It’d be tough to blame UCLA if it started to look ahead.
No. 9 Gonzaga comes to town in eight days, and a trip to Chicago to take on vaunted No. 1 Kentucky follows a week after that.
Both games offer a bit of redemption for the Bruins, after UCLA (6-2) dropped its first two matchups against ranked opponents last week.
After defeating its first six mid-major opponents by an average of 22.5 points, another one against San Diego (4-4) this Sunday doesn’t offer UCLA much of a chance to measure up.
“We’re not even thinking about Gonzaga or Kentucky – it’s San Diego,” said coach Steve Alford. “We’re young, we’re inexperienced. It’s one game at a time – it’s not just about developing over the next several days of practice or who we’re playing next, but we’ve got a lot of work to do to get ready for San Diego.”
Much of that work will likely center on defining roles for the Bruins’ bench players. Through the start of the season, UCLA has featured a regular rotation of three players: freshman center Thomas Welsh, sophomore forward Wannah Bail and sophomore guard Noah Allen, with freshman forward Gyorgy Goloman seeing increased minutes as of late.
Still, the Bruins’ starting five has accounted for almost three quarters of playing time, as four players average more than 30 minutes of game action per contest. Long minutes have directly correlated to the scoreboard, as Bruin starters produce 86.2 percent of UCLA’s points.
However, Alford said that he is not concerned about his reserves’ scarce point production – UCLA’s bench contributed just seven points in the team’s 73-45 win over Cal State Fullerton Wednesday and notched its first bucket with 5:52 to go in the game – as long as the players continue to contribute in other areas.
“I’m not so much worried about the points off of the bench. It’s just the other production, whether it’s defending, whether its board play, points I think will come,” Alford said. “Tom will be a guy who can score. The other guys I don’t know if their roles are really to score. I think their roles are defending and (giving) us effort and if scoring comes that’s a plus.”
What was a major plus for UCLA Wednesday was the team’s defensive play. The Bruins held the Titans to 20.8 percent shooting in the second half, a performance the team is looking to build upon with games against the Bulldogs and Wildcats approaching.
“We take it on our chest to be hungry and be one of the defensive lock down teams,” said senior guard Norman Powell. “We have a couple games before Gonzaga and Kentucky to get there. These guys are really hungry and really focused on getting better each and every day.”
That resurgent defensive performance came on the heels of two less-than-stellar outings against Oklahoma and North Carolina, the two best offenses UCLA has faced to this point.
The Bruins surrendered a late lead against the Sooners, who went on a 25-8 run to close out the game and looked hapless on both ends of the court against North Carolina in a 22-point blowout.
“It was just a learning experience to see where we were at,” said freshman forward Kevon Looney. “They were two great teams, two top teams in the country, and it was our first time playing somebody at that level.”
San Diego isn’t at that quality. Nor is UC Riverside, who UCLA faces off against next week. But if UCLA wants to reach that level, they would do well to apply the lesson learned against Cal State Fullerton – a game Alford feared would be a trap game for his young team.
The Bruins assuaged any concern with a 28-point trouncing of the Titans.
A repeat performance on Sunday may afford the Bruins a bit of a glimpse ahead.
With a win, it’d be tough to fault them if they did.