Coming into the EA Sports Maui Invitational, the UCLA basketball
team was hoping to find out where it stacked up early on against
the top teams in the nation.
The Bruins’ play and results in the tournament gave them
the answer they were hoping to receive.
The Bruins were able to make a positive statement by defeating
two ranked opponents and avoiding an early loss ““ a feat
three of the preseason’s top six teams were unable to
manage.
“I’m so excited about how we’re playing right
now this early in the season,” UCLA coach Ben Howland said
after the Bruins defeated Georgia Tech. “You’ve got to
remember, three good teams left this tournament 1-2. This is a hard
place to play”
After a long first day of action featuring six teams that figure
to be nationally competitive, the Bruins took on host school
Chaminade in the first round of the tournament.
SLIDESHOW
Click here to see a slideshow of photos from the 2006 EA Sports
Maui Invitational.
The upset-minded Silverswords had plenty of support. Many of the
fans had their bodies painted, and chants of “Beat LA”
echoed throughout the small Lahaina Civic Center gym as the game
began.
But behind the hot shooting of Arron Afflalo, the Bruins quickly
put to rest any ideas of a Chaminade upset, jumping out to a big
early lead which they would never relinquish.
Next up for the Bruins was No. 20 Kentucky, which was coming off
a close win over DePaul.
Against Kentucky, the Bruins proved they could beat a top-25
team even while shooting the ball poorly. Afflalo had one of the
toughest games of his career, going 1-8 from 3-point range and
finishing the game just 5-18 from the field.
And the Bruins as a team shot just 2-19 from behind the arc,
while making only 13 of 24 free throws.
The Wildcats, in comparison, made 18 of 25 free throws and 6 of
15 3-pointers, but the Bruins won the game with stingy defense and
solid play inside from Lorenzo Mata and Luc Richard Mbah a
Moute.
“We were fortunate to come out on top,” Howland said
after the game. “It could easily be us with the
“˜L.'”
The final of the tournament presented a whole new challenge for
the Bruins. No. 19 Georgia Tech had been very impressive in
victories over Purdue and Memphis.
The Yellow Jackets’ talented freshmen Thaddeus Young and
Javaris Crittenton looked extremely impressive in the team’s
first two wins.
And the Yellow Jackets’ post players, particularly juniors
Jeremis Smith and Ra’Sean Dickey, had absolutely dominated
both Purdue and Memphis inside.
Georgia Tech outrebounded its first two opponents, 77-52. But
against UCLA, Dickey and Smith combined for nine points, 10
rebounds and five turnovers, and the Bruins actually outrebounded
the Yellow Jackets, 33-31, while cruising to an 88-73 victory.
“I was really impressed watching Georgia Tech the first
two days of the tournament,” Howland said after the
Bruins’ victory. “It was a big emphasis on our part to
try and hold our own on the boards, and I’m really
pleased.”
The Bruins ended up with a championship trophy to celebrate, and
sophomore point guard Darren Collison humbly walked away with
tournament MVP honors.