In an interview session Sunday, sophomore forward Andre
Patterson said that his grades should be good enough to get back
into UCLA. After earning two A’s and a C at Santa Monica City
College, Patterson will give his grades to Mike Casillas, the
director of Student-Athlete Counseling, tomorrow in order to regain
a roster spot on the team. “I hope to be back for the
Northern Arizona game,” Patterson said. The Bruins play
Northern Arizona at Pauley Pavilion on Tuesday, December 17.
Patterson’s 3.33 GPA this semester at SMCC exceeded the
minimum of 3.0 that he had to receive in order to regain his
eligibility. “All of my teammates kept encouraging me,”
Patterson said. “We are like a family. They could have
outcasted me from the group, but they didn’t.”
Patterson said that he has been running to stay in shape, and that
getting his timing back shouldn’t take long. “Just to
get in game shape and in rhythm should only take a couple of
games,” he said. Patterson was initially declared
academically ineligible in September after earning poor grades
during his freshman year.