Most people dread going to the dentist. But at his Tuesday press
conference, UCLA coach Ben Howland acknowledged that there’s
something out there that might have him preferring the sound of a
drill and the annual reminder to floss. That something is playing
Washington State, who the Bruins face tonight at Pauley Pavilion.
“It’s a root canal playing them,” Howland said.
“That’s what I liken it to.” So do many other
opposing coaches. The Cougars, who lead the Pac-10 in scoring
defense (55 points per game) and field goal percent defense (37
percent), may appear to bring a painstakingly slow, dreadfully
boring brand of basketball into tonight’s conference
match-up. But that patient and disciplined style has become the
trademark of third-year Washington State coach Dick Bennett, who
has the Cougars (9-3, 2-1 Pac-10) armed with as good a chance to
finally return to the NCAA Tournament as any Washington State team
since 1994. Last Saturday, the Cougars used a suffocating defense
and a draining-of-the-shot-clock offense to bring
Washington’s fast break to a halt in an impressive road
victory in Seattle. Their preference to slow games down has worked
just as well against UCLA (13-2, 3-1) the last two seasons. Though
Howland boasts a 3-1 record against Washington State since arriving
in Westwood, the Cougars have held the Bruins to under 50 points in
regulation three times. And in those three victories, UCLA only won
by a combined eight points. “They’re very, very
good,” Howland said. “They’re patient and they
are good defensively. They take good shots. They’re
disciplined. I think they’re (better than last year). We stop
today, and they’re in the tournament.” Of course so
would the Bruins, who are off to their best start since the
1994-1995 NCAA Championship team. But heading into tonight’s
contest, UCLA is simultaneously riding high on the coattails of
last weekend’s road sweep of the Arizona schools and feeling
emotionally low after learning Josh Shipp will be missing the rest
of the season due to injury. While in past years the Bruins have
had to overcome the Cougars’ slow style of play, such an
adjustment may pale in comparison to what UCLA has already had to
compensate for this season. Along with Shipp, Bruins Michael Fey,
Ryan Hollins, Cedric Bozeman, Janou Rubin, Jordan Farmar, Lorenzo
Mata and Alfred Aboya have all missed games due to injury ““
yet the Bruins are still the 11th-ranked team in the country.
“This is by far the most injuries I have ever seen of any
team, not just the teams I’ve been involved with in 25 years
of Division I coaching experience,” Howland said. “But
things even out, we’re racking up a lot of negatives right
now so that hopefully we won’t have injuries in the future.
“Ced went down and Josh came back. Now we don’t have
either one of them. So we’re in a pickle from that
standpoint. But we will compete and we will find a way.” The
Bruins have found a way for half their season already, and
there’s no reason to suggest they won’t again ““
provided that the players who are still healthy remain that
way.
INJURY UPDATE: Sophomore center Lorenzo Mata
suffered a slight fracture of his nose at some point in the first
half of UCLA’s win over Arizona State on Saturday. Though he
is not expected to miss any time, Mata will wear a protective mask
for the next two weeks and then be re-evaluated. … Still hampered
by a groin strain, senior center Ryan Hollins met with a team
physician on Tuesday and was cleared for straightforward running
and non-contact drills. Hollins, who has played in 10 games this
season, is doubtful for this week’s games. … Senior center
Michael Fey, still battling a sprained ankle, is also doubtful to
play against the Washington schools. Fey has seen action in only
seven games this season.