stop, to successfully bargain for a multi-year deal. But the contract talks with UCLA, which are expected to continue today, should be more complicated than contentious.

Howland, who grew up in Goleta and Cerritos and was a longtime assistant at UC Santa Barbara, has made no secret of his desire for the job.

Also, at this point, Howland is believed to be the only candidate UCLA has contacted. Gonzaga coach Mark Few, who declined comment earlier in the day, had not heard from UCLA as of late Monday afternoon, according to two sources.

The negotiations with Howland also appear to quash speculation that Kansas coach Roy Williams, whose team has reached the Final Four, is considering the job. Williams has refused to declare publicly he is not interested in the job.

UCLA is preparing to offer a contract worth about $850,000 in compensation with incentives that could push the deal to more than $1 million, sources indicated in recent weeks. Howland recently completed the first year of a seven-year contract that is worth just more than $700,000 a season.

Howland is pushing for a higher base salary - about $400,000 - the portion of the contract that is guaranteed, according to one source. Recently fired coach Steve Lavin's base salary was $153,000 with the balance coming from revenue from camps, TV and Adidas, the sports apparel company that is in the midst of a six-year, $19 million contract with UCLA.

A source close to Howland indicated that the salaries for Howland's staff could be a bigger issue than his own income. The three assistants on Lavin's staff earned a total of $259,000 last season, but the salaries were staggered so that the third assistant, Patrick Sandle, earned just $53,000, less than some high school coaches.

``You've got to be able to pay to get good assistants,'' the source said.

Howland's top assistant, Jamie Dixon, a former standout at Notre Dame High in Sherman Oaks, will interview for the head-coaching job at Wright State in Dayton, Ohio.

Another complication is that Howland's current contract includes a buyout of about $500,000 if he leaves now.

However, Adidas will pick up a portion of the buyout, according to sources. Several boosters who have met with Guerrero in the two weeks since Lavin was fired are expected to cover some of it, also.

Guerrero indicated when he fired Lavin on March 17 that he wanted his next coach to have met with Chancellor Albert Carnesale before hiring him. Howland had not yet done so, according to one source. Carnesale is scheduled to be out of town on business Wednesday.

News of Howland's meeting did not sit well in Pittsburgh. Boehm issued a statement indicating the meeting was without his blessing. Boehm said the meeting was set up Friday, the day before Guerrero phoned him.

``Any discussions Ben Howland may have had with UCLA this past weekend were undertaken without the permission of the University of Pittsburgh and we cannot comment on them,'' Boehm said. ``Coach Howland has a contract with the University of Pittsburgh through 2009. He has consistently stated that he plans to honor that contract and we hope that will be the case.''

UCLA responded with a statement from Guerrero, who has otherwise declined comment throughout the search.

``We feel very confident that our process has been and will continue to be conducted in a professional manner,'' Guerrero said.

In Monday's edition of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, several Panthers players said they didn't expect Howland to leave.

``Nobody really pays attention to that stuff,'' senior guard Brandon Knight said. ``You guys (the media) believe that more than anybody. Coach Howland is not going anywhere. I just think for a lot of our guys, they're sure of that. I don't think anybody around here's worried about it.

``He's built a great program here. He is not going to UCLA.''

Pitt sophomore forward Chevon Troutman said: ``I don't expect him to leave. We can potentially win a national championship here. I don't know why he would leave that. He won't.''

HOWLAND FILE

Age: 45

Hometown: Cerritos

Coaching career: Graduate assistant, Gonzaga, 1981-82; assistant, UC Santa Barbara, 1982-94; head coach Northern Arizona, 1994-99; head coach Pittsburgh. 1999-current.

Career record: 168-99 (.629)

NCAA Tournament appearances: Three (Northern Arizona, 1997-98; Pittsburgh, 2001-02, 2002-03).

HIGHLIGHTS

--1996-97 Northern Arizona team recorded the 10th-largest single-season turnaround (7-19 to 21-7).

--Guided NAU to its first-ever NCAA Tournament berth.

--2001-02 Pittsburgh team won a school-record 29 games. The Panthers earned a berth in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1992-93 and went to the Sweet 16.

--This season, the Panthers finished 28-5 - 57-11 over two years - and again reached the Sweet 16.

CAPTION(S):

photo, 2 boxes

Photo:

(color) no caption (Pittsburgh coach Ben Howland)

Box:

(1) HOWLAND FILE (see text)

(2) HIGHLIGHTS (see text)