Needing a series win over Washington St. to keep their regional hopes alive, UCLA handed the ball to LHP Tim Murphy in the all-important series opener Friday night. Seemingly oblivious to the pressure, Murphy delivered the Bruins the win they sorely needed with a dominating performance. The junior didn't surrender a hit in the first five innings, gave up only two hits on the night, struck out eight and gave up zero runs in his seven innings of work. By the time Murphy exited the game, UCLA led 9-0 and was well on their way to an eventual 10-0 victory.

UCLA took an early 1-0 lead in the first when CF Blair Dunlap hit a deep drive to right center that cleared the fence, giving Dunlap his first homer of the season. UCLA wasn't able to muster another hit until the fourth when SS Brandon Crawford led off the inning with a single. DH Cody Decker followed with a walk and he and Crawford each advanced a base when LF Mickey Weisser grounded out to first. C Brent Dean came to the plat next and despite falling behind 0-2, was able to foul a few pitches off before hitting a sacrifice fly to right that scored Crawford.

UCLA took a slim 2-0 lead into the sixth, but blew the game wide open with a seven run inning that ended any hope the Cougars had. Amazingly, all seven runs came with two outs as Weisser led off the inning and advanced to third as the following two batters were retired. 3B Jermaine Curtis (wearing a purple and gold wristband that his father told me was in support of the Lakers) walked with two out and Dunlap did as well to load the bases. 2B Alden Carrithers followed with a walk of his own, scoring Weisser from third. 1B Casey Haerther jumped on the first pitch he saw and singled it sharply to left, scoring Curtis and Dunlap. Now up 5-0, UCLA got some help from Washington St. when an error allowed Crawford to get on base and extend the inning. With the bases loaded again, UCLA brought Decker to the plate and he promptly deposited the second pitch he saw over the left field fence for a grand slam to put the Bruins ahead 9-0.

UCLA added a run in the eighth when a ground out by Weisser scored Carrithers from third. After seven innings of work, Murphy gave the ball to LHP Brendan Lafferty who threw two scoreless innings to wrap up the 10-0 Bruin victory.

While Murphy led the Bruins on the mound, it was a collective effort for the Bruins at the plate. All but one Bruin starter reached base on the night and seven of nine scored a run. Carrithers went 2-2 with two runs and a RBI, while Haerther was 3-4 with a run and two RBI. Crawford and Dunlap each had a hit and scored twice, but Decker stole the show with his grand slam despite it being his only hit of the game.

UCLA will look to wrap up this Pac 10 series tomorrow at 1:30. Washington St. will send LH Jayson Miller (7-1, 4.24) to the hill to face off with UCLA's RHP Charles Brewer (7-4, 5.18). The game will be nationally televised on FSN for all you Bruins in exile. If you can't make it out to the game or to a TV, you can listen to it or follow it on GameTracker via the official site.

Pac 10 Standings: 

1) Arizona St.        13-6   (-- GB)

2) Stanford             11-7     (1.5)         

3) Washington        10-9    (3.0)

    California            11-10  (3.0)

5) Oregon St           11-11  (3.5)        

6) UCLA                   9-10    (4.0)

7) Arizona                8-10    (4.5)

8) Southern Cal      8-11    (5.0)

9) Washington St.   6-12    (7.0)

The men's soccer team released its fall schedule, which includes five of the last seven NCAA champs. From the release :

The Bruins open the 2008 season on Aug. 29 in a nationally-televised game against 2005 champion Maryland at The Home Depot Center. Fox Soccer Channel will broadcast the game live as its Game of the Week. On Sept. 5-7, UCLA travels to the Wake Forest Tournament to take on the defending NCAA champion Demon Deacons on Sept. 5 and 2001 champions North Carolina on Sept. 7. UCLA, which won the 2002 NCAA championship, will host 2003 and 2004 champions Indiana on Sept. 12 and 2006 champion UC Santa Barbara on Oct. 1.

Even though men's soccer went into last season as heavy favorites to win at all and fell extremely short of expectations, this fall should still be exciting at Drake Stadium with another postseason push.

Bumped. GO BRUINS. - N

UCLA had themselves a busy day Friday as they wrapped up negotiations for a three game series with Houston and added a much needed offensive lineman to their roster. First the series with Houston:

The Bruins will play three games with Houston, two at home and one on the road. The first game will be in 2010 when the Bruins host the Cougars. In 2011, UCLA will travel to Houston's Robertson Stadium before finishing up the series in 2012 at the Rose Bowl. This is a very good series for us IMO because it gives us another game in Texas to go with our trips to Austin (Texas) and Houston (Rice). This can only help in recruiting and hopefully we can tap into that huge talent pool. Here's all the games we have scheduled thus far:

2009: San Diego St., at Tennessee, Kansas St

2010: at Kansas St., Houston, at Texas

2011: at Houston, San Jose St., Texas

2012: at Rice, Nebraska, Houston

2013: at Nebraska

So on top of the scheduling news, we've got a transfer coming to play offensive line for the Bruins in 2009. Kai Maiava is from Hawaii and went to Colorado as a center, ranked the 31st best center in the country out of high school. However as a freshman he played left guard before being moved to fullback as a sophomore. He played sparingly as a fullback and dropped weight to play the position, but has since gained that weight back and is back to 300+ lbs. A quote from Maiava:

"It was a whole bunch of things that added up,'' Maiava said. ``It was a little football, a little this, a little that. It started to crumble on me. It was weird towards the end of the year. I found it better to be closer to home and surrounding myself with family.''

Maiava will be eligible to play in 2009 after sitting out a year per NCAA transfer rules. Looks like a solid day for CRN and the program.

Warning: This is a Rant, a personal Editorial, devoid of fact and full of emotion. You may not want to read it.

For the last week, I've tried to figure out what upset me so much about the OJ2 scandal. I was deeply disappointed because, against all odds, toward the end of the year I started liking OJ2.

What follows is what I came up with -- my reasons for being upset.

Continue reading this post »

The Daily News ran a nice article on Jordan Farmar this week.

After having an inconsistent series (following a very good second year) Jordan stepped up in a big way during game 5:

 

The former Taft High and UCLA star had been a pivotal role player for the Lakers all season, but his usually productive minutes had become consistently inconsistent in the playoffs. Farmar's minutes were down - a product of Derek Fisher playing more - and his shots weren't falling.

His confidence, however, never dropped.

"I'm confident in my abilities," Farmar said. "Whatever the numbers say, it doesn't tell the true story."

His story Wednesday was that he was back. Farmar's breakthrough playoff moment was a magical one on the and-one play in the fourth quarter, which gave the Lakers a 90-86 lead. He scored six points in the Lakers' 111-104 victory over the Jazz.

You know Farmar is telling the truth when he says he wasn't worried.

"I know I can shoot the ball," Farmar said. "I was missing layups and floaters and shots I always make. That's just not me. For me to get some success is good. I need to keep doing that."

Jackson publicly said he hadn't lost faith in Farmar, and the two had several meetings the last week - all at Jackson's request.

"I sat down with Phil, and he said he wanted me to relax," Farmar said.

 

Jordan and his team-mates will try to finish off the Jazz tonight.

Go Bruins & Go Lakers.

Alex Stepheson from the University of North Carolina will be transferring from the school to a school on the west coast in order to be closer to his father, who is ill.

Stepehson starred at the nearby Harvard Westlake school and there is speculation that he may wind up at UCLA. However, some issues that were cited in his official release from UNC stated that he was looking for more playing time.

Whether Stepheson is eligible to play in 2008-2009 remains to be seen. Because his father is ill, Stepehson could apply to have the NCAA waive the normal one-year rule that applies to transfers. Of course, with the possible returns of LRMAM and AA2, as well as the possibility of landing J'Mison Morgan, the one-year transfer rule may actually work out should Stepheson end up at UCLA.

Regardless, whether or not Stepheson ends at UCLA, here is one Bruin fan hoping that his father can fully recover from his illness.

Bumped. GO BRUINS. -N

Joe Hillock, UCLA Director of Basketball Operations spoke at the UCLA Club of the Desert's Annual Scholarship Dinner tonight.  I took some notes that I thought might be interesting to others on this site.

His role is basically that of another assistant coach.  I got the impression he has been with CBH for several years dating back before UCLA and maybe before Pitt, but he didn't say specifically.

One of his jobs is "breaking down" the film taken at practices.  Each practice is filmed, then he compiles the film to review with CBH the next morning at 9am.  He typically is up til 2am every night during the season analyzing the film from the previous practice and/or game.  He also is the "liason" with the medical staff (there are 4 doctors on staff) with whom he meets weekly.  

A typical "day in the life" of a Bruin Basketball student-athlete

1. Breakfast at 6am (training table)
2. Class
3. 1 1/2 hrs in weight room 4 days/wk
4. Athletic training 4 days/wk
5. Practice 6-7 days/wk (practice starts Oct.15 and runs until April...)

The team's GPA for the last term was 2.99.  Four players made Honor Roll.  He made a specific point of mentioning RW's GPA as being somewhat higher.  (I'm not going to post the number, as I wouldn't want my GPA published for public consumption)  The point being that he's not turning pro because he can't hack the schoolwork.  Overall, not bad for a team that played in 39 games and won 35.  On away trips, they leave campus early Wednesday mornings, meaning they miss classes W - F.  An academic advisor travels with the team.  The team for the first time ever has hired a nutritionist and an "athletic performance" coach.  The weight room has recently been re-done.

Regarding specific players:

1. AA2   Sited the Andy Katz article.  Stated he is in summer school and is likely to be back.
2. LRMAM  "testing the waters"
3. JS  "90% sure" he is coming back
4. RW  "not coming back" .  Likely lottery pick
5. KL   "probably not coming back"
6. ND  "false rumors" regarding him leaving.  Some problems with his diet in that he put on 8 lbs during the season despite the training, but has already lost 7 since the season ended.

Regarding recruits:

1. Could not comment on a specific player not yet signed due to NCAA rules.  
2. Gordon is also a track & field athlete competing either in shot put or discus.  He has an outstanding HS GPA.
3. J Holliday is the second coming of D. Wade.  His mother is a coach.  He would be NBA caliber out of HS if he could be.
4. M Lee has a 7'2" wing span
5. J Anderson  is the #2 PG in the country. 

Recruits will be early entries in July to get acclimated to the campus and the academics before the season starts.

UCLA will play in the Coaches v Cancer Classic which will also include Duke and Memphis (possible rematch?)

Pauley renovation will cost $175M.  3 - 4 plan options are being considered.  Naming rights may also be negotiated but the name will still include Pauley  and the court will still be the Nell and John Wooden Court.

He also played the highlight video for the season.  Some of it I'd seen before on this site (the one that has the montage that starts with stills and words like  Intensity, Leadership, Defense, Focus, etc. but this one was longer).  He said afterward that it wasn't yet available on YouTube.  I might be able to get a copy from our club president.  I also asked him about Chase, and he gave me the diplomatic response.

BTW I used to post on this site as UCLAMD89 and used the BN upgrade as a chance for a better username.  I'm a geezer-in-training so no avatar yet.  This is my first fanpost, so please be kind.

Hello BN.

I decided to pick up on bluestreet's idea of emailing Adam Rose - the TrOJan alum - who is running The Times' "What's Bruin" blog. Here is the email that I just sent to him which you can freely copy and paste and send it to him (at adam@laist.com) as well:

Dear Adam,

In the following link please find some detailed information re. the cross-town rival of "UCLA Bruins" that Bruins would find very useful and would be appropriate for a blog entitled "What's Bruin""

http://www.bruinsnation.com/2008/5/15/508939/pete-carroll-tim-floyd-usc#comments

Please let me know if you will be able to post the information. And if you cannot post the information please let me know why you cannot share information concerning UCLA's cross-town rival on "What's Bruin."

Truly yours,

UniversityofSecondChoice

I am waiting for his response.

As soon as I get I will post it here.

I think it would be cool if we all email him and demand that he links that list int he LAT's "What's Bruin" blog.

You can post his responses in this thread.

This is a win-win.

We either expose him again as Trojie lapdog or he post's Menelaus's list in the LA Times.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

Updated with Adam Rose's response

Adam Rose responded back to my email. I will break it down for you all.

Adam said:

I read Bruins Nation regularly and it's an excellent blog. This particular post appears to be a comprehensive compilation of allegations against USC over the past few years. I cannot simply repost things due to copyright laws, though I frequently link to BN and may do so with this post. I tend to run a feature called "hot links" on Monday/Wednesday/Friday, and this may be appropriate as something that would be amusing to Bruins.

I asked Adam if that means he will post a link to the list today. Haven’t gotten a response.

Then Adam claimed that he has been fair in covering the TrOJan mess:

It looks like I've mentioned all but one of the incidents that have happened since I started writing All Things Trojan on that particular blog. In fact, the BN post actually links to All Things Trojan as a reference. The one I haven't mentioned is Radovich not getting drafted because of alleged behavioral problems. As a point of fact, I am unaware of any behavioral problems. Nobody at the LA Times seems to know about it, and the Daily News beat writer outright refuted it. I would speculate that as a low draft pick, somebody made a mistake in his NFL draft evals. I didn't feel it was right to bring it up and cause any more unfounded embarrassment.

What he didn’t say that he mentioned those stories but he always wrote them from the prism of a TrOJie shill. Exhibit A: check out this comedic post on Mayo being an angel .

Adam ended with this:

When we proposed merging USC and UCLA coverage, the reaction was universally negative. Bruin fans made it clear they don't want to hear about Trojans. When I mentioned Mayo's scandal on What's Bruin, I again got feedback that Bruins didn't want to hear about it. As we add more writers to the blog, perhaps we will add a regular feature called SChadenfruede -- but for now I'll keep that to the hot links. The priorities for my own posts on What's Bruin are things like UCLA basketball/football and interviews with water polo coach Adam Krikorian and women's hoops coach Nikki Caldwell. 

That’s a lot of BS. What Adam is failing to mention that his readers didn’t want to hear about him making excuses for not writing on “What’s Bruin” because he was too busy spinning for SuC on “All Things TrOJan". I am sure his readers (the few that he has left) will appreciate a link to Menelaus’s list without any kind of gratuitous dig towards BN.

Keep an eye on his blog - "What's Bruin " - today to see if he posts the link to the List in his Friday's "Hotlinks".

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Update II

Adam Rose posted the link on What's Bruin today.

Bumped. GO BRUINS. -N

It can be cool when someone from outside the family has something nice to say about a Bruin.

Not sure how I came across this, one link led to another and another I guess, but here is what U.S. Olympic softball pitcher Cat Osterman wrote about the national team's trip to UCLA:

From Sulphur we headed to Los Angeles for a showdown with the UCLA Bruins. With quite a few former Bruins on our roster, we knew this game was going to be emotional, but no one was prepared for how moving it turned out to be.

Lisa Fernandez started and pitched a one-hitter, and we could tell as the game went on how emotional it was for her. After the game, Lisa left her cleats on the mound at UCLA where she established herself as the greatest player in softball history. Even though Lisa continues to tour and play with our team, the game at UCLA was her way of saying goodbye and thank you in a place she can call home.

All of us were in tears. Sometimes you take someone for granted and I think it was at that point we all remembered everything Lisa has done for the game, paving the way for many of us to have the opportunity we have.

Here is the link to Cat's blog.

Aaron Fitt of Baseball America has his projected NCAA field of 64 teams and we are on the outside looking in:

At 25-23 overall and 8-10 in conference, UCLA just needs wins, starting with a must-win series this weekend against Washington State and continuing with trips to Cal State Fullerton for a midweek game and California for a three-game series next week. With a 54 RPI, the Bruins are still alive if they can finish strong, but right now they're hanging their hats on a series win at Arizona in March—a flimsy foundation.

For the boys in true blue, it comes down to the last home series of the season against Wazzu to make some sort of statement...at this point, my hopes aren't high but I'd like to be surprised.