Author Archives: Gabriel Basayne

Freshman year is a difficult time in any young student’s life; but for three freshman basketball players at UCLA, life means experiencing their new surroundings while juggling games, practices and classes. Shabazz Muhammad, Kyle Anderson and Jordan Adams made up part of the top recruiting class in the nation according to multiple major media outlets. Each has embraced the attention that has been shown to them by students since their arrival in Westwood. All three players hail from elsewhere; they have stepped up to the challenge of leaving their families behind and transitioning to the college life, which includes finding a place to rest for the holidays. They are asked to be students first and athletes second, although it doesn’t always work out that way.

Over the course of the last year, UCLA’s Pauley Pavilion has been massively renovated. On Oct. 26, 2012 legendary coach John Wooden was immortalized in a bronze statue at the north entrance. This statue was made possible with a generous donation from alumni and athletics donors Jim and Carol Collins. These two have been active participants with UCLA for more than 50 years as students, volunteers and philanthropists. Together, they made a donation that helped UCLA reach its target of $136 million for the revitalization of Pauley. Both Jim and Carol respectively have donated money to build numerous things on campus such as the UCLA Collins Center for Executive Education (1987) and the UCLA Laboratory School (1998). They were at the unveiling of Wooden’s statue to share their thoughts and involvement throughout the renovation process.

For more multimedia coverage of the renovated Pauley Pavilion, visit http://165.227.25.233/page/welcoming-back-pauley

Nov. 15, 2011 – In the city’s third annual UCLA v. USC Fight Night, students from both schools step toe-to-toe with one another hoping to retain bragging rights in front of a crowd at the Los Angeles Athletic Club. UCLA fighter Joseph LaSalle prepares for a rematch against Francisco Montenegro of USC in the main event and for a shot at glory. For LaSalle, the fight starts weeks before the actual event, in the gym.

To see more photos from Fight Night, click here.

To see video from Fight Night, click here.

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Nov. 15 – Recent negotiation sessions have ended without a new deal between the NBA players’ union and the team owners, and with the NBA lockout still in effect, two former UCLA students are out of work. Last year, then-sophomore Tyler Honeycutt and then-junior Malcolm Lee each decided to take their talents to the NBA and entered the draft with hopes of being first-round picks. Not only did they slip to the second round, and out of the guaranteed money zone, they entered an NBA that is in the midst of a collective bargaining dispute.

Games in November have already been canceled, and the rest of the season is in jeopardy. Honeycutt and Lee cannot even set foot in the gyms of their new teams. Although they can’t come back to school and play for UCLA ever again, their former teammates still show them support and have nothing but gratitude for these two former Bruins who used to call Westwood home.

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