Season openers against lowly non-conference opponents mark the
first opportunity for freshman to showcase their talent. For UCLA,
its win over Chicago State also identified the weaknesses it needs
to shore up in the future.
As the Bruins prepare to take on Western Illinois, a team that
went 3-25 last year, tonight at Pauley Pavilion, the final score
may not be as indicative of the team’s development as the
play of their perimeter defense.
Coach Ben Howland pointed to this aspect as one the Bruins must
improve upon as the season progresses.
“The further we went out to get them, the easier it was
for them to get around us,” Howland said after the
Bruins’ win over the Cougars on Saturday. “That’s
something we really have to work on.”
Western Illinois, who lost its season opener to Iowa 86-52, may
not present the stiffest challenge for the Bruins’ backcourt.
T.J. Gray, the Leathernecks’ top returning guard, averaged
just 10 points a game last year, and no guard on the team’s
roster managed more than eight points against the Hawkeyes.
Nevertheless, tonight’s game will be an opportunity for the
Bruin backcourt ““ and freshman point guard Jordan Farmar in
particular ““ to further adjust to the speed and intensity of
Division I basketball.
“What I want him to get better at is defending the
dribble,” Howland said of Farmar.
“His man had 11 points at halftime. I expect him to make
mistakes. He’s a freshman point guard. That’s the
hardest position to play on the floor. There’s a lot of
responsibility, but he’s going to get better and
better.”
Farmar acknowledges that his play on defense has been
Howland’s focal point. Though he scored 11 points, he
realizes his coach will not be satisfied when the opposing point
guard scores as many points in the first half as Chicago
State’s Tony Weeden did.
“That’s all he ever talks to me about,” Farmar
said. “I’m going to hear it all year, and probably my
whole career here. I hear it every day. The moment I really improve
and make it a strength of my game, I’ll probably stop hearing
about it.”
For Farmar, tonight’s second game of the season marks the
first time for him to demonstrate improvement. And watching
Howland’s reaction on the sideline may be a better indicator
of it than the scoreboard will be.