So you’re wondering, where in the world is Michael
Fey?
Well, Ben Howland certainly has to be anyway.
At 7-feet, 250 pounds, Fey, UCLA’s starting center, should
be an imposing physical presence underneath the basket. But Fey has
been invisible since conference play began.
He failed to grab a single rebound in three straight Pac-10
games. He fouled out in 10 unproductive minutes against Arizona
State. He nearly didn’t pull down a board for a
fourth-straight game against Arizona, and unceremoniously lost his
starting job at the beginning of the second half to teammate Ryan
Hollins.
But as poorly as Fey has played of late, Howland knows that UCLA
desperately needs him to be productive.
“I’m hoping Mike Fey will get a fire lit under him
in practice this week, because we need him to perform more
aggressively for us to be a better team,” Howland said.
Fey’s streak of futility on the glass finally ended with
an offensive rebound and putback with 3:54 left in the game, long
after the outcome was decided. But that one play could prove huge
for UCLA, especially if it does inspire Fey, as Howland
suggested.
“I just wanted to get a rebound so bad in those last
minutes, just so I wouldn’t have to think about it going into
these upcoming games,” Fey said. “The ball has just
been bouncing the wrong way, and I just couldn’t buy a
rebound.”
Well, it doesn’t matter if the ball isn’t bouncing
your way. Just go get it.
Hollins had a solid game, with seven points, six rebounds and
three blocks. But defensively, the rail-thin sophomore was abused
by a future NBA post-in Channing Frye. At 248 pounds, Frye
basically got whatever position he wanted against Hollins.
Everything in this loss revolved around Arizona’s domination
along the interior.
Any time Arizona needed a basket, the team simply dropped it
down low for the easy deuce.
Remember how Arizona got open three-pointer after open
three-pointer?
“When you’ve got a dominant post and he’s
having a good game, you get caught helping down, but you’re
leaving the shooter wide open,” guard Dijon Thompson
said.
Remember when UCLA trimmed the lead down to seven and had all
the momentum?
Arizona snatched it back when Frye gave Hollins a little shove
underneath the basket, grabbed the rebound off a missed
three-pointer and put it back ““ and the Wildcats never looked
back. And while part of the blame has to go to the referees, the
physical play knocked Hollins out of the picture.
This isn’t to argue that Hollins isn’t a key cog in
Howland’s system. His length and agility was crucial in
shutting down Ike Diogu of Arizona State. In Howland’s
system, on a screen and roll, the post is required to step out and
make the opposing guard go around him to give the UCLA guard time
to get around the screen, and the post usually has to recover
quickly on the roll ““ something that Hollins will always be
better at.
But face it: Against the Arizonas and Stanfords ““ teams
that have strong low posts and shooters on the perimeter ““
UCLA needs Fey. In order to adequately defend the shooters, the
Bruins need a post who can hold his own. And Fey is the only one
strong enough to do it alone.
He will obviously have to play better. Howland awarded Fey the
starting job over Hollins after summer practices in which Fey
reportedly was active on the inside, used his strength to get
position for rebounds and showed his offensive touch around the
basket. But lately, his aggressiveness has been missing.
Howland pondered openly if he should go to the zone the next
time UCLA faces Arizona. If so, to have any chance at success, Fey
will have to be at his best. By zoning, Arizona will get more
offensive rebound opportunities, and both Fey and Hollins have to
clear the boards, or else UCLA may be looking at a similar result
in Tucson.
Does Fey remind anyone other than Howland of the late
Bison Dele? E-mail Bruce at btran@media.ucla.edu.