UCLA NOTEBOOK: BOZEMAN'S RETURN DELAYED FOR A WEEK.

Byline: Billy Witz Staff Writer

UCLA freshman point guard Cedric Bozeman, who is recovering from arthroscopic knee surgery, will not make his return today against Georgetown.

Bozeman, who had torn cartilage removed from his right knee Dec. 3, was cleared to play ``limited minutes'' on Wednesday, but he has not yet participated in a scrimmage situation or tested it full-bore on the court.

He did not dress for Thursday night's game with Columbia.

``We're taking the deliberate approach,'' UCLA coach Steve Lavin said. ``He'll be better off with a full week (of practice). This will give him a full month of recovery.''

The target date for Bozeman's return is now Friday against Washington at Pauley Pavilion. Bozeman, the Bruins' most highly touted freshman, gradually will work his way back into playing shape.

``We'll increase his minutes with each game,'' Lavin said.

--Long way home: Since most of the Bruins are from California, getting home for the holidays wasn't much of an ordeal - except for one Bruin. Rico Hines, a native of Greenville, N.C., spent more time in transit than Santa Claus.

After UCLA beat Washington State on Saturday afternoon, the Bruins bused to Spokane where they spent the night. They flew to Los Angeles, where Hines hustled to make a flight to Dallas. But the flight was delayed, which forced him to miss his connection to Raleigh, N.C.

Hines spent Sunday night in a hotel, then caught the first flight to Raleigh on Christmas Eve. He arrived home about noon, spent Christmas Day with his mother, Faye, and his 2-year-old sister Loren, then caught an early-morning flight Wednesday back to L.A. so he could be at practice that afternoon.

``It was quick - I spent more time in airports than with my family - but it was worth it,'' Hines said. ``I got to see my little sister and it was good to get away and see loved ones.''

--Old acquaintances: Though Georgetown and UCLA never have played before, some players are no strangers. UCLA forward Jason Kapono and Georgetown forward Mike Sweetney were teammates last summer on the United States 21-and-under team that won the world championship in Japan, and UCLA forward Matt Barnes and Georgetown center Wesley Wilson, who both grew up in the East Bay-Sacramento area, played on the same traveling team in high school.

``We talked and we each had our own things,'' Kapono said of Sweetney, who also is his team's leading scorer. ``He wasn't bragging. He just said he was going to come in here and have a big game.''

--Disappearing Dan: After scoring 43 points in the wins over Washington and Washington State, center Dan Gadzuric scored just three points and had two rebounds against Columbia. He went to the bench with 10 1/2 minutes left with his fourth foul and never returned.

``I've been with Dan for four years and that's how he is in life and in basketball,'' guard Billy Knight said. ``When he loses focus, he loses focus.''

--Wooden watch: The Wooden Award candidate list was cut from 50 to 30 players. Among those who made the cut were Kapono and USC's Sam Clancy. Those who didn't were Gadzuric, USC's David Bluthenthal and the Georgetown duo of Kevin Braswell and Sweetney.

--Record: Kapono wasn't getting too carried away with breaking the school career record for 3-pointers, which he set against Columbia. ``I guess it says a lot about my shooting,'' he said. ``But it's not something I'm going to have a party for.''

UCLA vs. GEORGETOWN

Tipoff: 1 p.m., at Pauley Pavilion.

TV/Radio: Ch. 2; 1150-AM.

UCLA (8-2) update: This looks like the perfect recipe for the Bruins: a capacity crowd (only single tickets were available Friday), a national TV audience and a paper lion of an opponent. The Bruins, despite winning six in a row and being ranked 15th, have been in a bit of a malaise. They've trailed UC Irvine, Washington and Washington State at halftime and nearly coughed up a 22-point lead to Columbia. The Bruins will try to follow the same formula as Virginia and Georgia in wins over Georgetown: zone the Hoyas, keep Welsey Wilson and Mike Sweetney off the boards and make Georgetown win the game on the perimeter. Offensively, the Bruins' lack of a quality point guard could be a problem against the Hoyas' full-court press and man-to-man pressure defense, which is forcing 21.5 turnovers per game.

Georgetown (9-2) update: The Hoyas are ranked 19th - on reputation only. They've lost to the two best teams they've played, Georgia and Virginia. Their best win was a last-second 70-68 win over a South Carolina team that the Bruins blew out in Maui. Their other victories have been over Towson State, Grambling, Bethune-Cookman, Howard, Coastal Carolina, Norfolk State and Marymount. Mike Sweetney, a 6-foot-8, 260-pound forward who is averaging 18.4 points and 9.0 rebounds, is as good a low-post player as the Bruins will play this season. Point guard Kevin Braswell can do everything but shoot, contributing 14.9 points, 5.2 assists and 3.3 steals per game.

- Billy Witz

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UCLA vs. GEORGETOWN (see text)