UCLA BASKETBALL NOTEBOOK: LOVE LOOKING TO PROVE RANKING.Byline: Jill Painter Staff WriterUCLA 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 was picked to win 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 in a media poll Thursday, and Kevin Love Kevin Love may refer to:
Starting tonight. That's when Love, the most hyped recruit in years, makes his debut in a Bruins uniform. And even though UCLA is playing an exhibition game against Azusa Pacific, he wants to showcase a No. 1-looking team. He said he hopes the Bruins make a statement. "That we can't be messed up," Love said. "That we are the best team in the country. Rankings don't mean much, just because we're No. 1 on paper." On paper, the physical Bruins sure look good. The Bruins received 33 of the 34 first-place votes in the poll and garnered 339points. Washington State was second with the other first-place vote. "We're excited, but our biggest thing, and I have no control over it, is our health," 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. It's obvious that UCLA's practices are Big East-style physical, especially with Lorenzo Mata-Real, Kevin Love (who's sustained multiple injuries to his knee, shin and calf) and Luc Richard Mbah a Moute Luc Richard Mbah a Moute (born 9 September 1986 in Yaounde, Cameroon) is a 6' 8" Cameroonian basketball player who plays for the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Bruins in the Pacific Ten Conference of the NCAA. nursing injuries. James Keefe isn't scheduled to return until next month at the earliest. Howland was asked if his players should wear helmets to practice. "I don't think our practices are that much different than other good teams," Howland said. "Other coaches in the (Pac-10) meeting said they have injuries. Lute (Olson) has three guys out. (USC An abbreviation for U.S. Code. ) has a number of guys hurt or injured. When you have really good, strong athletes who can jump high and they're quick and physical, you play and injuries occur. The tough part is that we have no control over it. "We want to be physical. If you went to watch Michigan State or UConn or Pittsburgh, you'd see physical practices throughout the country. That's the way the game was meant to be played." Taking a dive Mbah a Moute injured his left shoulder diving for a loose ball in Tuesday's practice. He and Nikola Dragovic collided on the play, but they both got up. No one -- apparently Mbah a Moute included -- knew the shoulder was injured until Wednesday morning. That's when he got an X-ray, which was negative. Mbah a Moute didn't practice Wednesday but returned to practice Thursday and is scheduled to play today. "If there's any question about it, we're not playing him," Howland said. Then there were four Howland announced that Love, Darren Collison Darren Michael Collison (born August 23, 1987) is an American basketball player. The right-hander is a native of Rancho Cucamonga, California, and is currently playing his sophomore season for the University of California, Los Angeles. , 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. and Mbah a Moute -- if healthy -- will start for UCLA. He's uncertain on the fifth spot, although he's toying with the idea of Michael Roll, Russell Westbrook and Alfred Aboya. |
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