and it starts with defense. we are getting back to form on defense and that is what will take us far.  we have 8 players rotating solidly.  mata is coming on strong. shipp is coming on strong.  two wins up North and doesnt matter what happens in the conference tourney, we will have the #1 seed. i trust we will continue to build. we have overachieved a little this season in my opinion (25-3, undefeated at Pauley), and yet we can do so so much more. we are looking good!

Lost again today.

Do you still think they deserve a #1 seed??

It was a good game, but not a great one. We should have been ahead by 10 at the half. Our first half FG percent (both 2s & 3s) was only 42.9% and our FT's were only 3 of 6. The final result was decisive, but to me, it demonstrated some of the same issues that we have had all season -- particularly in the first half.

Looking to the tournament, I think we could have trouble with a team that is both big and physical. Stanford is big, but they don't have the experience or the depth to be a problem at this point -- particularly after they got our dander up by surprising us at Palo Alto. What Stanford demonstrated in the first game is that we are vulnerable in the tournament to a more seasoned team that has size and strength. While LSU made Florida look terrible today, does anyone recall the Florida game last year?

WSU is another problematic team for us with some of the same strengths as Stanford. Let's see if we can blowout WSU in the upcoming game, and how we do in the PAC-10 tourney. We don't seem to strike fear in the eyes of our opponents, even though the results this season have been good.

So we first have to find a team that has 2 seven footers that can play; then their wing players  have go unconscious from the 3 point line? Well, any team in the country would lose if one team had 2 unstoppable 7 footers and shooters that wouldn't miss any 3's!  

And, aren't we a little nitpicking when we say we shot 3 of 6 from the free throw line?  And only shot 42 percent in the first half?
Weren't we leading at halftime? And didn't we win this game?

Florida has been exposed by Vanderbilt and LSU, who even knows if they will go all the the way to the title game. It's a little premature to talk about the National Championship right now. But Florida is not unstoppable by any means!  

You also need to take in consideration we have the best coach in the country! Give our guys credit. With no seniors on this team having played the toughest schedule in the country we can beat any team! I don't want to be premature and say we are going to win it all, but we have as good of a chance as Florida, North Carolina, Ohio State, Wisconsin, or Kanas does of winning it this year; and who knows it might not be any of the teams I mentioned, including us.

I just want to beat WSU I don't care if we blow them out or not. I don't believe that we will blow them out. They are a great team and it will be a close game and we could lose.

Now why should teams fear us, we aren't the Detroit Pistons back in the late 80's and early 90's. We don't have dirty players or trash talkers; or anyone that is averaging 30 points per game. Teams also always bring their A games against us, they get up to play UCLA. I think that has to a lot to do with us having such slow starts or other teams being more fired up in the beginning of the game than we are. THey want to show that they can play hang with UCLA.

teams, this is a great team that easily could have gone undefeated this year if not for some learning experiences, and no DC for one road game.  Of course there were a few games that could have been lost too, but who's counting?  Undefeated at home is pretty impressive, especially in this league.  But the one thing that is still scary, at least for other teams, is that Coach Howland hasn't even hit his stride in terms of recruiting yet.  This is a team still rising from the ashes of Lavin's destruction.  This team is not led by seniors who have been in Howland's system 4 or more years.  Our big experienced leader is a junior.  Our floor general is a sophomore.  Our highest profile player (in terms of recruiting) is still in highschool.  But the great thing in my mind is that they are all great people on top of it all.  It is such a good time to be a Bruin (bball) fan.  I can't wait to see where the program can go from here.

Those Gators are on a downward slide at a critical juncture right now.  They may exit early at the tourney also.  I like our team's chance this year.  Absent any major surprise at the West regional, we should be at the Final Four in Atlanta.  Aaron is the one taking us back to the " Promised Land " .  But first thing first, let's get the two Washington schools out of the way next week.

Two problems to fix after today's game.  Capitalize on every steal and turnover.  Minimize. length of the court long passes.  Use the shotclock against every team like we did at Tucson.

At the campout:

This is a rap from a member of the Den who is not graduating this year.  It' a sendoff to the graduating Den seniors.  The hardcore seniors who camp out nearly every game. Not sure how long this tradition has gone on though...

http://www.youtube.com/v/eVOgre7VEA0

AA leads the Bruins to a national title this year.  Then he could choose to return for a sure repeat with Love on the team, or to turn pro.