UCLA BASKETBALL NOTEBOOK: OAKLAND CAME LOOKING FOR UCLA.Byline: BRIAN DOHN Staff Writer When it came time to schedule Oakland for one of Ben Howland's traditional early-season non-glamorous opponents, at least the 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 coach didn't have to do much of the searching. It was Oakland, a neophyte ne·o·phyte n. 1. A recent convert to a belief; a proselyte. 2. A beginner or novice: a neophyte at politics. 3. a. Roman Catholic Church A newly ordained priest. Division I school, that reached out to UCLA for the game. But it happened to be right up Howland's ally. Of the 22 non-conference regular season home opponents the Bruins will play in Howland's four seasons in Westwood, 10 of them are first-time opponents for the program. And Oakland, today's opponent, will be making its first appearance against top-ranked UCLA today at Pauley Pavilion Edwin W. Pauley Pavilion, informally and commonly known as Pauley Pavilion, is an indoor arena located on the campus of UCLA in Los Angeles, California. It is home to the UCLA Bruins men's and women's basketball teams. The men's and women's volleyball teams also play here. . ``The coach there has a brother who lives out here in Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, ,'' Howland said. ``That was really the impetus to come to play at UCLA, to come out and be able to see his brother and bring his team out west.'' True, Grizzlies The name Grizzlies may refer to:
But Oakland also fits the profile of the majority of UCLA's non-conference home opponents since Howland's arrival. Under Howland, UCLA has played Albany, Coppin State, Wagner, Sacramento State, Chicago State, Western Illinois, Vermont and UC-Riverside (2003 was the first meeting) for the first time in school history. The Bruins are 8-0 in those games. Attendance woes: Perhaps the game not being on television will spike attendance, because early returns from this season suggest Oakland will not. UCLA began the season drawing 9,297 fans for BYU BYU Brigham Young University BYU Bayou BYU Bob's Your Uncle BYU Bayreuth, Germany - Bindlacher Berg (Airport Code) BYU Beyond Your Understanding , but in each of its next three home games attendance dropped despite the Bruins now being the nation's No. 1 team. Just 7,945 showed up for the Dec. 5 win against Cal State Fullerton. Collison's turnovers: Bruins point guard Darren Collison turned the ball over 11 times in the past two games, after he committed 15 in the first six games. Howland said there are a variety of reasons for it. ``I think against Fullerton, they did a good job pressuring him,'' Howland said. ``I think he probably lost a little focus and concentration a couple of times. He's got a lot on his shoulders here. Everything goes through him.'' brian.dohn@dailynews.com (818) 713-3607 CAPTION(S): box Box: NO. 1 UCLA vs. OAKLAND - Brian Dohn |
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