Hoops Roundup: Bruised & Battered Bruins
by Nestor on Feb 24, 2010 5:13 AM PST
in Basketball
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PrintLet's start the Humpday with a followup on Reeves Nelson. Yesterday we wondered when did his left eye get hurt when all the injuries have been to his right one. It sounds like the doctor detected the issue with his left eye while doing a through check up and Coach Howland is speculating that the tear took place Nelson's face slammed against the floor. The OC Register reports:
"Reeves had no idea there was anything in his left eye," UCLA coach Ben Howland said Tuesday. "There were no symptoms. When he went to get his follow-up, it had been set up for his right eye because of the Kansas game. Just through the normal, thorough investigation, they looked at both eyes. Dr. Schwartz happened to be very thorough and looked in his other eye."
Nelson first injured his right eye when he was poked by an opponent during a Dec. 6 game against Kansas. The injury suffered last week was also to his right eye.
Howland thinks the impact of Nelson's head hitting the court last week might have caused the injury to the other eye.
"It's really unfortunate," Howland said. "I thought for sure they'd be saying there was something wrong with his right eye. That's the one that was poked into and hit."
Thankfully the UCLA doctors were through in their check up (doctors from one of the best medical facilities in the country tend to be that way). I hope Reeves take all the time necessary to get fully healthy and recover, even though we could really use him on the court. Howland mentioned during the press conference that he is not practicing (duh) so he is not going to be available for Thursday's game.
As for replacing Nelson, it is looking very dicey. Here was Howland's plan according to the OC Register:
"If Reeves is out, that would leave playing time for our frontline to be shared between Nik (Nikola Dragovic), Brendan (Lane), Bobo (J'mison Morgan), and then minutes also by Tyler Honeycutt."
Dragovic and Honeycutt have 33 starts and more than 1,200 minutes between them this season, but Lane and Morgan are lagging far behind in both categories.
Lane started one game and is averaging 8.2 minutes in 22 appearances. Morgan has played in 16 games
Well, I am assuming Howland made that comment before Lane's injury yesterday. Lane is now in a walking boot and is not going to practice today per the LA Times. I doubt he is going to be available for Thursday night's game. So that means same old 35+ mins of Dragovic and huge mins for Bobo.
Howland talked about using Honeycutt in the frontcourt. I would hope AGAIN that he would consider giving Mike Moser some decent minutes in the game to keep Honeycutt fresh in second half. As for Bobo, the kid is excited about his opportunity:
"It puts a lot of pressure on me and Brendan - we haven't had a lot of experience with playing time and being in tough situations," Morgan said. "But I think we know how to play basketball enough to get the job done. I wish that there were some more minutes that I could've helped my team, and I feel I could've helped the team in some of the situations we didn't succeed in. But I look at this as an opportunity for me that I can show the coaches and fans and everybody else that I can help this team."
Even though there is not a lot of drama in terms of where our team is going to end up this season, I think it is going to be more than worth tuning in to see how Morgan handles the expected big minutes on Thursday night.
Oregon State is not going to be an easy opponent. For anyone thinking about discounting Craig Robinson's team, keep in mind they have the exact same record as the Bruins (12-14) and one less conference wins (6-8). Their demolition of Cal Bears was not their only decent win of this season. That win followed a win against Arizona Wildcats in Tucson. They have also beaten the Trogans at home and the Ducks on the road. Bruins are 1-5 against those teams so far this season.
There is nothing new to say in terms of what the Bruins need to do to win. I don't think we need to discuss in all detail at this point on how the Bruins need to hold on to the ball, run a patient offense by setting each other up for good shots, and play hard for 40 minutes on the defensive end. I have no idea whether we can expect that from our team. They have not really shown mental toughness and resolve on a consistent basis this entire season.
Lastly, James Keefe was is expected to undergo surgery on his left shoulder on Tuesday. I have not heard anything new about him. If he did have the procedure yesterday, keeping my fingers crossed that it all went well. Hope he gets to come out for Senior Day. Looking forward to Pauley sending off Michael Roll and Keefe with a standing ovation in their last home game of the season.
GO BRUINS.
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Yikes, the Backup Center is???
Without BL and RN, does that mean that TH would play some Center? Didn’t he play some center in High School?
I hope CBH plays MAH some since he will likely have to play MR at 3.
whichever way round, looks like we will see ND/TH filling the 4/5 spots whenever Bobo is not on the court...
by britishbruin on Feb 24, 2010 7:26 AM PST up reply actions
I am not sure what to do for backup center
TH is the best rebounder, who you want on the weakside. If TH is Center that may be harder for him to rebound from and worse leaves ND and for CBH I think MR when Bobo is out. I don’t know how Bobo’s conditioning is to play major minutes. Ironically ML may be a key for rebounding. He will need to have few TOs as always but may need to add 6+ rebounds,
BL and RN are our biggest foulers (per minute) so we may not be too bad off in that category.
I don’t think CBH will give double digit minutes to MAH but I wish he would. If or (more likely) when ND does not hit from outside it would be nice to move ND inside (5 on offense) and have MAH at 2 and MR at 3 in a game where their lack of speed does not hurt. I think that could work on offense. On defense of course, this is problematic.
It will be interesting.
Actually
I think this is a game in which it would make sense to give MAH double digit minutes. Oregon State is not the most athletic of teams and MAH’s smarts would be a benefit against the Princeton offense.
But, of course, they’ll probably rise to the occasion tomorrow and lay another rotten egg on Saturday.
But hey, what do I know. I’m just the 800 lbs bruin in the room.
I agree on MAH
That is what I was trying to say. I hope CBH agrees and plays MAH a decent amount. I also think the crowd would love to see him play.
rough times
On the positive side, Bobo looked fine in 21 minutes against WSU, so maybe he can step it up to 30 (fouls permitting…). That would leave us with 10 minutes of… ND?… at center?
If Moser doesn’t get major minutes, then you are looking at 30+ Bobo, 35+ ND, TH, ML, MR… and up to 30 of JA/MAH?? Assuming people can stay on the court without too many fouls?
This could get ugly.
On the positive side ...
How bad could it be if it keeps Drago far away from the three point line? He’s a big body with the limited mobility typical of a center and, on the rare occasion he has ended up near the basket on offense, he has demonstrated some competency with his low-post game.
Good Point
ND can pass okay as well. On defense it is a nightmare but could be a plus on offense.
Low Post D Concern
I’m afraid that ND will Ole! cutters and low post players straight to the bucket with his “matador” defense. Our guys will have to score a bunch of points to make up for the defensive shortcomings.
Unfortunately, these games matter a little bit.
We are fighting for a first round bye in the Pac10 tournament. Hopes for a miracle are cut by 25% if we lose these two and don’t get the first round bye. Without RN, we don’t have much chance in the tournament, and even with him, its miracle territory. We are also fighting for a winning record overall.
OT
Hey Nestor, looks like you are a fan favorite in the comments on the Daily News UCLA blog.
Those Kind Of Injuries Are Just So Damned Scary
Glad he’s getting all the full medical attention he’s getting from UCLA Medical Center. Just want him to fully recover and be healthy again.
Los Angeles Rams and the UCLA Bruins!!!!!
by Minnesota Bruinfan on Feb 24, 2010 10:13 AM PST reply actions
At least we picked the right opponent to be thin against
OSU has hardly any inside game with their one big guy, Schaftener (sp?), playing at the top of the key on offense. When JMM comes out, ND should be able to handle Schaftener which should allow MM and TH to play together at forward.
On the other hand, if BL and RN cant play against Oregon, I don’t foresee Saturday going well at all.
you don't think it's more likely
that MR will slide to SF? I’m guessing that we are more likely to see bumps in JA/MAH’s time than in MM’s…
by britishbruin on Feb 24, 2010 10:59 AM PST up reply actions
Wishful thinking on my part
You are absolutely right that it will mean more JA time at pg and MR at sf, both of which i hate. I’d much rather see MM get some minutes just rebounding and playing D as a big man than have to handle the ball as a sg/sf. Knowing Howland, that wont happen though and we’ll end up with your lineup.
by bruinponcho on Feb 24, 2010 11:35 AM PST up reply actions
UCLA is effectively down to J'Mison Morgan, Nikola Dragovic and Tyler Honeycutt
What about MM? Was he injured too?
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