TEMPE, Ariz. “”mdash; All UCLA coach Ben Howland talked about
leading up to this week’s game was Arizona State’s Ike
Diogu, so it came as no surprise that he continued to praise the
standout forward after the game. What was somewhat startling,
however, was that the Bruins were able to hold Diogu in check.
Sending two and three defenders at a time at Diogu, the
Pac-10’s leading scorer and rebounder, UCLA frustrated the
6-foot-9 junior and limited his effectiveness down the stretch. It
was a sign of Howland’s respect for Diogu, who still managed
15 points and nine rebounds but was not a factor late in the game.
“You could see he was getting frustrated,” said UCLA
center Michael Fey, who was primarily responsible for guarding
Diogu. “He was forcing some shots in the first half. We knew
we couldn’t let him go off in the second half, so we just had
to keep doing the same things ““ doubling him and keeping him
frustrated.” Fending off multiple defenders is nothing new
for Diogu, who was averaging 23 points and 12 rebounds per game.
Yet 7-footers Fey and Ryan Hollins continually hounded Diogu and
never let him get into a rhythm. Diogu missed seven of his nine
first-half shots, finishing 6-for-16 from the field. He
didn’t score until nearly eight minutes elapsed in the first
half, and also missed four of his seven free-throw attempts.
“There’s no one guy in college basketball who can guard
Ike Diogu, but we did a good job doubling him,” Howland said.
“It’s the only way we could give ourselves a
chance.” Howland told his players to double Diogu whenever he
got the ball on the block, but the Bruins didn’t follow his
directions. “We were coming even if he was two or three feet
off the block,” Hollins said. “We knew we had to be
aggressive.” The strategy proved effective as Diogu seemed
unsure how to contend with it. He floated to the perimeter several
times, and threw up a few shots in heavy traffic. By the second
half, Diogu was reduced to a spectator for long stretches of play.
A lot of the credit has to go to Fey, who refused to let Diogu get
good position near the basket. “That was the best job Mike
has done on Diogu since he’s been here,” Hollins said.
“He’s my MVP.”
LONG RANGE: Of all the Bruins capable of hitting a key
second-half 3-pointer, junior Ryan Hollins might be the most
unlikely. Yet it was the 7-foot Hollins who clanked in a 20-footer
to put UCLA ahead 67-57 with less than eight minutes remaining in
the game. It was the first-ever 3-pointer for Hollins, who appeared
to have his left foot on the line. “It’s my first
3-pointer,” Hollins said, “so I’ll take
it.” NEW ROUTINE: Arron Afflalo elected to change his
free-throw routine from five dribbles to one dribble on Thursday
morning, and it proved to be a good decision a few hours later.
Afflalo, who entered the game shooting 69 percent from the line,
sank a pair of free throws with 7.7 seconds remaining in the game
to give UCLA an 86-82 lead. “I’m happy I made the
switch,” Afflalo said. “I’m even happier they
went in.”