Final Score: UW-71 UCLA-69
Just like that, the Huskies control first place in the Pac-12 and their destiny lies in their hands and not the success (or failures) of others. This game represented some impressive milestones. UW has now won 4 straight against UCLA, something that hasn't ever happened in Husky History, and the Dawgs have now won 8 straight at home against UCLA. Two hours after UW escaped with an emotional win, Arizona knocked off Cal with an early 33-10 run that put Arizona ahead for good.
The Huskies played a a sloppy game that didn't polish up until the final 10 minutes. This was highlighted early with UW up 6-4. UCLA picked up two offensive boards and finally got the put-back to fall in, despite several Huskies near the hoop. Often times, the Dawgs were getting beat on easy boards and gave up far too many turnovers (16 total, 10 in the first half). The first half turnovers were just plain ugly. It wasn't so much that the Bruins were playing tough defense, the Husky guards were just throwing the ball away to players who weren't looking for passes. Regardless, the Dawgs somehow went into halftime with a 1-point game.
Things got worse after half when the Dawg defense shut down and allowed three straight 3-pointers, all by Lazeric Jones who had been silent all game. Suddenly, the Huskies found themselves down 10 with time running off the clock. Something awakened in the team and the crowd, which translated into Terrence Ross taking things to the next level.
The Huskies struggled to contain Josh Smith who scored a career high 24 points. Smith did damage the whole game with 14 points during the first half. While Aziz N'Diaye tried his best to contain Smith, the two early fouls limited his minutes resulting in Austin Seferian-Jenkins and Shawn Kemp rotating through to try and prevent Smith from scoring. The Huskies experienced their best success by playing a zone defense to prevent entry passes to the post and allowed the Dawgs to double team Smith, forcing turnovers. Smith did not score in the final minute of the game (well, technically he scored with 56 seconds on the clock, but I'll excuse it), which was integral in deciding the outcome of the game. N'Diaye was also able to secure the final rebound over Smith as the clock ran out.
The two biggest possessions of the game came in the final minutes when the Bruins committed offensive fouls and allowed UW to extend their small lead to a two possession difference. The Bruins kept fighting back and the missed free throws by UW allowed the Bruins to get back within 2 points during the final 20 seconds. UW played solid defense and forced a young, in experienced Bruin to take a contested shot, which ended up rattling out and tipped around until N'Diaye could finally corral the ball.
The crowd played a big part of UW's success in the final 10 minutes of the game. Once the Dawg Pack started going and Ross starting being a superstar, the rest of the stadium really perked up, stood up, and got into UCLA's collective head. The offense wasn't able to execute properly as no one could hear what was going on. After the game, Coach Chillious raised the roof at the Dawg Pack, Darnell Gant beat his chest, pointed, and yelled, and Romar came over, pointed at the score board, pointed at us, and said that was your win, you helped us do that. I invest a lot of my time, energy, and emotion into this team and into leading the Dawg Pack and it felt really good to see everyone finally getting involved in the game and having the type of effect on the game that we had between '04 and '09. It felt even better to see our efforts get recognized and appreciated by the coach and team.
N'Diaye played a pretty good game, despite the defensive struggles against Smith. No one could defend Smith, who pushed people around with his gut, so it is hard to discredit N'Diaye for failing the same as everyone else who tried to match-up with Smith. N'Diaye was a solid 3-4 from the field and grabbed 11 rebounds. N'Diaye could have had a double-double, but finished with 7 after hitting only 1 of his 4 free throw attempts. N'Diaye needs to get some better coaching about his foul shot because he is shooting under 40% on the year, which is not only miserable, it hurts our team. N'Diaye gets to the line 2 to 4 times a night and generally misses at least half those shots. That is a lot of points and opportunities being squandered away. "Hack the Shaq" is a very viable option for teams in close games and that scares me more than anything. N'Diaye delivered a nice pass and assist to tony Wroten who was cutting across the baseline. It was almost a perfect reverse of the usual Wroten to N'Diaye plays. The only big negative for me, outside of the usual free throw issues, was the accidental tip-in by N'Diaye on our own hoop. Rather than getting up and putting two hands on the ball, N'Diaye tried to tip the ball out to a teammate, but it went rogue and N'Diaye scored against us.
Speaking of Wroten, Tony had himself a wild game. Wroten took a knee to the thigh that caused him pain throughout the game and may cause Wroten to play limited, if any, minutes during the USC game tomorrow. Wroten was only 4 of 11 from the field. Wroten grabbed up 5 rebounds, 2 offensive, and dished out 2 assists. His 5 turnovers were very reminiscent of his earlier games, but the 5-5 free throw shooting shows the type of improvement Wroten has made to his game. The other "improvement" I saw from Wroten was an attempt at a right-handed lay-in, something I don't think he had done yet. Sadly, the ball rolled out of the rim, but it was good to see Wroten finally use that second hand of his to take a shot.
Darnell Gant became a true senior tonight. He scored 10 points in the first half, including a very much needed 3-pointer early in the game, deep into the shot clock. Gant finished with only 14 points, but his defense on the Wear twins and other perimeter players was just as valuable as his emotional play and the leadership he displayed. Tonight I saw Gant beating his chest, coaching his teammates, yelling at the crowd to get up and get loud. The passion was evident and Gant was quoted after the game saying he nearly cried following the win. He wanted this game badly and it showed. Let's hope he can continue to be the type of leader this team has been sorely missing.
Abdul Gaddy played another silent game, but did a much better job of attacking the hoop than in previous weeks. Gaddy was 2-5 from the field, 3-4 from the line, and delivered 5 assists. His 4 turnovers marred an otherwise solid outing. I don't know what it is going to take to get Gaddy to go back to the level of play he displayed in the first half of conference lasts season. Maybe he'll never quite get back to that after his ACL tear. Either way, he needs to adjust his game by either getting back in the lane or starting to develop a reliable outside shot that will force defenders to step out, opening the lanes for his teammates.
Desmond Simmons seems to have hit the freshman wall as of late. He played only 11 minutes despite starting, grabbed only 2 rebounds, and missed both shot attempts including an ugly airball. Not much to say about his game due to his limited play time.
C.J. Wilcox looked rusty tonight. Maybe the lack of practices are finally catching up a bit. Wilcox was only 1 of 4 from the field, but drilled all 4 of his free throws, which were immensely important to the Husky win. While I understand and appreciate the need for Wilcox to rest during the week for the games, the fact Wilcox is limited to only 50 jump shots per practice seems a bit absurd to me. Let him take 75 or 100, I highly doubt that will have a huge effect on his injury. Hopefully the Huskies can get things done in a big way against USC (who lost to WSU by only 3, mildly concerning) and both him and Wroten can get their rest and let others gain some valuable play time.
Shawn Kemp played some very strong minutes and had one of his better games. All 4 points came off of dunks, including a very impressive trail play leading to a powerful jam, a small reminder of his father who is one of the best dunkers in the history of the game. ASJ played only 5 minutes and picked up 2 fouls.
Terrence Ross. My man. Please play all 40 minutes like you do the final 10. If you do, you will score 30 points a game, each and every night. Heck, I'll settle for Ross playing two solid halves of basketball versus one half of pure athleticism and skill. Ross played another amazing second half to rally the Dawgs. He caught alley-oops for sweet jams, he drained shots from 25 feet, checking his heat and finding himself on fire, he even pulled off a Top 10 worthy (though he was snubbed somehow) lay-in that shouldn't even be physically possible. After spinning off his defender, Ross was fouled and knocked to the ground, but still managed to get a shot off and it banked home for the AND-1, which put the Dawgs on top. Speaking of banks, Ross drained a ridiculous bank shot at the end of the first half to give the Huskies the 1 point lead. Ross also pulled off a crazy double cross over move that was worthy of some recognition. Ross had 4 rebounds on top of 22 points, 1 steal, two nice blocks, and 3 turnovers. If Ross can put together another impressive game against USC, he will likely win Player of the Week.
What Needed Improvement:
Terrence Ross-First Half:
I would like to see a game where Ross scores 8-10 in the first half. I'm not sure how many games this season Ross has had 4 or less points going into the break, but it is far too many. It needs to change. Not sure what the difference is for Ross, but I guarantee the heart of it is mental.
Ball Control:
The Huskies committed 10 turnovers in the first half and finished the game with 16. Not good by any stretch of the imagination. Too many times the Dawgs would throw the ball out of bounds. UCLA was credited with 10 steals, but I don't recall that many occurring. The Husky guards have been really sloppy as of late and that won't win us any games. The Dawgs also managed only 10 assists, far below the goals and abilities of this team. Got to get this righted for the final half of the year.
What was Good:
Terrence Ross-Second Half:
He is a true closer and is everything in the second half that LeBron James isn't. The kid has a will to win and once the shots start dropping, he can't be stopped. Ross went 9-12 from the field and a perfect 2-2 from deep and dominated the second half. Ross didn't miss in the second half until there were only 25 seconds on the clock.
Gant's Leadership:
His words helped organize the team, his fire pumped up the crowd, and his first half helped the Dawgs take an early lead despite their short comings. Loved the game Gant played today. If Wroten is hurt on Saturday and does not start, I would like to see the Dawgs bust out a 3 forward line-up with Gant back in the starting 5 along side N'Diaye and Simmons.
The Crowd:
The crowd is finally getting into this team again and it is showing up on the home court. The turning point was the WSU come back game. It got loud and people had fun. Now that they have tasted what a truly great college atmosphere is like, they want more and are getting it by creating it themselves. This team is young, and young players thrive on the emotion of the crowd.
Final Thoughts:
This game could have been a blow out if the Dawgs didn't try to throw it away in the first half. The Huskies pulled off another impressive come back and fought off an improving UCLA team. Terrence Ross was a catalyst once more and Gant continued to improve his game and attitude. Thank you, Arizona, for knocking off Cal on their home court and giving us sole possession of first place. With an injured USC team on the horizon, the Huskies can maintain their lead and should ASU pull off a surprising come back, the Dawgs can increase their lead. The Dawgs have one last home-stand after this weekend against the Arizona schools as well as road trips to Oregon, WSU, and the LA schools. The toughest games will likely come against UCLA, WSU, and Oregon as all 3 tend to be superb on their home courts. The Huskies can ill afford more than 2 losses the remainder of the regular season, but with the way this team has been performing, I am confident they can pull out some more grinding, dirty wins away from Hec-Ed. Let's get it done boys and bring home that banner.
Go Dawgs!
Showing posts with label Bruins. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bruins. Show all posts
Friday, February 3, 2012
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
University of California: Los Angeles Game Preview
Just a quick note about tomorrow's game before I get into the preview. If you are attending the game, the athletic department is planning a 70's night theme. So bring your best 70's gear and rock out. It was originally planned as a Lorenzo Romar throwback night, okay-ed by the coach himself, but then someone (who's name I was not informed of) got their panties in a bunch about some dumb issue, which resulting in changing the theme to 70's night to preserve the core of their game day plans. On to the preview!
This is how UCLA's year has gone.
After looking like the powerhouse of the Pac-12, UCLA suffered some humiliating losses in the early non-con and have had to drag their way out of the basement, back into some semblance of a competitive team. The Bruins have stumbled to a 12-9 (5-4 in conference) record, leaving them tied for 5th place alongside Stanford and Arizona. Their record includes two very ugly home losses to Loyola Marymount 69-58 and a humongous 20 point loss 86-66 to Middle Tennessee.
ESPN penned a nice article a while back, which I sadly cannot find again, about the Wear twins and how they are holding UCLA back. Essentially, the article argues that the Wear twins are the same player, so playing both on the court at the same time is wasteful and severely reduces game planning ability. If someone happens upon the link, please add it in the comment section.
UCLA has yet to tally a quality win, much like the rest of the Pac-12, the big difference has been bad losses to non-tournament teams. Their team has played better as of late, especially with Reeves Nelson no longer part of the team. The Bruins come into this game with two straight wins over newcomers Colorado and Utah after getting swept on the road by the Oregon schools. This has been the Bruins' story throughout conference play, solid games at home, weak performances on the road. This should be huge and with the Bruins historically playing bad basketball at Hec-Ed, the Dawgs should definitely be considered the favorites coming into the match.
The Bruins are a forward heavy team, lacking in solid guard play, which has certainly been the core of their problems. Lazeric Jones has had to really step up his play for UCLA to find any type of success and has been doing a very reasonable job of playing above his past levels. Jones is currently first on the team in both scoring and assists with 13.4 and 4.6 per game respectively. He is also first in turnovers per game with 2.5, something the Dawgs should be looking to heavily exploit. Personally, I would like to see Tony Wroten guard Jones as Wroten is a much better defender than Gaddy (2 steals per game versus .7 indicates more stringent defense, though Wroten has been known to miss assignments on occasion). Jones is just one of several respectable shooters on the team, hitting 37% of his shots behind the arc and 44% from the field. Jones is a respectable free throw shooter with a 75% average on the season. Keeping Jones in check will be critical for the Husky defense as the UCLA offense runs primarily through Jones.
The Wear twins each average at least 10 points per game (Travis is averaging 12 per game) and 5 rebounds (David is picking up 6 per game). Both are solid post players with a great inside shot and show decent mobility on the wings, though David is the better shooter of the pair with 9 makes on 15 attempts to Travis' 3 makes on 6 attempts. Travis is the better foul shooter. At 6-10 225lb, the twins are tall enough to do shoot over their defenders, but thin enough to move past them as well. Aziz N'Diaye should have the muscle to take either of them to the rack without too much difficulty and should be able to keep the twins out of the paint as well. Austin Serferian-Jenkins may be undersized compared to the twins, but is much stronger and likely much faster than either, which will be important if they begin to rove around the perimeter.
Josh Smith. The kid could be an athlete, a dominate one at that, but his weight issues continue to hold him back. Smith averages only 17 minutes per game, but is solidly over 300lbs. Smith often uses his girth to push others out of his way, but as I said with the Wear twins, our post players have distinct strength advantages. Smith scores an average of 9.7 points and 5 boards per game. Smith is not a great shooter outside the paint and is almost as bad of a free throw shooter as N'Diaye, hitting only 53 of 93 attempts from the foul line. Smith also averages 2 turnovers per game. If the Dawgs can play tight defense, they can cause real havoc due to the poor ball handling UCLA often displays.
Tyler Lamb and Jermine Anderson may be the most dynamic and potentially explosive players for the Bruins. They each average around 9 points, 3 rebounds, as well as 3-4 assists per game. Both commit nearly 2 turnovers per game. Their shooting percentages are nearly identical and have made 25 and 23 3-pointers respectively. Lamb scored a season high 26 against California, while Anderson had 20 against Chaminade, a DII school, in the Maui Invitational.
Predicted Starting Line-Ups:
UCLA:
Lazeric Jones 6-0 187lb
Jermaine Anderson 6-2 183lb
Tyler Lamb 6-5 200lb
Travis Wear 6-10 220lb
David Wear 6-10 225lb
Washington:
Abdul Gaddy 6-3 185lb
Tony Wroten 6-5 205lb
Terrence Ross 6-6 195lb
Desmond Simmons 6-7 225lb
Aziz N'Diaye 7-0 260lb
Keys to the Game:
Rebounding:
Offensive boards were the number 1 reason the Huskies won their game against the Wildcats last Saturday. Rebounds will continue to be the biggest key to success. The Husky offense has been slumping lately from deep, due mainly to the absence of C.J. Wilcox from the line-up. Speaking of Wilcox, he will not practice the remainder of the season and will be day-to-day for games, much like B-Roy his junior season. Our players have superior strength and size, despite UCLA's depth in the frontcourt, and must utilize this to box their men out and clear house on the glass.
Backcourt Defense:
The Husky backcourt defense is definitely the strong point of our team and where UCLA's offense is weakest in terms of ball handling. If the Dawgs can abuse this and get into transition, they stand a very good chance of blowing UCLA out of the water. The UCLA big men are not good in transition, especially Smith, and getting numbers in our favor will be much easier this way.
Free Throws:
I really don't know what to say that I haven't already said a thousand times. Free throws win ball games and with some home cooking hopefully heading our way, the Dawgs need to capitalize or risk keeping UCLA in the game. The best way for our team to get and score free throws is by having Wilcox and Ross attack the lanes. They are great foul shooters and are extremely capable in the paint.
Final Thoughts:
This is a very winnable game for the Dawgs and one has to think that with the Arizona win still in the back of their minds, the Huskies are feeling strong and capable. Hopefully this means a big time win and an impressive home showing, something that hasn't truly happened since the opening tournament. I would really like to see this squad control the game from the opening tip, keeping their foot on the Bruins' necks until the final minute. Too often, the Huskies slow their game down in the waning minutes and allows the opposition to close the gap. I'm all for getting our bench players in, but at this point in the season and our current weak standing, in terms of a tournament resume, we need all the big time wins we can get. This means going hard the full 40 minutes versus killing the clock.
Final Score Prediction: UW-88 UCLA-74
This is how UCLA's year has gone.
After looking like the powerhouse of the Pac-12, UCLA suffered some humiliating losses in the early non-con and have had to drag their way out of the basement, back into some semblance of a competitive team. The Bruins have stumbled to a 12-9 (5-4 in conference) record, leaving them tied for 5th place alongside Stanford and Arizona. Their record includes two very ugly home losses to Loyola Marymount 69-58 and a humongous 20 point loss 86-66 to Middle Tennessee.
ESPN penned a nice article a while back, which I sadly cannot find again, about the Wear twins and how they are holding UCLA back. Essentially, the article argues that the Wear twins are the same player, so playing both on the court at the same time is wasteful and severely reduces game planning ability. If someone happens upon the link, please add it in the comment section.
UCLA has yet to tally a quality win, much like the rest of the Pac-12, the big difference has been bad losses to non-tournament teams. Their team has played better as of late, especially with Reeves Nelson no longer part of the team. The Bruins come into this game with two straight wins over newcomers Colorado and Utah after getting swept on the road by the Oregon schools. This has been the Bruins' story throughout conference play, solid games at home, weak performances on the road. This should be huge and with the Bruins historically playing bad basketball at Hec-Ed, the Dawgs should definitely be considered the favorites coming into the match.
The Bruins are a forward heavy team, lacking in solid guard play, which has certainly been the core of their problems. Lazeric Jones has had to really step up his play for UCLA to find any type of success and has been doing a very reasonable job of playing above his past levels. Jones is currently first on the team in both scoring and assists with 13.4 and 4.6 per game respectively. He is also first in turnovers per game with 2.5, something the Dawgs should be looking to heavily exploit. Personally, I would like to see Tony Wroten guard Jones as Wroten is a much better defender than Gaddy (2 steals per game versus .7 indicates more stringent defense, though Wroten has been known to miss assignments on occasion). Jones is just one of several respectable shooters on the team, hitting 37% of his shots behind the arc and 44% from the field. Jones is a respectable free throw shooter with a 75% average on the season. Keeping Jones in check will be critical for the Husky defense as the UCLA offense runs primarily through Jones.
The Wear twins each average at least 10 points per game (Travis is averaging 12 per game) and 5 rebounds (David is picking up 6 per game). Both are solid post players with a great inside shot and show decent mobility on the wings, though David is the better shooter of the pair with 9 makes on 15 attempts to Travis' 3 makes on 6 attempts. Travis is the better foul shooter. At 6-10 225lb, the twins are tall enough to do shoot over their defenders, but thin enough to move past them as well. Aziz N'Diaye should have the muscle to take either of them to the rack without too much difficulty and should be able to keep the twins out of the paint as well. Austin Serferian-Jenkins may be undersized compared to the twins, but is much stronger and likely much faster than either, which will be important if they begin to rove around the perimeter.
Josh Smith. The kid could be an athlete, a dominate one at that, but his weight issues continue to hold him back. Smith averages only 17 minutes per game, but is solidly over 300lbs. Smith often uses his girth to push others out of his way, but as I said with the Wear twins, our post players have distinct strength advantages. Smith scores an average of 9.7 points and 5 boards per game. Smith is not a great shooter outside the paint and is almost as bad of a free throw shooter as N'Diaye, hitting only 53 of 93 attempts from the foul line. Smith also averages 2 turnovers per game. If the Dawgs can play tight defense, they can cause real havoc due to the poor ball handling UCLA often displays.
Tyler Lamb and Jermine Anderson may be the most dynamic and potentially explosive players for the Bruins. They each average around 9 points, 3 rebounds, as well as 3-4 assists per game. Both commit nearly 2 turnovers per game. Their shooting percentages are nearly identical and have made 25 and 23 3-pointers respectively. Lamb scored a season high 26 against California, while Anderson had 20 against Chaminade, a DII school, in the Maui Invitational.
Predicted Starting Line-Ups:
UCLA:
Lazeric Jones 6-0 187lb
Jermaine Anderson 6-2 183lb
Tyler Lamb 6-5 200lb
Travis Wear 6-10 220lb
David Wear 6-10 225lb
Washington:
Abdul Gaddy 6-3 185lb
Tony Wroten 6-5 205lb
Terrence Ross 6-6 195lb
Desmond Simmons 6-7 225lb
Aziz N'Diaye 7-0 260lb
Keys to the Game:
Rebounding:
Offensive boards were the number 1 reason the Huskies won their game against the Wildcats last Saturday. Rebounds will continue to be the biggest key to success. The Husky offense has been slumping lately from deep, due mainly to the absence of C.J. Wilcox from the line-up. Speaking of Wilcox, he will not practice the remainder of the season and will be day-to-day for games, much like B-Roy his junior season. Our players have superior strength and size, despite UCLA's depth in the frontcourt, and must utilize this to box their men out and clear house on the glass.
Backcourt Defense:
The Husky backcourt defense is definitely the strong point of our team and where UCLA's offense is weakest in terms of ball handling. If the Dawgs can abuse this and get into transition, they stand a very good chance of blowing UCLA out of the water. The UCLA big men are not good in transition, especially Smith, and getting numbers in our favor will be much easier this way.
Free Throws:
I really don't know what to say that I haven't already said a thousand times. Free throws win ball games and with some home cooking hopefully heading our way, the Dawgs need to capitalize or risk keeping UCLA in the game. The best way for our team to get and score free throws is by having Wilcox and Ross attack the lanes. They are great foul shooters and are extremely capable in the paint.
Final Thoughts:
This is a very winnable game for the Dawgs and one has to think that with the Arizona win still in the back of their minds, the Huskies are feeling strong and capable. Hopefully this means a big time win and an impressive home showing, something that hasn't truly happened since the opening tournament. I would really like to see this squad control the game from the opening tip, keeping their foot on the Bruins' necks until the final minute. Too often, the Huskies slow their game down in the waning minutes and allows the opposition to close the gap. I'm all for getting our bench players in, but at this point in the season and our current weak standing, in terms of a tournament resume, we need all the big time wins we can get. This means going hard the full 40 minutes versus killing the clock.
Final Score Prediction: UW-88 UCLA-74
Sunday, October 30, 2011
University of California: Los Angelas 2011-2012 Preview
UCLA finished second in the conference last season with a 13-5 record and 24-11 overall. The Bruins will be a scary team this season. With 6 returning seniors, Josh Smith, and the Wear Twins, UCLA will have a lot of talent especially in the front court. They will be tall, strong, and skilled. A very dangerous combination that makes them the clear front runner in the Pac-12 and likely a top 20 to top 15 team. Their guard play may be slightly weaker than in previous seasons with the early departure of Malcolm Lee (he went in the second round to the Chicago Bulls and then was traded to Minnesota) and Tyler Honeycutt (picked in the second round by Sacramento).
UCLA brings in 3 new freshmen as well as gaining the eligibility of the Wear twins to pump up their roster. They have 6 players standing 6-8 or taller, including 4 players at 6-10. No one is shorter than 6-0 on the team.
Key Losses:
Malcolm Lee 6-5 200lb
Lee was a great PG and SG talent for the Bruins. He was second in scoring behind Reeves Nelson at 13 points per game as well as dishing out 2 assists per outing. His outside shot was a little suspect at only 30%, but he had a dangerous slashing drive attack that gave him a lot of opportunities in the key. Lee had great ball handling and defensive skills that made a huge mismatch for opposing point guards. He had the height to shoot over smaller guards and the speed to move around stronger opponents. Big loss for the Bruins. Lazeric Jones and Jermine Anderson will have to step up their games to fill the gap.
Tyler Honeycutt 6-8 188lb
Honeycutt was third in scoring for the Bruins at nearly 13 points per game. He was second in rebounding behind Reeves Nelson and ahead of Josh Smith. In my mind, Honeycutt could have used another year to develop his game, but he and the NBA decided he was ready and it probably has a lot to do with his height. Honeycutt did struggle at times against solid defenders and against UW he had trouble getting open shots (he went 4-12 and 0-6 from the field in two games against UW). Honeycutt is very similar to UW's Terrance Ross in that he has a wide skill set from outside shooting to driving the lane and crashing the boards. Brendan Lane and Tyler Lamb will likely try to fill the hole left by Honeycutt.
Incoming Freshmen:
Khalid McCaskill 6-6 190lb
A new walk-on for the Bruins, replacing Alex Schrempf who has transferred to UW but will not play this season. McCaskill is known for his driving abilities, but also possesses a decent jump shot. I suspect McCaskill will redshirt or see very little if any play time. Even with a lack of talented depth in the backcourt, McCaskill is a ways back in the line-up.
Norman Powell 6-3 200lb
Powell is a slash and drive guard first and foremost. His mid-range and 3 point shot are still in development, but with his speed and athleticism he can create opportunities for himself and other in the open court. Powell will play the 2 as his ball handling skills are rough when going to his left, something that a 1 guard needs to be able to do. Give Powell a year or two to fine tune his game and he'll be a much better guard for the Bruins.
Returning Players:
Kenny Jones 6-0 190lb
Lazeric Jones 6-0 187lb
Tyler Trapani 6-0 190lb
Nick Kazemi 6-0 175lb
Jermine Anderson 6-2 183lb
Larry Drew II 6-2 190lb
Matt DeMarcus 6-3 203lb
David Brown 6-3 185lb
Tyler Lamb 6-5 200lb
De'End Parker 6-6 215lb
Reeves Nelson 6-8 235lb
Brendan Lane 6-9 223lb
Anthony Stover 6-10 235lb
David Wear 6-10 225lb
Travis Wear 6-10 220lb
Josh Smith 6-10 305lb
Parker is a JC transfer who averaged about 12 points and 6 rebounds per game. A solid prospect with two remaining years of eligibility, Parker should contribute almost immediately at the 3 position. Smith still remains to be overweight and out of shape, which greatly limits his ability to contribute in transition plays and often led to sloppy fouls when defending outside the post. Between Nelson and the Wear twins, the Bruins have the strongest 4 and 5 possibly in the nation. A lot of rebounding and post scoring ability to be sure. Nelson is a work horse who is the returning leading scorer for UCLA at nearly 14 per game and a team high 9 rebounds. Nelson will likely average a double double next season much like former UW star Jon Brockman. I like Nelson for a possible Pac-12 Player of the Year candidate.
Predicted Starting Line-Up
Lazeric Jones 6-0 187lb
Jermine Anderson 6-2 183lb (After his two game suspension for theft)
Tyler Lamb 6-5 200lb
Reeves Nelson 6-8 235lb
Josh Smith 6-10 305lb
What to Expect:
Smith and Nelson will be the leading scorers and rebounders this season without a doubt. Smith uses his weight to make up for his lack of agility in the post to score against defenders. Aziz N'Diaye will need to keep his foul situation under control against UCLA to prevent Smith from dominating inside. UCLA has a tough tournament ahead in Maui (which UW participated in last year). UCLA's success will largely depend on how well the backcourt can move the ball around to feed it inside where their true strength lies. Expect UCLA to dominate a lot of smaller teams and even in conference they should find a few teams they can push around at will. Teams can beat UCLA by excellent guard play and defense, preventing the ball from moving inside. UW should be able to compete, but I expect a series split this season with each team winning at their home court. I can't see UCLA losing to many games in conference and should finish no lower than third, though finishing lower than second in conference should be considered disappointing considering the talent on the team.
UCLA brings in 3 new freshmen as well as gaining the eligibility of the Wear twins to pump up their roster. They have 6 players standing 6-8 or taller, including 4 players at 6-10. No one is shorter than 6-0 on the team.
Key Losses:
Malcolm Lee 6-5 200lb
Lee was a great PG and SG talent for the Bruins. He was second in scoring behind Reeves Nelson at 13 points per game as well as dishing out 2 assists per outing. His outside shot was a little suspect at only 30%, but he had a dangerous slashing drive attack that gave him a lot of opportunities in the key. Lee had great ball handling and defensive skills that made a huge mismatch for opposing point guards. He had the height to shoot over smaller guards and the speed to move around stronger opponents. Big loss for the Bruins. Lazeric Jones and Jermine Anderson will have to step up their games to fill the gap.
Tyler Honeycutt 6-8 188lb
Honeycutt was third in scoring for the Bruins at nearly 13 points per game. He was second in rebounding behind Reeves Nelson and ahead of Josh Smith. In my mind, Honeycutt could have used another year to develop his game, but he and the NBA decided he was ready and it probably has a lot to do with his height. Honeycutt did struggle at times against solid defenders and against UW he had trouble getting open shots (he went 4-12 and 0-6 from the field in two games against UW). Honeycutt is very similar to UW's Terrance Ross in that he has a wide skill set from outside shooting to driving the lane and crashing the boards. Brendan Lane and Tyler Lamb will likely try to fill the hole left by Honeycutt.
Incoming Freshmen:
Khalid McCaskill 6-6 190lb
A new walk-on for the Bruins, replacing Alex Schrempf who has transferred to UW but will not play this season. McCaskill is known for his driving abilities, but also possesses a decent jump shot. I suspect McCaskill will redshirt or see very little if any play time. Even with a lack of talented depth in the backcourt, McCaskill is a ways back in the line-up.
Norman Powell 6-3 200lb
Powell is a slash and drive guard first and foremost. His mid-range and 3 point shot are still in development, but with his speed and athleticism he can create opportunities for himself and other in the open court. Powell will play the 2 as his ball handling skills are rough when going to his left, something that a 1 guard needs to be able to do. Give Powell a year or two to fine tune his game and he'll be a much better guard for the Bruins.
Returning Players:
Kenny Jones 6-0 190lb
Lazeric Jones 6-0 187lb
Tyler Trapani 6-0 190lb
Nick Kazemi 6-0 175lb
Jermine Anderson 6-2 183lb
Larry Drew II 6-2 190lb
Matt DeMarcus 6-3 203lb
David Brown 6-3 185lb
Tyler Lamb 6-5 200lb
De'End Parker 6-6 215lb
Reeves Nelson 6-8 235lb
Brendan Lane 6-9 223lb
Anthony Stover 6-10 235lb
David Wear 6-10 225lb
Travis Wear 6-10 220lb
Josh Smith 6-10 305lb
Parker is a JC transfer who averaged about 12 points and 6 rebounds per game. A solid prospect with two remaining years of eligibility, Parker should contribute almost immediately at the 3 position. Smith still remains to be overweight and out of shape, which greatly limits his ability to contribute in transition plays and often led to sloppy fouls when defending outside the post. Between Nelson and the Wear twins, the Bruins have the strongest 4 and 5 possibly in the nation. A lot of rebounding and post scoring ability to be sure. Nelson is a work horse who is the returning leading scorer for UCLA at nearly 14 per game and a team high 9 rebounds. Nelson will likely average a double double next season much like former UW star Jon Brockman. I like Nelson for a possible Pac-12 Player of the Year candidate.
Predicted Starting Line-Up
Lazeric Jones 6-0 187lb
Jermine Anderson 6-2 183lb (After his two game suspension for theft)
Tyler Lamb 6-5 200lb
Reeves Nelson 6-8 235lb
Josh Smith 6-10 305lb
What to Expect:
Smith and Nelson will be the leading scorers and rebounders this season without a doubt. Smith uses his weight to make up for his lack of agility in the post to score against defenders. Aziz N'Diaye will need to keep his foul situation under control against UCLA to prevent Smith from dominating inside. UCLA has a tough tournament ahead in Maui (which UW participated in last year). UCLA's success will largely depend on how well the backcourt can move the ball around to feed it inside where their true strength lies. Expect UCLA to dominate a lot of smaller teams and even in conference they should find a few teams they can push around at will. Teams can beat UCLA by excellent guard play and defense, preventing the ball from moving inside. UW should be able to compete, but I expect a series split this season with each team winning at their home court. I can't see UCLA losing to many games in conference and should finish no lower than third, though finishing lower than second in conference should be considered disappointing considering the talent on the team.
Friday, March 4, 2011
University of California Los Angeles Review 2
Final Score: UW-70 UCLA-63
After a bit of celebration I return you to your regularly scheduled readings.
In what was another sloppy night offensively for the majority of the Huskies, C.J. Wilcox shone bright in the night sky. After going scoreless on 0-2 shooting in the first half, C.J. Wilcox came out and hit the first 5 Husky points and went on to douse the Bruins with 24 points on 7-10 shooting (7-8 in the second half), including 4-7 from range and a perfect 6-6 from the free throw line. He put the team on his back.
Matthew Bryan-Amaning, Justin Holiday, and Isaiah Thomas combined for a miserable 7-34 from the field. MBA once again finished a terrible 3-11 from the field and continued to short change his shorts instead of shooting strong and letting the backboard do its job. I.T. was just as bad ending the night 3-12. Holiday was 1-8.
UW and UCLA battled back and forth on the glass and both teams ended with 40 a piece. UCLA was led by Josh Smith at 16 boards. MBA picked up 13 and Aziz N'Diaye added his own 8.
Holiday led with a game high 5 assists, followed by I.T. and Scott Suggs at 3 a piece. Reeves Nelson led UCLA with 3 assists.
The Huskies shooting struggles both from the field and free throw line continued tonight. Sadly, their defensive lapses hinder their overall defensive intensity and effectiveness. UW finished with 5 blocks, 5 steals, and 18 forced turnovers. They also finished 20-28 from the line and a horrifying 22-61 from the field. Wilcox had 4 of UW's 6 made 3 pointers on 15 attempts.
Terrence Ross did not play in the second half due to Overton and Wilcox playing terrific games and only played 4 minutes total and was scoreless, missing his lone attempt.
Suggs played a solid 18 minutes of basketball after returning from his MCL injury. He was 1-3 from the field and aced both his free throws. He added in 1 rebound, 3 assists, 1 awesome block, and 2 steals.
I.T. was miserable tonight. Between him and MBA I don't know whose shot was worse, but both of them should have joined Holiday in the auxiliary gym after the game for some work on their game. Props to Holiday for continuing his lonesome workouts and wanting to improve his game to help out his team as well as his future career.
UW had a few fantastic blocks on transition lay-in attempts by UCLA. To my recollection I counted 3. Each one of them as impressive as the others. UW's defensive effort tonight was impressive, too bad their offensive game couldn't have joined the party. This is the second straight game, at home at that, in which the Dawgs have struggled to find their rhythm. UW has C.J. Wilcox alone to thank for the win. He single-handedly took this team by the hand and brought back the W. He had 24 of UW's 46 points (18 of 34 when excluding free throws). UW must get their shot back in time for the post season.
Maybe someone who reads this blog can answer me this question? Why do people have such a problem with the Dawg Pack making fun of Josh Smith for being fat? One of the media heads told us we could do anything, including hold up McDonald's signs and other fast food paraphernalia, but making fat jokes was not OK. We couldn't use those jokes because they were personal comments. ALL THE DAWG PACK DOES IS MAKE PERSONAL COMMENTS!!!!!! He is fat, not crippled. He is a D1 athlete. His weight is a choice he makes just as much as his haircut or tattoos. We aren't criticizing his race or even religion for that matter (something else he chooses). Why is his fatness off limits?
Anyways, I digress. This was a frustrating game because if we hit the shots we should, this would have been a blowout early on and a 30 point win by nights end.
What was Good
C.J. Wilcox's Second Half
24 points. Enough said.
Rebounding
40-40 ain't too shabby, especially when one considers how strong UCLA's frontcourt is. UW had 18 offensive boards, led by MBA at 7.
Defensive Effort
Brilliant work on the defensive end. If you watch the game you will see the hustle, drive, and tenacity that at one time had them recognized as a legitimate National Title contender.
What Needed Improvement
Shooting
22-61 is not good. We are the number 2 offense in the nation. Let's act like it please. We need better shot selection and I.T. needs to drive instead of this fake in nonsense that has led to just terrible shooting. MBA needs to put some damn oomph behind his shot and hit the glass instead of trying to swish everything. It's not a 3 point shot, big man, throw it off the glass. It is there for your help and assistance.
Free Throw Shooting
I am sick of writing free throw shooting under needs improvement. How about we shoot our damn gimmes like a champ for once. UCLA went 12-13. WSU went 32-36. That is how you shoot free throws. Not 20-28. Wilcox knows how to make a free throw. He went 6-6, he was awesome.
Player by Player Reviews
Justin Holiday
Defensively amazing performance. He held Honeycutt to 6 points, all off of free throws. Honeycutt was 0-6 from the field. Offensively he left a lot to be desired. 1-8 shooting, 1-2 from the arc, is well below his standards. Holiday hit the gym after the game and for that I give him two thumbs up. His 6 boards, 5 assists, and block help make up for his 3 turnovers.
Grade: B-
Matthew Bryan-Amaning
3-11 shooting. Horrible. 13 boards. Nice. 1-2 free throws. Meh. 1 assist, 1 turnover, 1 steal. Not bad. Overall MBA was a mess, but I appreciate the glass work. Where has his shot gone? He had done such good work improving his numbers only to have gone a combined 6-22 the past 2 games. Not good to see at all. With Aziz still developing offensively, MBA remains our lone post threat. He needs to step up his game and finish strong at the hoop.
Grade: B-
Venoy Overton
Brought the fire and old V.O. out tonight. 3-3 from the field and a below average 4-7 from the charity line. 0 assists and 2 turnovers. Got called for a bogus "block" call that was clearly a second offensive push off. The refs of the Pac-10 are terrible and they are lucky Overton and Anderson didn't start pushing, shoving, and punching. Ran the transition game extremely well tonight. He is extremely quick and did a nice job staying in front of the quick UCLA guards as well as pushing the tempo of the game.
Grade: B+
Brendan Sherrer
Did not play.
Grade: N/A
Darnell Gant
A quieter night then I would like from him, but some pretty decent shots overall. He continues to be more aggressive and is looking to take shots instead of always passing the responsibility off to someone else. 5 points on 2-6 shooting, only 2 boards, and 1 very sweet block.
Grade: B
Scott Suggs
Suggs had a fairly solid return. For 18 minutes of play his numbers were pretty good especially in context of an MCL strain. I am beginning to feel more confident in his ability to run the team and offense, something he should not have to do his senior senior with Abdul Gaddy, Tony Wroten, and presumably Isaiah Thomas on the squad. He will not likely return to the starting role he had assumed until next season. Overton will start Saturday on senior night and Romar will likely keep C.J. in the starting role to preserve the chemistry that has been working fairly well thus far. I could be wrong.
Grade: B
Isaiah Thomas
Not a good night. 9 points, 3 from the line. He did not score until there were less than 4 minutes remaining in the game. Only 3 assists and 4 boards. He did add 2 steals to help offset his 3 turnovers. His shooting and shot selection must improve and return to the A-game level he showed during the first few weeks of Abdul's absence.
Grade: C
Aziz N'Diaye
I blame Scott Alspach for Aziz's bobbled dunk. He had a dream about it and whenever he dreams this kind of thing, it happens. Aziz needs to get some new hands. His are too tough and incapable of receiving sweet passes right now. The fact he was 2-7 is a testament to his new aggressive style of play and it is only a matter of time before he starts hitting consistently. He had 5 offensive boards tonight.
Grade: B
Antoine Hosley
Did not play.
Grade: N/A
Terrence Ross
Hard to grade a 4 minute performance. So I won't.
Grade: N/A
C.J. Wilcox
Beast MODE! His first half was forgettable, but his second half was the stuff of legends. He could not and would not miss. He put da team on his back. All the way. Cross the plane. Touchdown. His jumper is so sweet and that fouled AND1 near the arc was just ridiculous. It was a testament to how well his night had been going. MVP by far. No doubt. He won this game by himself. He will likely surrender his starting spot temporarily to Overton for senior night before taking it back for the Pac-10 tournament. This night is yours C.J., enjoy it.
Grade: A++++++++++++++++
Final Thoughts
A fairly nice pick me up after a sobering loss to WSU at home. Not a great offensive night, but the defensive effort was everything you could ask from a team. Hustle plays win games (and free throws). The game at USC is extremely important. If UW wins and UCLA loses, UW will have the 2 seed in the Pac-10 tournament and will play one of the 7-10 seeds who play an extra game the day before. If UW wins and UCLA wins then UCLA will take second at least and UW will remain in 3rd regardless. UCLA needs Arizona to lose for them to have a shot at part of the title.
*EDIT*
Thank you Romar for finally running a damn press early in the game. Even soft on ball pressure made their offense a little more sketchy. 18 turnover, 5 blocks, 5 steals. You can't tell me that wasn't because we pressed hard.
After a bit of celebration I return you to your regularly scheduled readings.
In what was another sloppy night offensively for the majority of the Huskies, C.J. Wilcox shone bright in the night sky. After going scoreless on 0-2 shooting in the first half, C.J. Wilcox came out and hit the first 5 Husky points and went on to douse the Bruins with 24 points on 7-10 shooting (7-8 in the second half), including 4-7 from range and a perfect 6-6 from the free throw line. He put the team on his back.
Matthew Bryan-Amaning, Justin Holiday, and Isaiah Thomas combined for a miserable 7-34 from the field. MBA once again finished a terrible 3-11 from the field and continued to short change his shorts instead of shooting strong and letting the backboard do its job. I.T. was just as bad ending the night 3-12. Holiday was 1-8.
UW and UCLA battled back and forth on the glass and both teams ended with 40 a piece. UCLA was led by Josh Smith at 16 boards. MBA picked up 13 and Aziz N'Diaye added his own 8.
Holiday led with a game high 5 assists, followed by I.T. and Scott Suggs at 3 a piece. Reeves Nelson led UCLA with 3 assists.
The Huskies shooting struggles both from the field and free throw line continued tonight. Sadly, their defensive lapses hinder their overall defensive intensity and effectiveness. UW finished with 5 blocks, 5 steals, and 18 forced turnovers. They also finished 20-28 from the line and a horrifying 22-61 from the field. Wilcox had 4 of UW's 6 made 3 pointers on 15 attempts.
Terrence Ross did not play in the second half due to Overton and Wilcox playing terrific games and only played 4 minutes total and was scoreless, missing his lone attempt.
Suggs played a solid 18 minutes of basketball after returning from his MCL injury. He was 1-3 from the field and aced both his free throws. He added in 1 rebound, 3 assists, 1 awesome block, and 2 steals.
I.T. was miserable tonight. Between him and MBA I don't know whose shot was worse, but both of them should have joined Holiday in the auxiliary gym after the game for some work on their game. Props to Holiday for continuing his lonesome workouts and wanting to improve his game to help out his team as well as his future career.
UW had a few fantastic blocks on transition lay-in attempts by UCLA. To my recollection I counted 3. Each one of them as impressive as the others. UW's defensive effort tonight was impressive, too bad their offensive game couldn't have joined the party. This is the second straight game, at home at that, in which the Dawgs have struggled to find their rhythm. UW has C.J. Wilcox alone to thank for the win. He single-handedly took this team by the hand and brought back the W. He had 24 of UW's 46 points (18 of 34 when excluding free throws). UW must get their shot back in time for the post season.
Maybe someone who reads this blog can answer me this question? Why do people have such a problem with the Dawg Pack making fun of Josh Smith for being fat? One of the media heads told us we could do anything, including hold up McDonald's signs and other fast food paraphernalia, but making fat jokes was not OK. We couldn't use those jokes because they were personal comments. ALL THE DAWG PACK DOES IS MAKE PERSONAL COMMENTS!!!!!! He is fat, not crippled. He is a D1 athlete. His weight is a choice he makes just as much as his haircut or tattoos. We aren't criticizing his race or even religion for that matter (something else he chooses). Why is his fatness off limits?
Anyways, I digress. This was a frustrating game because if we hit the shots we should, this would have been a blowout early on and a 30 point win by nights end.
What was Good
C.J. Wilcox's Second Half
24 points. Enough said.
Rebounding
40-40 ain't too shabby, especially when one considers how strong UCLA's frontcourt is. UW had 18 offensive boards, led by MBA at 7.
Defensive Effort
Brilliant work on the defensive end. If you watch the game you will see the hustle, drive, and tenacity that at one time had them recognized as a legitimate National Title contender.
What Needed Improvement
Shooting
22-61 is not good. We are the number 2 offense in the nation. Let's act like it please. We need better shot selection and I.T. needs to drive instead of this fake in nonsense that has led to just terrible shooting. MBA needs to put some damn oomph behind his shot and hit the glass instead of trying to swish everything. It's not a 3 point shot, big man, throw it off the glass. It is there for your help and assistance.
Free Throw Shooting
I am sick of writing free throw shooting under needs improvement. How about we shoot our damn gimmes like a champ for once. UCLA went 12-13. WSU went 32-36. That is how you shoot free throws. Not 20-28. Wilcox knows how to make a free throw. He went 6-6, he was awesome.
Player by Player Reviews
Justin Holiday
Defensively amazing performance. He held Honeycutt to 6 points, all off of free throws. Honeycutt was 0-6 from the field. Offensively he left a lot to be desired. 1-8 shooting, 1-2 from the arc, is well below his standards. Holiday hit the gym after the game and for that I give him two thumbs up. His 6 boards, 5 assists, and block help make up for his 3 turnovers.
Grade: B-
Matthew Bryan-Amaning
3-11 shooting. Horrible. 13 boards. Nice. 1-2 free throws. Meh. 1 assist, 1 turnover, 1 steal. Not bad. Overall MBA was a mess, but I appreciate the glass work. Where has his shot gone? He had done such good work improving his numbers only to have gone a combined 6-22 the past 2 games. Not good to see at all. With Aziz still developing offensively, MBA remains our lone post threat. He needs to step up his game and finish strong at the hoop.
Grade: B-
Venoy Overton
Brought the fire and old V.O. out tonight. 3-3 from the field and a below average 4-7 from the charity line. 0 assists and 2 turnovers. Got called for a bogus "block" call that was clearly a second offensive push off. The refs of the Pac-10 are terrible and they are lucky Overton and Anderson didn't start pushing, shoving, and punching. Ran the transition game extremely well tonight. He is extremely quick and did a nice job staying in front of the quick UCLA guards as well as pushing the tempo of the game.
Grade: B+
Brendan Sherrer
Did not play.
Grade: N/A
Darnell Gant
A quieter night then I would like from him, but some pretty decent shots overall. He continues to be more aggressive and is looking to take shots instead of always passing the responsibility off to someone else. 5 points on 2-6 shooting, only 2 boards, and 1 very sweet block.
Grade: B
Scott Suggs
Suggs had a fairly solid return. For 18 minutes of play his numbers were pretty good especially in context of an MCL strain. I am beginning to feel more confident in his ability to run the team and offense, something he should not have to do his senior senior with Abdul Gaddy, Tony Wroten, and presumably Isaiah Thomas on the squad. He will not likely return to the starting role he had assumed until next season. Overton will start Saturday on senior night and Romar will likely keep C.J. in the starting role to preserve the chemistry that has been working fairly well thus far. I could be wrong.
Grade: B
Isaiah Thomas
Not a good night. 9 points, 3 from the line. He did not score until there were less than 4 minutes remaining in the game. Only 3 assists and 4 boards. He did add 2 steals to help offset his 3 turnovers. His shooting and shot selection must improve and return to the A-game level he showed during the first few weeks of Abdul's absence.
Grade: C
Aziz N'Diaye
I blame Scott Alspach for Aziz's bobbled dunk. He had a dream about it and whenever he dreams this kind of thing, it happens. Aziz needs to get some new hands. His are too tough and incapable of receiving sweet passes right now. The fact he was 2-7 is a testament to his new aggressive style of play and it is only a matter of time before he starts hitting consistently. He had 5 offensive boards tonight.
Grade: B
Antoine Hosley
Did not play.
Grade: N/A
Terrence Ross
Hard to grade a 4 minute performance. So I won't.
Grade: N/A
C.J. Wilcox
Beast MODE! His first half was forgettable, but his second half was the stuff of legends. He could not and would not miss. He put da team on his back. All the way. Cross the plane. Touchdown. His jumper is so sweet and that fouled AND1 near the arc was just ridiculous. It was a testament to how well his night had been going. MVP by far. No doubt. He won this game by himself. He will likely surrender his starting spot temporarily to Overton for senior night before taking it back for the Pac-10 tournament. This night is yours C.J., enjoy it.
Grade: A++++++++++++++++
Final Thoughts
A fairly nice pick me up after a sobering loss to WSU at home. Not a great offensive night, but the defensive effort was everything you could ask from a team. Hustle plays win games (and free throws). The game at USC is extremely important. If UW wins and UCLA loses, UW will have the 2 seed in the Pac-10 tournament and will play one of the 7-10 seeds who play an extra game the day before. If UW wins and UCLA wins then UCLA will take second at least and UW will remain in 3rd regardless. UCLA needs Arizona to lose for them to have a shot at part of the title.
*EDIT*
Thank you Romar for finally running a damn press early in the game. Even soft on ball pressure made their offense a little more sketchy. 18 turnover, 5 blocks, 5 steals. You can't tell me that wasn't because we pressed hard.
Thursday, March 3, 2011
University of California Los Angelas Preview 2
UCLA is coming off a Pac-10 win against Arizona, final score 71-49. Reeves Nelson dominated play with 27 points and 16 rebounds. Josh Smith came off the bench to add 17 points and 4 boards. In a very feel good and almost miraculous turn of events Tyler Trapani, a walk on and great grandson of John Wooden, hit the final shot in Pauley Pavillion. You really can't ask for a better way to end the Bruins time in Pauley before its remodel.
UCLA is 21-8 on the season and tied for first in the Pac-10 at 12-4. At worst UCLA will finish second. In the idea situation for the Huskies, UCLA, UA, and UW will tie 3 ways for the title. Unlikely to happen as Arizona is playing the Oregon schools at home, a place they are undefeated this season and are likely to remain so. UW will need WSU to beat UCLA as well as beat UCLA themselves to tie for second place at 12-6.
UCLA is led by a dynamic duo of Tyler Honeycutt and Reeves Nelson. Honeycutt, 6-8 188, is a similar build to Justin Holiday, though he is slightly taller and only 3 pounds heavier. Honeycutt is a solid rebounder 7.4 rebounds per game. He also brings in 12.8 points per game. Reeves Nelson is called by many "Baby Brockman" or a poor mans Brockman. He is a tough rebounder and player, nose to the grind every minute of the game. He is currently scoring 14.0 points per game and averages 9.0 rebounds per game. UCLA also has Josh Smith starting occasionally at center. At 6-10 and supposedly 305lbs, looks like he is closer to 320, he is an imposing force. He is averaging 10.8 points and 6.2 rebounds per game in 21.0 minutes
Malcolm Lee and Lazeric Jones are the starting guards for UCLA. Jones is averaging 3.7 assists and 2.1 turnovers per game, while Lee is averaging 2.1 assists and 1.8 turnovers. They combine for 23.2 points.
UCLA runs a 9 man rotation with 3 bench players receiving significant time, the 4th averages 8.1 minutes per game. Their bench is averaging about 23 points per game led by Josh Smith. The current starting center, Anthony Stover, has been averaging .6 points per game. Not sure what he brings at the start over Smith, but it is likely due to Smith's rather rotund shape and an inability to run hard for a full 30 minutes.
UCLA is averaging 15 turnovers a game led by Honeycutt with 3.1 per game. UCLA also dishes out 15 assists per game, led by Jones at 3.7.
Josh Smith has 7 games with 4 fouls and has fouled out of 2 contest on top of that. His slow speed is a big reason why he picks up so many fouls. Isaiah Thomas was able to force Smith to foul himself out of the game by using screen plays and rolling off Smith's side to draw blocking fouls. The same tactic should work again, though Smith is considerably improved in knowing when to move his feet and when to stay planted.
Starting Line Up Predictions
UCLA
Lazeric Jones 6-0 187lb G
Malcolm 6-5 200lb G
Tyler Honeycutt 6-8 188 lb F
Reeves Nelson 6-8 235lb F
Anthony Stover 6-10 235lb C
UW
Isaiah Thomas 5-9 185lb SG
C.J. Wilcox 6-5 190lb PG
Justin Holiday 6-6 185lb F
Matthew Bryan-Amaning 6-9 240lb F
Aziz N'Diaye 7-0 260lb C
Keys to the Game
Rebounding
UCLA is a strong rebounding team. With Nelson and Honeycutt each averaging 7+ and Smith nearly grabbing 7 per game they have a strong starting group of rebounders. UCLA is averaging about 37 per game and will be tough competition for UW. Holiday will have a key match up against Honeycutt and it is extremely important he brings his A-game defensively and offensively on the glass. Box out and get position. MBA will have his work cut out for him against Nelson who is an extremely hard worker and excellent rebounder. Aziz will have to use all his muscle and size to contain Smith and Stover. Our guards will need to take advantage of their rebounding skills to help our bigs out and take some of the load off of them. UW won the rebounding battle against WSU 42-35, a solid advantage that helped offset our poor shooting a bit. Last time out against UCLA UW had a narrow rebounding margin of +3. The Huskies should build off that success and bring a similar attack plan.
Contain Honeycutt
Between Nelson and Honeycutt, Honeycutt has the biggest chance of being shutdown and is the second most impacting player on the Bruin squad. He is turnover prone and Holiday needs to take advantage of this using his long arms and great defensive skills. Containing Honeycutt and limiting not only his touches, but rebounds will greatly help our team. Look for Darnell Gant to possibly pick up the assignment at times when Holiday is on the bench. Honeycutt was held to 4-12 shooting last time, though he did manage 12 points.
Get in Transition
The UCLA guards are slightly better than last season, but are still vulnerable to tough defensive opposition like Isaiah and Overton. Smith is very slow in transition and UW needs to use this to gain numbers on the run. With both MBA and Aziz running well, look for them to get some nice transition lay-ups and dunks. MBA is more likely to be the recipient of such passes and plays as Aziz usually stays close to home on the glass. Lee is a fast player and Wilcox along with Thomas will need to play well and fast to keep pace.
Shooting
UW shot poorly through most of the WSU game and has lacked its outside touch the past few games. The Huskies need to find the hot hand and let him get some shots off. This comes down to not only Romar drawing up plays, but the team creating opportunities themselves. We need to find at least two outside shooters to give us solid flow and scoring. IT will be looking to have a field day and may find some luck against the slightly shorter UCLA line up. Smith is slow to the ball and may pick up fouls on our driving guards if he is caught out of position. Its time to shine for the freshman duo of Wilcox and Ross. With Suggs still questionable, the outside shooting falls into their capable hands. They need to be confident and smart with their shot selection. Don't be afraid to drive.
Passing
Too many turnovers against WSU along with terrible shooting killed UW. Absolutely killed them. The Huskies were impatient and lazy with the ball and it hurt them badly. With the season teetering on disaster the Dawgs can ill afford mistakes. This begins with I.T. at the point leading by example. He must pass well, show patience, and share the ball when shots aren't opening up.
Ball Handling
Goes Hand in hand with the above. Not only must our passing be crisp, but we must dribble and move with strength and skill.
Post Defense
With a strong frontcourt, MBA, Aziz, and Gant once again have their work cut out for them. They need to avoid foul trouble and use good help defense to block shots and rebound. Our bigs need to avoid silly rebounding fouls and use their strength to gain position.
Bench Play
UW and UCLA's respective benches have taken two different directions. UCLA's bench is becoming much more productive, while UW's is dwindling in size. The UCLA game was the last time we had Abdul Gaddy (shed tear). Terrence Ross, Darnell Gant, and Venoy Overton need to come off the bench with zest and tear up the court.
Final Thoughts
UW will be in another tough and grind 'um match up. UCLA is a big, physical team who will use its size to play an inside out style of game. Could we see UW utilize the zone again? Doubtful, UCLA is a better outside shooting team than mostand our team is sized and skilled in the right places to take advantage of UCLA's short comings. Nelson and Smith will prove to be tough match ups and UCLA will look to them more often than anyone else. With Holiday on Honeycutt, that option will be mostly shut down. If we can play a tough game, rebound, and get some shots dropping we will be fine. After the poor showing against WSU and the NCAA at large bid starting to become less and less certain you have to imagine the Huskies are entering into lock down desperation mode like last season. Let's hope that the Huskies do not disappoint again. I don't know if I could handle such a tough and important loss again. I want this win badly, but I have this ill feeling in my stomach the Dawgs could falter again. Still, I love this team too much to pick against them while their talents remain.
Final Score Prediction
UW-85 UCLA-80
UCLA is 21-8 on the season and tied for first in the Pac-10 at 12-4. At worst UCLA will finish second. In the idea situation for the Huskies, UCLA, UA, and UW will tie 3 ways for the title. Unlikely to happen as Arizona is playing the Oregon schools at home, a place they are undefeated this season and are likely to remain so. UW will need WSU to beat UCLA as well as beat UCLA themselves to tie for second place at 12-6.
UCLA is led by a dynamic duo of Tyler Honeycutt and Reeves Nelson. Honeycutt, 6-8 188, is a similar build to Justin Holiday, though he is slightly taller and only 3 pounds heavier. Honeycutt is a solid rebounder 7.4 rebounds per game. He also brings in 12.8 points per game. Reeves Nelson is called by many "Baby Brockman" or a poor mans Brockman. He is a tough rebounder and player, nose to the grind every minute of the game. He is currently scoring 14.0 points per game and averages 9.0 rebounds per game. UCLA also has Josh Smith starting occasionally at center. At 6-10 and supposedly 305lbs, looks like he is closer to 320, he is an imposing force. He is averaging 10.8 points and 6.2 rebounds per game in 21.0 minutes
Malcolm Lee and Lazeric Jones are the starting guards for UCLA. Jones is averaging 3.7 assists and 2.1 turnovers per game, while Lee is averaging 2.1 assists and 1.8 turnovers. They combine for 23.2 points.
UCLA runs a 9 man rotation with 3 bench players receiving significant time, the 4th averages 8.1 minutes per game. Their bench is averaging about 23 points per game led by Josh Smith. The current starting center, Anthony Stover, has been averaging .6 points per game. Not sure what he brings at the start over Smith, but it is likely due to Smith's rather rotund shape and an inability to run hard for a full 30 minutes.
UCLA is averaging 15 turnovers a game led by Honeycutt with 3.1 per game. UCLA also dishes out 15 assists per game, led by Jones at 3.7.
Josh Smith has 7 games with 4 fouls and has fouled out of 2 contest on top of that. His slow speed is a big reason why he picks up so many fouls. Isaiah Thomas was able to force Smith to foul himself out of the game by using screen plays and rolling off Smith's side to draw blocking fouls. The same tactic should work again, though Smith is considerably improved in knowing when to move his feet and when to stay planted.
Starting Line Up Predictions
UCLA
Lazeric Jones 6-0 187lb G
Malcolm 6-5 200lb G
Tyler Honeycutt 6-8 188 lb F
Reeves Nelson 6-8 235lb F
Anthony Stover 6-10 235lb C
UW
Isaiah Thomas 5-9 185lb SG
C.J. Wilcox 6-5 190lb PG
Justin Holiday 6-6 185lb F
Matthew Bryan-Amaning 6-9 240lb F
Aziz N'Diaye 7-0 260lb C
Keys to the Game
Rebounding
UCLA is a strong rebounding team. With Nelson and Honeycutt each averaging 7+ and Smith nearly grabbing 7 per game they have a strong starting group of rebounders. UCLA is averaging about 37 per game and will be tough competition for UW. Holiday will have a key match up against Honeycutt and it is extremely important he brings his A-game defensively and offensively on the glass. Box out and get position. MBA will have his work cut out for him against Nelson who is an extremely hard worker and excellent rebounder. Aziz will have to use all his muscle and size to contain Smith and Stover. Our guards will need to take advantage of their rebounding skills to help our bigs out and take some of the load off of them. UW won the rebounding battle against WSU 42-35, a solid advantage that helped offset our poor shooting a bit. Last time out against UCLA UW had a narrow rebounding margin of +3. The Huskies should build off that success and bring a similar attack plan.
Contain Honeycutt
Between Nelson and Honeycutt, Honeycutt has the biggest chance of being shutdown and is the second most impacting player on the Bruin squad. He is turnover prone and Holiday needs to take advantage of this using his long arms and great defensive skills. Containing Honeycutt and limiting not only his touches, but rebounds will greatly help our team. Look for Darnell Gant to possibly pick up the assignment at times when Holiday is on the bench. Honeycutt was held to 4-12 shooting last time, though he did manage 12 points.
Get in Transition
The UCLA guards are slightly better than last season, but are still vulnerable to tough defensive opposition like Isaiah and Overton. Smith is very slow in transition and UW needs to use this to gain numbers on the run. With both MBA and Aziz running well, look for them to get some nice transition lay-ups and dunks. MBA is more likely to be the recipient of such passes and plays as Aziz usually stays close to home on the glass. Lee is a fast player and Wilcox along with Thomas will need to play well and fast to keep pace.
Shooting
UW shot poorly through most of the WSU game and has lacked its outside touch the past few games. The Huskies need to find the hot hand and let him get some shots off. This comes down to not only Romar drawing up plays, but the team creating opportunities themselves. We need to find at least two outside shooters to give us solid flow and scoring. IT will be looking to have a field day and may find some luck against the slightly shorter UCLA line up. Smith is slow to the ball and may pick up fouls on our driving guards if he is caught out of position. Its time to shine for the freshman duo of Wilcox and Ross. With Suggs still questionable, the outside shooting falls into their capable hands. They need to be confident and smart with their shot selection. Don't be afraid to drive.
Passing
Too many turnovers against WSU along with terrible shooting killed UW. Absolutely killed them. The Huskies were impatient and lazy with the ball and it hurt them badly. With the season teetering on disaster the Dawgs can ill afford mistakes. This begins with I.T. at the point leading by example. He must pass well, show patience, and share the ball when shots aren't opening up.
Ball Handling
Goes Hand in hand with the above. Not only must our passing be crisp, but we must dribble and move with strength and skill.
Post Defense
With a strong frontcourt, MBA, Aziz, and Gant once again have their work cut out for them. They need to avoid foul trouble and use good help defense to block shots and rebound. Our bigs need to avoid silly rebounding fouls and use their strength to gain position.
Bench Play
UW and UCLA's respective benches have taken two different directions. UCLA's bench is becoming much more productive, while UW's is dwindling in size. The UCLA game was the last time we had Abdul Gaddy (shed tear). Terrence Ross, Darnell Gant, and Venoy Overton need to come off the bench with zest and tear up the court.
Final Thoughts
UW will be in another tough and grind 'um match up. UCLA is a big, physical team who will use its size to play an inside out style of game. Could we see UW utilize the zone again? Doubtful, UCLA is a better outside shooting team than mostand our team is sized and skilled in the right places to take advantage of UCLA's short comings. Nelson and Smith will prove to be tough match ups and UCLA will look to them more often than anyone else. With Holiday on Honeycutt, that option will be mostly shut down. If we can play a tough game, rebound, and get some shots dropping we will be fine. After the poor showing against WSU and the NCAA at large bid starting to become less and less certain you have to imagine the Huskies are entering into lock down desperation mode like last season. Let's hope that the Huskies do not disappoint again. I don't know if I could handle such a tough and important loss again. I want this win badly, but I have this ill feeling in my stomach the Dawgs could falter again. Still, I love this team too much to pick against them while their talents remain.
Final Score Prediction
UW-85 UCLA-80
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