UCLA Basketball Roundup: Too Cool Bruins Get Frozen Out of Pac-10 Tournament
by DCBruins on Mar 11, 2011 4:48 AM PST
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So far this year, UCLA had been able to accomplish their goals: get to the tourney, compete for the Pac-10 title, never get blown out, fought if not for 40 minutes in every game, play good defensive, improve, etc. It was pretty obvious that once they got the tournament bid locked up, they stopped playing, starting with the first half in the Washington State game. That game, UCLA came back, against a shorthanded group of Cougars, only after CBH told them they weren't in the tournament yet. Tonight they decided to take the night off (emphasis mine):
"They had the mentality that they didn't have anything to lose," UCLA forward Tyler Honeycutt said. "We came in here with a 'too cool' of an attitude."
The nonchalance resulted in another sluggish start and possibly the most mortifying moment of Coach Ben Howland's UCLA tenure, when the Bruins received a technical foul in the first half for having six players on the court after a timeout.
"That was embarrassing," Howland said. "That right there was like indicative of the night. That that could actually happen is unbelievable." . . ."Just started from warmups," said Honeycutt, who scored 19 points but was the only Bruin in double figures. "Guys weren't taking, like, game shots, weren't really being focused."
These guys need to look at the "old guys." They need to learn that what they did Thursday night was uncool, embarrassing and shameful to the Bruin tradition and to themselves. And most of all there is no excuse. You want to be good, you don't take nights off, shoot AA does not take summers off.
Afflalo is a new kind of ambassador for the Nuggets, an edgy outfit that former general manager Mark Warkentien used to compare to a pack of "stray dogs." Chris "Birdman" Andersen once said of these Nuggets: "We may not lead the league in stats, but we do in tats." Afflalo has no ink, and more telling, he started watching game tape when he was 8, woke his father in the middle of the night to spot him on the bench press when he was a teenager, and left his beachfront apartment in Los Angeles last July because he wanted to go back to work in Denver. He is a straight shooter, in every sense, who embodies the intensity and concentration that the Nuggets often lacked.
Or how about Kevin Love. Does he take nights off when the game is "hopeless" or "meaningless"?
He got his record 52nd consecutive double-double fast (in the middle of the second quarter with a free throw) as his Timberwolves were blowing out the Indiana Pacers. . . . He has been consistent and worked hard on a team that needed this kind of production. He has had chances because the Wolves are so bad — they are now 12-40 during the streak — but he took advantage of it.
KL never stops working when even when his team is 12-40, AA never stops working even when it is July. This team quit the second they were in the Big Dance because they were "too cool."
More round-up after the jump.
This was a complete and embarrassing loss on every level:
The 17-point loss was the largest margin of defeat UCLA has ever had in a Pac-10 tournament game. This season, only Washington had defeated UCLA by that much. [sic UW beat UCLA by 11 after Jones dislocated his finger, worse loss was by 12 before this.]
UCLA shot 35.2 percent -- its lowest since a 66-57 loss to Montana on Dec. 5 -- and only Tyler Honeycutt reached double figures in scoring to mark the first time this season only one player had 10 or more.If there is a silver lining for UCLA, it’s that the Bruins will now get a little extra rest before the NCAA tournament and they can use it. . . .
"Some guys need rest and we need guys to get healthy," Anderson said. "But on the other hand I think we need to get back in the gym tomorrow and do something about this loss because it was embarrassing."
Speaking of injury, Malcolm Lee, our leader said he was fine but it was hard to tell. He has dominated Oregon this season and was a non-factor last night:
Guard Malcolm Lee, playing his first game since suffering torn cartilage in his left knee in the Bruins' regular-season finale, played 27 minutes and had six points and four rebounds. The junior from Riverside North High said the knee was "a little sore, but it's going to be all right."
Lee had an excuse, no one else did. Anderson was sick but 1-6 from the charity stripe? Critics will say this one was coming from a team that had trailed Oregon in both of their previous games but tonight they never kicked into gear and E.J. Singler joined Jorge Gutierrez, Jamie Skeen, and other players who got their career highs against the Bruins this year. From the Oregon papers:
Singler beat his career high of 22 points set Wednesday in the Ducks' win against Arizona State, and he was just as consistent against the Bruins.
. . .
The Bruins shot 35 percent from the floor and failed to generate anything more than an 8-0 run that didn't get them closer than the 10 points they trailed by early in the second half.
. . .
UCLA's Reeves Nelson had 10 rebounds but just seven points and didn't score his first basket until the start of the second half. Big man Joshua Smith was held to five points and six rebounds.
. . .
The loss was a stunning letdown for UCLA, which won nine of its last 11 to close the regular season and is bidding to return to the NCAA tournament after missing out last year.
To his credit CBH tires to take the blame:
"Bottom line, it starts right here," Howland said. "Obviously we did not do a good job of getting our team focused - I did not - focused and understanding.
"I'm really disappointed in that because we had a lot of opportunity here to help ourselves." . . .
Understanding? The Ducks back-cut UCLA all game long, flustered the Bruins with their zone defense and denied the post. By the time Nelson was called for a technical foul for arguing with referees with 5:39 to go, the Bruins were out of the game, emotionally and quite literally.
The Ducks were ahead 64-48, Singler's two free throws put them up 18 and UCLA slogged to its worst Pac-10 tournament loss in team history
Howland earns the last word with my emphasis:
"I was really excited about the momentum we (had) built," Howland said. "We really, really laid an egg tonight.
"It will be a true test of character how this team bounces back from this performance."
Go Bruins.
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Too cool
We had a center who had hair that was long and really cool. It was too cool for Coach, however. Even though our center with his “too cool” hair was the best player in the country, Coach told him that his teammates would miss him. 15 minutes later, the hair was way less cool.
I think it’s time for Coach Howland to send a message to these guys. If you’re going to be too cool, you’ll be on the bench. We can get blown out just as easily with our less cool players playing. I will back Coach Howland to the hilt if he had all five our our starters on the bench if the selection committee decides to give us another game. it’s obvious to me that these guys lack the will to do what’s necessary to win the tournament, so I think Coach Howland can use our one remaining game (if we even get one) as a teaching tool. Bench the starters, who proved they couldn’t compete with a sub-.500 team.
Really?
Because technique did not matter when we didn’t play with intensity and focus. You can have the best technique and scheme on earth and still lose because you don’t have effort.
"Every day was a good day at UCLA." -Coach John Wooden
by OswegoBruin on Mar 11, 2011 10:29 AM PST up reply actions
I thought our players were trying, but just being outplayed.
We have the better/bigger talent, but we failed to utilize it, Imo. I know that’s not what people are saying, but as I watched the game (until Reeves went into a funk in the second half) I thought we were trying, but played frustrated and poorly. I also think Malcomb was at 80% and couldn’t add much to the offense, which hurt.
I thought Honeycutt tried to put the team on his back and lauch a comeback, but he just wasn’t good enough. I thought he was trying very hard. Facial expression is not a measure of hard work. He looks passive even when he’s playing hard. Tyler Honeycutt, even when he’s trying his hardest, is a poor one on one defender. E. J. Singler went around him easily. Honeycutt has no chance defending pro 2’s and 3’s, no matter how hard he tries. He is a great shot blocker and incredibly quick going vertically. His lateral defense is poor.
I also thought Reeves tried very hard, until the last 8 minutes. He just wasn’t productive. He is shorter than the players that defend him and not a great leaper. Bulling to the basket doesn’t always work. I am sure he leads the league in getting his shots blocked. He needs to learn to pump fake and draw fouls and three point plays, and vary his game. He needs to learn basic post moves. He’s a good player, but he could be so much better.
We definitely should have switched to a zone. Oregon was just breaking our players down off the dribble. The used Josh’s man to pick off the penetrator’s man, and they drive around Josh with impunity, just like Cal did.
by 75NatChamps on Mar 11, 2011 10:54 AM PST up reply actions
No surprise...
…that you’re making excuses after an embarrassing, pitiful “effort” from this “team.”
Clearly, you weren’t watching the same game the rest of the nation was, because only the blind or the mentally retarded would think this team was trying against Oregon.
does this drop UCLA to a double-digit seed?
Projections had them anywhere from a 7-9 before this loss. Now I’m thinking 10-11.
Waiting for April.
Shockingly, Lunardi's most recent predictions have them at a 7
And that’s been updated today. I would imagine that’s going to change though….
http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/bracketology
Dreaming of Westwood while in permanent exile in Virginia
Listed as a 10 here
Facing Duke in 2nd round… in Charlotte.
by Objection Penguin on Mar 11, 2011 8:00 AM PST up reply actions
Ha
A think a lot of people were almost hoping for a 10 seed to avoid that 2nd round matchup with a 1-seed. Oh hi, Duke.
Or Texas. Ugh.
"Every day was a good day at UCLA." -Coach John Wooden
by OswegoBruin on Mar 11, 2011 10:29 AM PST up reply actions
These comments all presume
a first round win to advance to a second round game.
Roses are red, violets are blue...f*** $C.
Palm has us as a 9
http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketball/bracketology
I have no idea how Lunardi has us as a 7
Why doesn't this team learn from ML?
Sure, he may be our “silent” captain, but he’s playing on a gimp knee with full heart, hustling on every play on D.
We know about Honeycutt & Reeves, but I expect better from guys like Zeek, Jerime, and even JS (although he is still a freshman). Why does Honeycutt’s & RN’s attitude carry over but ML’s does not?
I always watch to the end but last night I couldn't
Last nights game joins the game last year at Washington and this years football game at Oregon where I have given up on our team (just like they gave up on themselves). CBH says that it will be a true test of character how this team bounces back but I am afraid this team does not have that quality character an AA has or a KL has, obviously not the killer instinct.
Dear WoodenMania: " You were not alone ! "
Literally fidgeting, blood pressure ominously rising, I knew I had it. The onslaught unfolding before me felt like a sucker punch to me.
It was not so much a total defeat than a befuddling, totally unjustifiable fiasco UCLA self inflicted. More so than the Dragovich affair, the Montana loss and other assorted embarrassments happened under Howland’s watch, last night’s cave in at Staples demonstrated definitively some of the inexplicably bewildering, self defeating ways this team operates.
I am at loss for words.
This is an infamy we cannot stomach, nor will we understand.
AHREE wholeheartedly!
The game – PATHETIC! I have heard that we may not be invited to the dance because of our LACK of performance.
by Forever a Bruin on Mar 11, 2011 1:13 PM PST up reply actions
With a different team . . .
. . .It would be tempting to suggest that the Bruins didn’t want to burn up/burn out in a meaningless conference tournament, in advance of the Big Dance. Given that this bunch of basketball narcoleptics (apologies to narcolepsy sufferers nationwide) has done this play-tough-for-awhile bit all season long, perhaps not.
The Mad Bruin
If we rested Jones and Lee
I could buy it. We didn’t.
At the risk of stating the obvious.
I wasn’t buying it either. The level of “performance” this year has been way too consistent to enable using the “resting up for the Big Dance” excuse. Some of these guys play at times like their “resting up for retirement” and it is unsettling to watch it in its own right. Add in the context of the history behind the program, and the fact that this marks the year that the Architect of all that greatness passed – and the expected desire current players should have to want to honor the memory of that genteel genius – hanging in and spectating becomes almost painful. Hope you got ’em cramming for the Character test, Coach.
The Mad Bruin
Coach Wooden would know the answer.
He always preferred quickness to size. Oregon was smaller but quicker. I don’t buy the lackadaisical attitude as the reason for the loss. I think the quotes come from the fact that the players cannot understand why they lose to a team of ordinary players. I blame the defensive schemes and the lack of lateral mobility of our players (I exclude Lee from this, even injured.)
Oregon continually beat our players off the dribble. I actually think Honeycutt played hard. I have watched him all season. He lacks lateral quickness. E.J. Singler, not a particularly quick player, beat him off the dribble. I shudder to think what an NBA 2 or 3 will do to Honeycutt.
Last night was a confluence of all our weaknesses. Josh Smith can’t get off the ground, and lost the ball repeatedly on fumbled catches. Reeves was well defended and had multiple shots blocked, because he never pump fakes and has no sophisticated moves near the basket. He needs a summer in a camp like Pete Newell’s big man camp. He has lots of potential, but bulling to the basket doesn’t always work.
Zeek tried to force the action and played horribly, due in major part to his injuries. ML was obviously hampered by his injuries, and this contributed.
I am a big CBH supporter, but I hate the way we play offense against the zone. Honeycutt should be receiving the ball at the free throw line for easy jump shots. If he is contested Josh Smith or Reeves have to be open under the basket. If the guards collapse this would lead to open jump shots for our guards. Passing the ball around the perimeter for a forced outside shot, or throwing it low to a double teamed big with no options is and was a losing proposition. I would also use a zone defense, as an part time option, to maximize the value of having Smith, Nelson and Honeycutt on the defensive boards. We should force a team like Oregon to beat us on contested jumpshots, not repeated layups driving through the lane. Marginal players look like stars against us.
Quickness is the answer
You analyzed it really well.
Honeycutt should get a pass when he is between the foul line and the basket.
With Josh and Reeves waiting under the basket.
Super NBA team did not get to the finals.
Collison, Love, Westbrook, Shipp, Mbah a Moute, Aboya, Mata. 2007-2008 team.
"Emotional" CBH couldn’t get any team to the finals. Time for a change. Period.
PATHETIC
It would serve them right if they had to play into being one of the 64 teams!!
"Too cool" or not, NCAA tourney time = no more excuses
Win or lose, do or die time! Every game is nationally televised, watched by fans and NBA scouts alike.
If TH cares about his draft stock and wants a tourney run on his resume, we should see him the hardest he’s ever played. If we see another poor effort, then in all honesty, we may have way overrated him from the “potential” we saw in his freshman year.
Why wait?
If TH cares about his draft stock and wants a tourney run on his resume, we should see him the hardest he’s ever played. If we see another poor effort, then in all honesty, we may have way overrated him from the "potential" we saw in his freshman year.
30 games haven’t been enough? The team has played 32. He missed one, and excelled against Kansas. The other 30 have already shown his play to be overrated from the “potential” we saw in him, whether or not that “potential” exists and may or may not show itself at some future point.
Roses are red, violets are blue...f*** $C.
Re: " Bulling to the basket doesn't always work "
Please text your comments to Nelson.
Missed the game last night.
I figured it was an easy win, and the later games against possibly Washington or USC would be the only games worth watching.
Nothing like checking BN in the morning to see how we did to find out we thoroughly embarrassed ourselves. Again.
Frankly, I don’t get it. I was taught that sports is an exercise in desire. The goal is to bring your “A” game every time out. When you can’t go at a 100% can you give 99%? 95%? But always give your best.
My thought and hope is that this was their conscious sabotage of the Pac 10 tournament so they could get some rest for the real tournament.
The best thing you can do for your children is to love their mother. John Wooden
You really did not miss much.
Imagine the first half of Wazzu, but the entire game. Oh, yeah and we had 6 players on the court at one point. Guess who was yelling at his fellow teammates?
"Every day was a good day at UCLA." -Coach John Wooden
by OswegoBruin on Mar 11, 2011 10:31 AM PST up reply actions
North Carolina starting their game out slowly agaisnt Miami
very familiar.
Roy Williams put all his walk ons in midway through the first half.
Coaching wtf?
I love CBH and greatly respect what he has achieved at UCLA in his short tenure there. That said, last night’s FAIL can be placed as much on him as any of our athletes. Somebody please explain any of the below to me:
1. First half technical for 6 men on the floor after a timeout.
2. Josh Smith gets the ball for a total of 6 shots.
3. Getting scorched by their guards and we switch to zone zero times. I know CBH hates the zone, but c’mon, even zone for a possession or two last night would have made sense just to switch things up and regroup on defense a bit.
4. An injured Lee and Jones still in the game late when the outcome had long been decided.
Howland sucked last night as much or more than any of our players. Get it fixed before next Thursday (or Tuesday, which actually is what we deserve)!
Conscious sabotage ?!?
Some played like conscientious self defeatist. I wonder if there is any way to describe the game anymore than what we did already, last night, this morning and quite possibly the whole weekend.
I am at an utter loss for words. UCLA taught me concise, professional writing skills. It served me well in grad school. The numbing pain inflicted by the crushing defeat in such needless fashion must have temporarily blocked my brain neurons.
Nothing works to express my feelings.
Nice Write-Up DC
I truly miss Aaron Affalo, his effort, his toughness, and his success.
At the end of last night’s blowout, at first I was thinking, let’s get to 60 points at least so it doesn’t look so bad. Then I quickly changed my thinking and wanted us to look as bad as possible to hopefully light a fire under our sorry a$$es.
I thought something similar
but then I realized if losing to Montana or semi-choking away a share of the pac-10 title doesn’t light this “fire”, I don’t know what could.
+1
I miss all of that, and his intelligence, and quickness.
by 75NatChamps on Mar 11, 2011 10:56 AM PST up reply actions
My Last Comment for the Year
(not that anyone on BN will care much, but) this is the end for me for the year. Its time to move on to the baseball season. Going down to Phoenix tomorrow for a week of R&R and see if my (our) Dodgers will bring much to the party. But I couldn’t leave without a closing comment or two. First, thank you Bruins for allowing me not to worry about reaching a hotel by 3:00 tomorrow. I had been planning the logistics of my drive to Phoenix around the necessity of being able to watch the Bruins get revenge against UDub. Truth be told, as of this moment, I don’t know which Wash school won cause (1) I was totally sick of basketball after the Laker loss and the UCLA meltdown (no show?), and (2) the earthquake in Japan has absorbed my attention since I went to bed last night.
As for the season as a whole. Lots have been written about us meeting minimum expectations. Probably true. But lets face the truth; the Bruins are not a very good team. Maybe a good team when they play their hearts out (seldom done) but never a very good team. We were given a gift v. AZ. That was clearly a special time given to all of us by God. But it turned out to be non indicative of who or what the team really was. There’s alot to be said about each young man individually….I came to enjoy watching many of them and to gnash my teeth having to watch others. Hats off and kudos to Malcolm, Zeek (who showed courage and guts all season and jeez, maybe really could have made a difference and had a great year but for), Brendan and Anthony (who I think played their hearts out most of the time), Jerime (who has overcome adversity to be a solid, but not great, sixth man and deserves credit for what he accomplished), and to Reeves (who I think deep down is a fine young man with good intentions and lots of skills (not quite NBA yet — sure needs a 10-15’ jumper and a different mindset). I wish I could tip my hat to Josh and Tyler H. but, like the commercial said….I just can’t. Josh will need to work on his weight and game and, I’m afraid, his lack of fire. Same but worse for Honeycutt. I hope he goes to the NBA but unfortunately (my guess) is that he himself knows he ain’t got the will or desire to play with the big boys. When he returns next year I sure hope he learns to control the ball and play defense but I doubt he’ll put in the time to do so.
So for me, just an ordinary die hard Bruin fan, its adios. I’d be pleasantly surprised to hear we won a first round game in the Dance, but I’m predicting we don’t. After that, I hate to think what might show up against a potential #1 seed. Maybe we can hope some other team pulls a big upset, has a letdown and we play one of those miracle games (ala AZ, KS, SC(2) or STJ’s) and we actually go to the Sweet 16. Even if we do, it won’t change my feelings that we had a very average team this year but one which provided me (at least) with some satisfying, even exciting moments. As we used to say in Brooklyn…..wait til next year.
Really shortsighted.
But I understand the frustration. AZ was not an abberation, as we played with the same intensity against BYU and Kansas. This team is not “not very good”, they are just maddeningly inconsistent. The talent is there, but it’s either injured (Zeek, Lee), too busy preening for the NBA (Do I really need to type his last name?), or too busy hulking out on the court and getting tunnel vision (Nelson, obv). When those things aren’t a factor, we’re an excellent team. Probably one of the top 15 teams in the nation. When you throw those things in, we’re mediocre at best. So good luck, sorry you can’t stick by your Bruins, but overreacting after another bad game doesn’t really surprise anymore.
"Every day was a good day at UCLA." -Coach John Wooden
by OswegoBruin on Mar 11, 2011 10:35 AM PST up reply actions 1 recs
I agree that Zeek's injury is really hurting us.
He can’t go left at all, which allows the defense to dictate how our offense starts, and his offensive game has turned from a huge positive to a giant negative. He is trying to will the ball into the basket. I love his competitive nature, but its like watching Kobe with a cold hand shooting the Lakers out of game. He is really hurting the team.
by 75NatChamps on Mar 11, 2011 10:58 AM PST up reply actions
Just so you understand where I'm coming from:
First, I have been “sticking by my Bruins” for almost 60 years (since the 1954 Rose Bowl) and will continue to do so. I’m an eternal optimist when it comes to Bruin sports but not a masochist. I was even hoping for a win when we got it down to 11 after our 8 zip run.
I don’t think I was simply voicing frustration. Actually I am not that frustrated because my expectations for the season had already been met. And those were fair expectations; a solid improvement over the previous year.
I said we are not a very good team. Emphasis should be put on VERY. I didn’t mean to say or imply that we were not a very good team, as in a poor team. But please, a top 15? I don’t think you can just ignore those “factors” you mention. They are part of the team; who they are and predictably what they’ll accomplish. That’s why I still believe AZ and BYU (yes, I did forget that game) and a few others were sort of aberrations. Cause everything went right when normally not everything went right to say the least.
And in closing, I also forgot to note that I have spent alot more time here on BN than I even did watching the games (and I watched all but one), and it has made the season very enjoyable. I have learned alot and been entertained alot. So thank you all the frontpagers and other contributors for a great season. And again, wait til next year.
My statement
was simply that when this team is not facing the factors I described, they are easily a top 15 team, and have showed it on the court. However they have to contend with one or more of those factors more often than not. While I respect your lengthy fandom, it doesn’t really make up for giving up on a season. No matter how awful, you should stick by your team. That’s what being a fan is.
"Every day was a good day at UCLA." -Coach John Wooden
by OswegoBruin on Mar 11, 2011 11:42 AM PST up reply actions
I, for one, am glad
that CBH rested Stover and Lane so much last night, so they can be prepared for our deep run in the NCAA’s
Louisville, KY for UCLA class of '87
Lane was
abysmally bad. When he is on the court, he becomes a massive liability and teams go straight at him.
"Every day was a good day at UCLA." -Coach John Wooden
by OswegoBruin on Mar 11, 2011 10:36 AM PST up reply actions
+1
You beat me to this post. Stover also was used when he was in.
by 75NatChamps on Mar 11, 2011 10:38 AM PST up reply actions
At least Stover provided a boost defensively
and helped us narrow the defecit. Lane is a debacle on both ends, I hate to say. I really liked his game.
"Every day was a good day at UCLA." -Coach John Wooden
by OswegoBruin on Mar 11, 2011 11:43 AM PST up reply actions
I understand
but at the beginning of the season many thought Lane would have to be a regular contributor for this team to succeed. As it turns out, he isn’t. But last night was the perfect opportunity to through him out there for good minutes to allow him to snap out of it or stink it up, whichever. Wouldn’t have been any worse.
Louisville, KY for UCLA class of '87
The only good thing from this loss...
Is that it happened in the PAC 10 tourney rather than in the NCAA basketball. Although, if they play anything like they played last night.. this will be a quick, embarrassing first round tourney blowout loss. Looking at this team, I’d be satisfied if they can just win one game in the NCAA tourney but I am not even optimistic about that right now.
Go Bruins!
Since expectations will be met just being invited to the tourney, maybe we can forfeit the first game and not
have to go through the effort of travel, practice etc. Sorry for sarcasm.
I loved reading about history, still does.... Let me draw some analogies here
After the British forces beat an embarrassingly hasty retreat at Dunkirk during WWII, many of its high command personnels in London faced the wraths of their Prime Minister Winston Churchill. He relieved some on the spot, demoted others to desk jobs.
The legendary feisty Prime Minister was not done yet.
Churchill rallied the sagging morale of his country in the shadows of those looming German Spitfire fighter jets by crafting one of the most memorable speeches ever delivered in WWII. Within it contained a spirited, incredibly valiant phrase " ……….. never so few fought against so many in England’s finest hours. "
It jolted his country, gloomily ready for its fate, into actions. Historians and even movies chronicled well the steely determination of a nation at grave risk, its unyielding efforts to repel the menacing Nazis poised to conquer.
Yesterday’s game at Staples is an infamy, an unforgivable experience in the history of UCLA basketball. Can Howland and his coaching staff shake his lethargic team out of doldrums in a Churchill like fashion ?
Good one. But,
I always thought the quote was “Never have so many, owed so much to so few.” Now if we want to paraphrase the two WWII leaders, we might work in the infamy line as well…..“Nevah, in the annals of Bruin basketball, have so few done so little for so many. This day, the tenth day of March 2011, will live in infamy.”
The quote is:
“Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few.”
I always found the worship of Churchill to be an interesting phenomenon. The guy was a massive drunk, and quite unhinged. He spearheaded the plan to attack our Russian allies immediately after the war. I’m not saying the man wasn’t an inspiring leader… he was, and he helped his country get through some of its darkest days. But there was a reason the man was immediately ousted at the end of the war.
"Every day was a good day at UCLA." -Coach John Wooden
by OswegoBruin on Mar 11, 2011 10:40 AM PST up reply actions
We should have
Gone into Russia with Patton and finished our “allies” off. That’s when you stop being an American and start being Allies. “Thank the general and tell him I have no desire to drink with him or any other Russian son of a bitch”.
DGB
by westwood12003 on Mar 11, 2011 12:43 PM PST up reply actions
Lol.
Not to get into politics or anything, but the world’s most advanced and tactically sound fighting force in the world up to the time just had it’s s@#t packed in by Russia. I’d struggle to say we’d have an advantage without the use of nuclear weapons. Regardless of whatever political side you inhabit, I hope you wouldn’t desire the complete destruction and irradiation of eastern europe.
"Every day was a good day at UCLA." -Coach John Wooden
In the immortal words of Thornton Melon to Professor Terguson . . .
“All right. I’ll say it. ’Cause Truman was too much of a pussy wimp to let MacArthur go in there and blow out those Commie bastards!”
Precisely, classof67, Howland has an impossibly tough job
He needs to be both FDR & Winston Churchill at the same time. Text your line to CBH.
That assumes these players give a damn...
…and would be willing to rally like the English people were in 1941.
Obviously a fantasically wide chasm between participating in one’s country’s survival and playing in a college BB tournament, but there might be a similar mind-set for those willing to strive for excellence in lieu of survival.
by C.T. in Boston on Mar 11, 2011 1:18 PM PST up reply actions
I don't see how we can learn to play individual defense better in one week.
Its obvious that with Josh Smith in there, we need to play zone. It would maximize our strength, by keeping all three big men near the basket and minimize our weakness, individual defense. We need to make teams shoot contested jump shots, not a steady stream of layups and 3 pt. plays.
by 75NatChamps on Mar 11, 2011 10:40 AM PST up reply actions
This comment is so spot-on, it's maddening
It concerns me that since our coach either can’t see this or chooses to ignore it, that he is stupid and we are bound for failure. Dear CBH, with all due respect, we do not have the personnel to play a full game of man defense. In addition, the added benefit of zone will be to protect our bigs, esp. Josh Smith, from foul trouble. Not that that mattered last night, since he took a whopping 6 shots. Can you imagine LSU back in the day having Shaq take 6 shots? Can we please please please get the ball to the biggest man on the court from here on out. If we lose a game by 17, it should be because JS went 5-22 from the field, not 1-6.
@Htse005: some corrections
Umm, I like the thought, although C.T. in Boston raises a good point about the obvious chasm between the importance of the two (fighting for the survival of a democratic country against Nazi tyranny vs. winning some silly college basketball conference tournament), but there are few errors, aside from butchering Churchill’s quote, which was:
The gratitude of every home in our Island, in our Empire, and indeed throughout the world, except in the abodes of the guilty, goes out to the British airmen who, undaunted by odds, unwearied in their constant challenge and mortal danger, are turning the tide of the World War by their prowess and by their devotion. Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few.
That said, the German Luftwaffe wasn’t looming in Spitfire fighter jets in 1940. First, the Supermarine Spitfire was a British fighter plane. It might be the most elegant, most beautiful flying machine built. It looks like this:
The German fighter pilots, on the other hand, overwhelmingly flew the Messerschmitt Bf-109, which looked like this:
Big difference, right?
Finally, no one was using “jets” during the Battle of Britain. The first operational fighter jet (i.e. use of a jet engine rather than a prop) was the German Messerschmitt Me-262, which didn’t see combat action until 1944, well after the aerial siege of Britain had ended. Just because I like pictures, it looks like this:
History can be fun. Or at least, that’s what I tell myself when I look at the UCLA history degree I’ve never used (until now).
Wow, Bellerophon my fellow bruin, you impressed me with your pictorial documentations
I wrote up the piece in my moments of disgusts and resentments. Battle of Great Britain & Churchill’s clarion call for braveries always fascinated me, as an undergrad history major myself.
Thanks for your historical references regarding my comments.
How I ever thought Howland should rally his team now, as opposed to the grim prospects confronting Churchill before the massive German air raids commenced is really a good question to ask. Suppose the ugliness last night drove me near the precipice. My mindset resembled those Britons about to witness the final conquest of their once proud empire. I don’t know but at least writing that piece, warts and all, was cathartic, if anything.
Your BA History degree certainly comes in handy while mine is getting rusty.
Can you email me at Htse005@aol.com ?
Don't feel bad
Venting never leads to accuracy.
And besides, I’m just a plane junkie. Especially the Spitfire. I have yet to find a car as attractive.
And unfortunately, my degree just gathers dust. It was a nice by-line in my law school application (a degree that has actually, surprisingly, been useful).
by Bellerophon on Mar 11, 2011 10:05 PM PST up reply actions
CBH
It’s hard for me not to point the finger at CBH. When he saw us goofing around pre-game, he should have taken our kids to the shed for a whoopin right then and there.
How many teams in the nation have FOUR NBA prospects on their team now? Not many. We obviously have the talent.
Has CBH gone a little soft since losing Gordon & Co. earlier? I think he needs to crack the whip.
disagree
at this point in the season CBH shouldn’t have to crack the whip. players should want to put an effort out on the court, they should want to be competitive, they should want to win the goddam ballgame. that’s what athletes are supposed to do.
a coach can only do so much from the sidelines, and at this point in the season the players know what they have to do to come away with a victory.
Last night's game....
There has been a prevailing “clowning around” attitude with a lot of the players this year and especially last year….headed by the biggest clown, Bobo aka Bobo the Clown. I think having fun is a big part of the process but certain players carry that attitude with them into the games which translates into not giving their best effort. It’s absolutely clear that this team has that and it’s not going to change. How many times can we keep reading quotes like Honeycutt’s from last night’s game….player’s are not taking warm ups seriously?? Huh?
Geez….sorry to ask for your attention for a couple hours. I know we can’t all have Afflalo like players every year but it’s definitely a type of player we need to keep going after. This team at their worst, and that was a large percentage this year, is clearly unwatchable and they sap the emotion/fun out of watching our beloved Bruin basketball.
If it wasn’t so incredibly sad watching these guys play one half, partial, bits and pieces of games it would be really funny.
Time for the team to put on your big boy’s pants here, stop typing FML and go play ball…otherwise see you all at the Sports Arena, Bakersfield, Fresno, Tarzana, Encino or wherever they play in November….
GO BRUINS!!!!
Today's quote on my John Wooden calendar is spot on.
“There is no substitute for hard work. If you’re looking for the easy way, if you’re looking for the trick, you might get by for a while, but you will not be developing the talents that lie within you. There is simply no substitute for work.”
I will continue my broken record.
I think that they played hard, but played really poorly. The game plan was poor, it was poorly executed, and we made no positive adjustments when the plan wasn’t working.
I ask this question. Is it possible to play hard and just play really poorly. That is what I saw on the court. We kept trying harder, waiting for good things to happen and things just go worse.
The key moment of the second half was when we were down by 11, Zeek took a wild drive to the basket, not seeing Honeycutt open for a jump shot. Zeek missed and Oregon came down for a three point play. Our last chance to win it was lost. Zeek wanted to win badly and tried to put the team on his back, but couldn’t make the play. It was bad execution, not bad effort.
by 75NatChamps on Mar 11, 2011 11:02 AM PST up reply actions
Exactly
it’s kind of hard to make the claim that they played hard when they were simply getting beat in man to man defense. Oregon has far inferior athletes, and there should be no mismatches against them, EVER.
"Every day was a good day at UCLA." -Coach John Wooden
by OswegoBruin on Mar 11, 2011 11:45 AM PST up reply actions
I realize they are quoted as saying that we didn't play hard,
but I think they have nothing else to say. I watched the game. For example, I saw Honeycutt trying in vain to defend Singler. It wasn’t for lack of effort, it was for lack of quickness and technique. I saw Zeek trying in vain to force the action. He played hard, but played poorly.
I know I am not going to convince the majority. My personal belief is that they were embarrassed and frustrated, but simply could not come up with any way to stop Oregon from scoring and had a terrible time solving Oregon’s zone.
It is maddening to me that we don’t have a Honeycutt at the high post to shoot an uncontested 15 footer, and if contested, dump it down to the Smith or Nelson in the low post. Forcing the ball into a double teamed low post or passing the ball around the perimeter and forcing a shot at the end of the 35 second clock is not going to win games. I am a big CBH supporter, and there are tremendous flaws in our players, but the team was not put in a position to succeed. This, more than lackadaisacal attitude or lack of effort, is the reason we lose to inferior teams. It is so obvious to me watching the game, that I can’t believe Howland doesn’t see it.
If we played zone 1/3 of the time against Oregon and had a decent hi-low offense, I don’t see how Oregon could ever beat us.
No offense intended
But i’m going to go with Honeycutt’s word as opposed to your observations.
"Every day was a good day at UCLA." -Coach John Wooden
I'm going with what they said and what I saw...
…and not being a sycophant hell-bent on making excuses for a bunch of mentally-soft chumps that got embarrassed at Staples.
It's hard for me to believe that they wouldn't play their hearts out every game.
That Zeke miss right there really sank my heart though, since I knew Oregon was going to convert on the other end. It deflated the entire game for me.
Anytime anyone plays us, because we are UCLA, we have to expect their A game, and all I want is the same out of our team.
Our players lack lateral quickness,
especially Honeycutt and Smith. Even Zeek gets beaten by the quickest point guards. It is not effort. Its that particular skill. We disagree on this point.
I've been saying the same thing all season
We have one player who has above average lateral quickness for his position (Malcolm Lee). If you don’t have above average lateral quickness you better have exceptional length, strength and anticipation, otherwise you will get beat off the dribble and by quick cuts off the ball.
We Can Only Hope.....
That watching the rest of the Pac 10 Tournament with the likes of Oregon, ‘SC, and ’Zona now battling it out the rest of the way will get our guys mad and want to get back to work for the Dance. We’ll see. How much will this motivate our guys? That is the question and will determine how far they can go.
Los Angeles Rams and the UCLA Bruins!!!!!
by Minnesota Bruinfan on Mar 11, 2011 10:53 AM PST reply actions
Look at other Tourneys today
for comparison. NC won in tough game against Miami, while OSU won in OT over NW. Both top seeds trailed in their games, but pulled it out. This is the effort we fans expect (win or lose). That is the fundamental issue with this team, consistent effort. However, I don’t think Jones should have played (he has no confidence right now). ML was not himself, either.
Control the tone; don't just observe it
The lack of a sense of responsibility is one of the most vexing problems with members of this team. I didn’t see the warm-ups, but I suspect the ones goofing around weren’t Lee or Jones, and maybe didn’t include Anderson. Whom does that leave among the players who were on the court for much of the game?
If Honeycutt said, “Guys weren’t taking, like, game shots, weren’t really being focused,” why didn’t he address the problem right then and there, starting with himself? Why didn’t he own up to the problem and said either, “I wasn’t being really focused” or, “I saw others who weren’t focused, and I should have stepped up and set a competitive tone.”
It’s as though Honeycutt is an observer commenting on what is happening around him rather than an agent who is active in dictating the environment. He’s the driver who tells his insurance company that a tree stepped in front of his car. A lot of opposing players will intercept a Bruin’s errant passes or drive right to the hoop if the Bruin blames the environment — i.e., the other team or some vague collection of “guys” — rather than himself.
Honeycutt opens himself to justifiable criticism with quotes like the one he gave, but of course he’s not the only one. These players need to realize that with so few on the court at a given time, each one’s attitude and example is of paramount importance.
Coach Wooden advised, “We get distracted by what is outside our control. Success begins by trying to make each day count. If you sincerely try to make each day a masterpiece, angels can do no better.” There is more in the Bruins’ control than some of our players seem to acknowledge. If all the Bruins performed as though they brandished full control over the outcome, maybe they’d have a season of dominance rather than comeuppance.
Watched half time warm-ups.
They came out very late and didn’t have much time to shoot around. Jerime spent all of his time at the free throw line. Something was wrong with him. He must have shot 8 or 9 of them and only made 1. He was focused and serious. Maybe it was fatigue from what ever his virus was. But he was being very serious.
Go Bruins!
UCLA's Basketball Irrelevancy...
…is still in full effect. Can we really expect anything more than this when our coach allows players to sport Mohawks and fails to teach them a cohesive offensive system? This is the UCLA that CBH has left us with; no one wants to play for him (as evidence by two sub-par recruiting classes); defense may win games, but offense gives you the opportunity to win games. Absolutely pathetic UCLA, absolutely pathetic!
What the hell?
I’m honestly more bothered by Honeycutt’s lack of a mohawk than by CBH allowing the team to sport them, or in other words, not at all.
I’m pretty sure Nelson, Smith, and Honeycutt could have gone nearly anywhere they wanted, so to say that no one wants to play for CBH is ludicrous. Now you could have used recruiting as an area in which CBH has failed due to our recent misses on PGs, but let’s be real here; if Zeek were healthy and this team gave maximum effort, no one would be complaining about our PG play either.
Interested in some legitimate criticism? Read this article about last night’s game from BRO’s Pierson:
http://ucla.scout.com/2/1055108.html
Also, if defense wins games and offense merely gives you the opportunity to win games, I’ll take defense!
Umm, Yeah.
I banking on the “Mohawk deabte” as a non-essential distraction argument. If it makes them connect with each other as a team, I don’t care if they sport mullets. (aaaack.)
+ 1 billion on the observation regarding defense.
Love My Bruins
Ya, I guess distraction arguments
become necessary when the sky is falling!
and LOL and the mental image of Honeycutt and Smith with mullets!
LOL
YES. We lost because Reeves and Smith have mohawks. You are a shrewd observer, my friend…
"Every day was a good day at UCLA." -Coach John Wooden
Or why Phil Jackson never wins championships
he has players with absurd hair styles, ala Rodman and Artest.
We were 8-1 with an average margin of victory of 19.22 ppg when this pic was published
of course maybe we would have beaten Texas if RW was rocking a standard fade.
by LVBruin on Mar 11, 2011 6:30 PM PST up reply actions 1 recs
My (Limited) Perspective
I didn’t get to watch any of this game—I am in WA, with my parents who are both going downhill entirely too quickly for me, and I simply didn’t have time to watch or even record it. I read through the game threads late last night, because I’ve always relied upon my BN brothers and sisters to give me the “real feel” of any game. Those of you who are familiar with my posts know that I generally speak my mind. (lol)
This team tugs at my heartstrings because they actually are talented and endearing. I have watched Malcolm Lee grow up and bulid his game and his role brick by brick and it makes me respect him and genuinely root for him as a Bruin and as a young athelete. I honestly did not know what to think of Reeves when he came, but there is a look in his eye sometimes that just grabs me and reminds me so much of LRMAM and PAA…(sigh.) Their lack of focus makes me insane. The absence of a true “Let’s Go” guy kills me. Their wavering faith—in themselves, each other, in CBH—shakes my soul.
In the end, they are my team, and I really want them to do the best that they can. Their win against AZ at Pauley just makes all of this wavering “heart for the win” more maddening. They have swagger, it just tends to come at the wrong time. They have humility, (equally important), but it also seems to hit them at the wrong moments.
This whole post really provides nothing to you all, but thank you for the apt and trenchant commentary upon which I can always rely.
I really do
Love My Bruins
Bruingirl
Best wishes to you and your family. This team ages me and my friends faster than I wish all the time.
"Every day was a good day at UCLA." -Coach John Wooden
"I have watched Malcolm Lee grow up and bulid his game and his role brick by brick"
Boy, there were sure a ton of bricks to go around last night
Thanks for BN for being a place to vent.
After that game, I needed an outlet for horrible frustration. I look forward to the game all week, and was subjected to THAT?
Re: " .....was subjected to THAT ? "
LOL….. LOL………. You TOO ? I mean there is another one here felt exactly how I felt too ?
I posted somewhere that watching the ugliness of it unfolding reminded me so eerily of that gruesome, graphic scene in Apocalyse Now when Marlon Brando morbidly exhaled, then muttered on his dying breaths those chillingly creepy words, " the horror, the hooooooror ".
Unlike you or others, next week my agenda is full. I will read about the scores in the newspapers as I scan them quickly before heading off to work.
They were very tired
How many times did I see our players rest both of their hands on their hips?
These kids were so tired that they exhausted all the liquids in their brains that they caused themselves a technical foul by having 6 players on the court.
That CBH style of defense killed their legs.
Another stellar contribution
Why is he not banned yet?
"Every day was a good day at UCLA." -Coach John Wooden
Did anyone notice..
In the first half of today’s UNC-Miami game, Roy Williams pointed to his 5 walk ons and subbed all 5 for the starters. This was in a league tourney game, not a somewhat meaningless regular season finale. I hope the brass in Westwood were watching. Oh btw, UNC came from 19 down to win.
Go Bruin Basketball
Stover on FB
said anyone who wants to talk crap about his team, say it to his face. sounds like a lot of people messaged him about the pathetic display of his team.
anyway, i pray this team doesn’t humiliate themselves at the tourney, but who knows.
WHAT!??!?!?!?!?!?!
Yeah, it's everyone else's fault
That they played like crap with no effort and intensity and lost. That’s sure what I like to hear after the worst loss of the season from them: whining about justified criticism.
Well,
Stover plays his butt off game in and game out. They’re all open for criticism, but nobody can criticize his effort.
"Every day was a good day at UCLA." -Coach John Wooden
Which would be fine if he said if anyone wants to talk crap about him
But he said his team, and his team played like garbage. So if he doesn’t like it, then his team needs to play better or quit whining.
In all fairnes to Stover
there’s no telling what type of s*** was spewing from the keyboards of the internet toughguys. I imagine it went beyond “you guys suck” for him to respond with a “say it to my face”.
I kind of wish he wouldn't say that
I would rather he take an approach like Joshua Smith on twitter
“bruin nation we are sorry for tonitdme…thts not they way we should ever represent ucla.. we got a big opportunity coming up. its grindtime”
worry less about the “haters” and focus more on what you can do to not make the same mistake again.
+1
Making the comment “say it to my face” implies you’ll do something if they do. That’s not the wise thing to be saying. Better practice is to ignore the internet tough guys and start making use of Facebook/Twitter/MySpace/whatever damn thing the kids are using these days’ privacy settings.
Louisville downs Notre Dame, Penn State tops Wisconsin,
and VA Tech beats FSU in a game with an absurd ending
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