UCLA Finally Wins Outside of SoCal, Squeaks by WSU 63-60
by Tydides on Feb 4, 2012 4:20 PM PST
in Basketball
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Given the total irrelevancy of UCLA Basketball this season, you can understand why Fox Sports would feel their viewership would be better served showing a women's basketball game between Central Florida and Memphis, and even worse, a Clippers game, over the marquee collegiate basketball program on the west coast. Due to that, I was personally unable to watch this team finally end their streak of futility outside of SoCal (box score).
Maybe through the power of hindsight, we can conclude that we should have had our home games somewhere in the state of Washington. Then maybe we'd get some kind of performance out of Joshua Smith, who again had a big impact in his home state with 19 points on 8-9 shooting before fouling out.
From the comments, I can safely deduce that we actually played zone, and the score tells me that we finally won a game outside of Southern California in our 23rd game of the season.
After that, I won't be making any statements on how the team played, because unlike Howlers, who seem to have no problem spouting off on topics like our coaching and the condition of the program, despite not actually watching our games this season, I feel the need to do so in order to have an informed, accurate, and fact-based opinion.
So I'll leave it to you who were fortunate (or unfortunate, depending on how you look at it) enough to see this game to do a review here in this postgame thread.
Next up is the NorCal schools again at home.
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Zone won the game for us
CBH needs to learn that. I am not saying zone only but at least some of the time and try it. When teams shoot over 50% on you, you need to try something. Today it was the difference.
Unfortunately, I think he only went zone to protect Josh. I hope that is not true but it does seem plausible.
you mean because of foul trouble?
You would think that after admitting the Zone won the game against Penn, he would have it in each week’s game plan.
Yep
I could be wrong but because I think CBH went there because he did not want to go Stover. He needed extra minutes for Josh. It is a black mark on CBH that he did not play more zone.
A key reason for the zone
was the basic issueof match-ups. Specifically, I think CBH adjusted to zone to contain Brock Motum. Even as good as Stover is defensively, Motum can play away from the basket as well as down low, which none of our big guys were able to contain in a man-to-man matchup. The switch accounts for Motum’s dip in the second half. It was something like 18pts in the first and only 7pts in the second.
Am I still a "Howler" if...
I think he should be allowed to stay if Shabazz and Parker commit?
Is this like saying the future was fantastic the day Jrue signed?
I don’t get how one or two players who will stay for who knows how long, if they sign at all, can erase the years of futility since 2008.
Maybe I'm just a novice at realy arcane, metaphysical things,
but I always thought the past and the future were two different things. Unlike an omnipresent Diety seeing the past and the future all as the present, what two guys who haven’t officially declared where they want to go to school yet might do next year does not change the last 50 or so games. The future is always rosy. I see us winning the whole thing next year. Maybe. The past 50 games come in much more clearly on my scope, however, and we did not look much like the UCLA teams that I grew up with. Or even the UCLA teams that I grew old with. Right now, Coach Howland looks to me to be no improvement over his predecessor. I never in a million years thought I would say that.
But there it is – never in a million years. Mixing past and future again.
Agree, but maybe i'm dreaming here
With this line-up, can we make a deep tourney run… and even win?
C – Smith/Parker (probably staying after this year, but Howland needs to keep him)
PF – D./T. Wear
SF – Shabazz
SG – Powell/Adams
PG / “Point F” – K. Anderson/L. Drew
If we get Parker ans Shabbaz
The expectation will be to put together a wire to wire top 5 season. Anything less will be considered a disappointment as there will be zero excuses for Howland and his excuse makers.
by Nestor on Feb 4, 2012 5:23 PM PST via mobile up reply actions
Adams, Anderson, and Powell, and Parker are more important to the stability of Howland's career than Muhammad
If Howland is to be successful, some of the recurrent issues brought up here need to be addressed. I think it all starts with recruiting. Howland in my mind, has really had two groups of recruiting-2004/5 and 2008/9. The remaining years are really years where we didn’t have more than 2 scholarships or we were trying to make up for the misses in 08/09 and shuffling players and transfers around. Thus, the 2012/2013 group will have a huge impact on the success of Howland, if he stays. The main recurring issues I see are the ones that are recurring around here:
1) Going back to Ben Ball defense: The team needs guards that can place ball pressure, forwards that can rotate, and a center that can hedge. That’s what we haven’t recruited since the 2007 class.
2) Personnel management: I’m not sure of the intracacies of the transfers, but I believe part of it has to do with establishing expectations during recruiting. I think many, if not all of the transfers pertain to expectations that weren’t met, whether it’s position, playing time, or some other things. Having everyone on the same page brings a sense of unity and purpose to the team. We had a lot more transfers out of the 2008/9 group than the 2004/2005 group.
3) Point guards. Ben hasn’t had a point guard in a while and needs to start getting them back. He has missed quite a few that had some interest in UCLA. Even with Shabazz, there is still a huge question mark at guard next year. Even Anderson or Drew can play solid offensively, there are doubts about ball pressure. This is without thinking of the following year, when we potentially will have true point guards that will be freshman.
So while Muhammed will be great to have and provide success, he will be gone after a year. The 2012/2013 group needs to meet the above criteria for him to be successful. Really, whether or not you are a “Howler” depends on your view of the future. Howlers think that the 2012/2013 group will be more like 2004/05 than 2008/9. This leads people to look at the first group and have hope that things will turn around. They say, “He went to 3 FF, so he gets to stay. He teaches defense and rebounding and has set plays for the offense” The remainder feel that 2008/09 is the true nature of the program under Howland. Thus the arguments that players have been mismanaged and forced out of the program, he doesn’t have players that can play his defense, and the lack of a point guard for the last 4 years. It all starts with recruiting.
by sjc7522 on Feb 5, 2012 4:32 AM PST up reply actions 1 recs
Some very good observations here sjc
This is worth its own stand alone fanpost that can be further fleshed out in subsequent discussions.
How about
that last play by zeke after his missed free throw, putting himself in position to foul on the last heave by Wassu.
9 missed freethrows
and Stover with an ugly stat line… 17 MIN 2 REB 1 BLK 4 PF.
Too bad Powell was sick. He was 0/5 from the field
Any port in a storm . . . Ill take it.
As for the howlers enjoying their Howland-daze sauce, even a broken watch is right twice a day.
"I watched" game on gametracker.
Since it was still 9 seconds to go as it had been 15 minutes earlier I gave up and thought I’ll bet Bruin Nation has the final. Also, UCLA is so important to USA Today that they sometimes don’t bother putting in a summary of the game.It was good to be the team coming out on top from behind, no less.
Could've
paid $4.90 to watch this game on tv, however, figured there was no upside to it. Regardless of outcome, I knew I would be extremely frustrated. I caught the end on line stream through BN and of course was not mistaken. Nontheless, heres to turning that proverbial corner.
Happy that UCLA won, obviously
Not happy that this is the way UCLA won. Or really, I should say “not lose.” Didn’t feel like UCLA really attacked WSU the same way they did UW. The WSU TV team said this was a team that got away from WSU, and I can’t say I disagree with them.
Keywords
last year. He’s missed a lot of key FTs this year.
by Gen2Bruin1987 on Feb 4, 2012 6:56 PM PST up reply actions
Why Stover and Lane don't play more...
Take a look at their stat lines. Powell’s too for that matter. And, I really don’ think the ’he’s sick’ excuse will work.
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