Though it was senior night for UCLA, an Oregon freshman captured
the greatest attention from the crowd in Pauley Pavilion
Saturday.
After the fans had their opportunity to cheer for Bruin seniors,
they quickly turned their attention to Malik Hairston. The freshman
guard, who was recruited heavily by UCLA, eventually left the
Bruins hanging by committing to Oregon. That fact was not lost on
the Bruin Den, as the student section tracked Hairston all night,
booing him whenever he had the ball.
“Seemed like I was the crowd favorite out there
tonight,” Hairston said. “I made the decision to come
to Oregon, and I’m 100 percent happy with that
decision.”
Though Oregon finished ninth in the conference after being
picked by the media to finish fourth, and UCLA has experienced a
resurgence this season, Hairston said he had no regrets whatsoever.
He cited Oregon’s style of play, its coach, and its players
as the major factors that influenced his choice.
“The atmosphere out here is beautiful, but it
doesn’t sell itself,” Hairston said. “We (Oregon)
might not have been as successful as we wanted to be this season,
but we’re going to continue to work hard.”
Like the rest of his teammates, Hairston struggled against the
Bruins, much to the screaming delight of UCLA fans. Early in the
first half his driving layup attempt was stuffed by junior Michael
Fey, leading to a rousing cheer from the Den. At his every missed
shot and at every turnover, the student section took special
pleasure at rubbing it in. Averaging 13.1 points and five rebounds
per game entering the contest, he finished with just nine points on
3-for-8 shooting, one rebound, two turnovers and four fouls in 27
minutes of action.
During his first trip to the free throw line, the students began
chanting “sellout, sellout,” and as UCLA’s lead
swelled and the victory became more secure, the chants changed to
“overrated, overrated.” Hairston made just two of his
five free throw attempts.
Still, Hairston said that he respects the tradition at UCLA and
remains on friendly terms with the Bruin freshmen.
“This is a very storied program, I’m pretty cool
with some of the guys on this team, so I have nothing against UCLA
at all,” Hairston said.
Freshman Arron Afflalo, who first met Hairston on the AAU
circuit, recognized the strangeness of playing against someone who
might have been his teammate.
“He would’ve helped us, definitely,” Afflalo
said. “He’s a good guy to hang out with. He had a rough
time with our crowd, but he’s a great competitor; you have to
respect that.”