Mata’s knee the latest in string of UCLA injuries

UCLA was 3 minutes, 5 seconds away on Thursday from not having
to answer any injury-related questions for the first time in a long
time. Instead, the Bruins are now faced with several more hours of
medical tests and uncertainty. Late in UCLA’s 63-61 victory
over Washington State, Bruin center Lorenzo Mata injured his right
knee after colliding with teammate Jordan Farmar while going after
a loose ball. The sophomore, already donning a face mask to protect
a fractured nose, pounded the court in obvious pain after suffering
the injury, and was limping noticeably toward the locker room after
the game. The results of Thursday night’s MRI will determine
if Mata will play Saturday against No. 10 Washington. Though UCLA
coach Ben Howland said the team physician indicated that
Mata’s knee was stable after the initial on-court
examination, he said that is not the tell-tale sign as to the
severity of the injury. “I hope Lorenzo is OK,” Howland
said. “I thought he played very well again for us tonight,
especially defensively. He’s very, very important to this
team.” The 6-foot-8 sophomore had recently shored up the
Bruins’ starting center position, having started the last six
games for an injury-decimated UCLA. So far this season, Mata is
averaging 5 points and 5 rebounds per game and has drawn
Howland’s praise for the hustle he’s exhibited on the
court ““ which ironically led to Mata getting hurt. The injury
occurred with UCLA up 56-45 and looking to increase its lead with a
little over 3 minutes remaining. Farmar stole the ball and
attempted a contested lay-up, which he missed. As the ball was
batted near the free-throw line, a sprinting Mata from the other
end of the floor bumped knees with Farmar, who was coming in the
opposite direction. “I should have made the lay-up, that
would have saved everything,” Farmar said. “But I
didn’t, saw it bouncing around and tried to get it back and I
just saw him at the last second and we bumped knees. I guess he got
the worse end of it. I hope he’s all right.” Though
Mata’s status is in question, Howland did have some good
injury news to report following the game. Senior center Ryan
Hollins, who strained his groin prior to UCLA’s game against
Sacramento State on Dec. 23, 2005, will meet with the team doctor
today and could play against Washington on Saturday.

FOR STARTERS: Freshman Mike Roll replaced
injured sophomore Josh Shipp in the starting lineup on Thursday and
will continue to do so for the immediate future. “I was a
little bit nervous before the game,” said Roll, who learned
he was starting during Wednesday’s practice. In his first
collegiate start, Roll recorded career-highs with 10 points and 32
minutes played and knocked down his first 3-point attempt, but it
was the freshman’s defense that impressed Howland. “He
was actually a positive on the defensive end of the floor,”
said Howland, who called UCLA’s defensive effort in the first
half the best he’s seen all season.

KING COMMITS TO BLUE DEVILS: Local high school
standout Taylor King officially committed to Duke on Thursday.
King, a 6-foot-7, 195-pound forward at Mater Dei in Santa Ana,
originally committed to UCLA following middle school after
Howland’s arrival in Westwood in 2003. He later reneged on
that commitment in April 2005. Still a junior, King is ranked among
the top 50 recruits in the Class of 2007, according to multiple
recruiting Web sites.

DRIBBLERS: Farmar’s 3-pointer in the
first half ended a streak of 11 consecutive misses from
behind-the-arc over the last four games. Prior to Thursday’s
game against the Cougars, the last 3-pointer Farmar made was
against Stanford on Dec. 29, 2005. … The Bruins were only
7-for-16 from the charity stripe, the first time all season they
had failed to eclipse the 50-percent mark from the free-throw line.
… Thursday’s attendance was 9,550.

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