The third year on campus means different things to different
people. For undergraduates, it usually marks the beginning of legal
alcohol consumption. For those in law school, it typically marks
the end of college. And for students under Ben Howland, it always
marks the pinnacle of success.
When UCLA kicks off its season tonight against New Mexico State,
there’s every reason to expect a breakout year with NCAA
Tournament success. Four starters are returning from an 18-win
squad. Five freshmen are coming in to fill specific, roster-needed
roles. And one coach with a proven track record is entering the
year when he’s proven himself most.
Every program Howland has touched has turned to gold in his
third year. First, at Northern Arizona, he orchestrated the
10th-best turnaround in NCAA history and captured the Big Sky
regular-season conference title. Then, at Pittsburgh, he broke a
school record by winning 29 games and earned a Sweet 16 berth. Now,
at UCLA, the records may be too towering to topple, but that
doesn’t mean big things aren’t in store.
“I think you’ve got players that have been in the
program for a couple of years,” Howland said, explaining the
reasons behind his year-three success stories. “In our case
we have Ced (Bozeman), (Michael) Fey, and (Ryan) Hollins in their
third year and four sophomores in their second year. It’s
getting your own guys comfortable with the system.”
Howland’s history suggests that the comfort level will
fully develop this season. The coach’s first two years in
Westwood bore some striking similarities to those at Northern
Arizona and Pittsburgh. In all three cases, he inherited stagnant
programs and struggled to right the ship initially. Only at UCLA
has Howland had a better record in his first go-around. And
it’s hard for Bruin fans to consider 11-17 an
improvement.
However, in terms of his second year at each school, Howland
seems to have gotten better with time. While Northern Arizona
actually fared worse and Pittsburgh took only baby steps, the
Bruins made gigantic strides in Howland’s second season at
UCLA. And the players expect those strides to increase by leaps and
bounds in this magical third year.
“Everyone’s more experienced,” sophomore
shooting guard Arron Afflalo said. “We have the expectations
of an elite team. We really have to start dominating our opponents
in our league and whoever we play.”
That kind of talk normally wouldn’t be apparent from a
Howland-led program until the coach’s fourth year. But
success came one year earlier at UCLA, and it’s hard not to
wonder how much more will be in store during the traditional
take-off year.
The Associated Press has already bestowed a preseason No. 18
ranking on the Bruins. The media has pegged them to finish third in
the Pac-10, just behind Arizona and Stanford. And just about
everyone else following college basketball has the Bruins on their
radar as a program on the upswing.
Unlike at Northern Arizona or at Pittsburgh, Howland’s
club won’t be sneaking up on anybody. At a school like UCLA,
success won’t catch people by surprise. There are already
presumptions that the Bruins will challenge for the conference
title and make a run in the NCAA Tournament.
History says Howland won’t have a problem meeting those
expectations. If year two was just the precursor for his typical
year-three launch, he won’t have a problem exceeding
them.
E-mail Finley at afinley@media.ucla.edu where you expect the
Bruins to blast off to this year.