Pin Ups For Our Bulletin Board

by Nestor on Mar 30, 2007 9:24 AM PDT in Basketball Comment 28 comments

We will throw this up here now in case it's not already on our team bulletin board:

Dear UCLA,

Hello. How are you? Enjoyed your stay so far? Can I get you anything? Extra pillow? Snack? A chance in hell? Return ticket home?

I like you, UCLA. You've got heart. You've got toughness. You're in the Final Four again. Major props to you. You've also got no shot to beat Florida. None, zippo. Take your tourist photos of Atlanta as quickly as possible. Grab some postcards. Park the bus close to the arena so you can catch that 9 p.m. charter on Saturday night. I've got a bootleg of 300 for you to watch on the plane. Twenty bucks and it's yours.

You are a nice story. You did well in a rugged Pac-10. You have a smart coach. You're from L.A. Some people say Los Angeles is New Jersey with movie stars. Not me. Some of my favorite rappers are from L.A.

You are a lovely team, but if you beat Florida, it would be one of the greatest Final Four upsets of all time.

Surpassing the Gators with a power forward masquerading as a center in Lorenzo Mata, while he battles a tandem of Joakim Noah and Al Horford, the Elbow Syndicate, would be stunning. It is also about as possible as me becoming the next ESPN ombudsman.

Noah is 6-feet-11 and Horford is 6-10. Horford is so big he looks like he does curls with small condos. Noah is a poor man's Dennis Rodman. Mata is a good player, takes great pics poolside with the ladies, but he will be seriously outmatched.

So let's see: Big men vs. shrimp. Shrimp vs. big men. Shrimp. Big men. Big men. Shrimp.

Keep the engines on that UCLA jet nice and warm.

That was from a "national columnist" on Sportsline.com. We are also hearing lot of the same crap from the local outlets.

This stuff doesn't upset me any more. Come to think of it this will only help the psyche of our Ben Ball warriors and rest of the Bruins Nation.

Game on haters.

GO BRUINS.

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Before we lost to Cal...

and despite the loss to U-dub, weren't we touted as the overall # 1 seed? We were atop the ESPN Power 16 rankings and many were questioning Florida as a # 1 seed. Then the conference tourneys happened and we lost in the first round (I posted somewhere here that AA's girlfried broke up with him right before the Pac-10 tourney, so maybe this is one reason though not an excuse). Our loss pushed us down to a # 2 tourney seed. At the same time, Florida won the SEC tourney and claimed the overall # 1 seed. That's fine, but why are things so different now? I mean, haven't we done better than Florida each round of the NCAA tourney and against (what I consider) tougher competition. I mean, both Pitt and Kansas were ranked # 1 at one point during the regular season (maybe # 2 is the highest Pitt made it, I can't remember). And Indiana is one very good team.

I really dislike all of this hate for UCLA. I don't get it. Ah well, let's hope our boys prove everyone wrong this weekend. Go Bruins!

by yellcrew on Mar 30, 2007 9:40 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

It's all talk

All hot air.

We will let our game and the scoreboard speak for the team.

That's about all there is to it.

by Barnes2JJ on Mar 30, 2007 9:44 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Whatever.....

I was just going to post this link as well.

As you've noted earlier, I see a lot of parallels to us and the Duke team that got throttled by UNLV. Nobody gave them a chance and it seems that nobody is giving us a chance against Florida. On pure talent, Florida's roster is superior to ours. However, games are not won on strictly talent. If it did, we would have lost to Kansas with all of their Happy Meals & future lottery picks. Nobody in the Final 4 has the amount of heart that our guys have and plays the kind of defense that we do. This is a better UCLA team than last year IMO. I like the fact that the country is underestimating us. I'm picturing our guys reading/hearing all this crap and quietly steaming about it. I expect our team to come out with a chip on their shoulder and prove the entire country wrong.

Our team doesn't talk....we just let our play on the court speak for itself.

by BlueReign on Mar 30, 2007 9:49 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

No shortage of bulletin board material...

I suppose this little dingleberry is lunch buddy's with Dennis Dodd?? What is it with the Sportsline writers these days?? I love the ESPN experts too. Only 1 of 7 picks going with our Bruins (Bilas).

Anywho, keep bringin' the hate. Our Bruins are used to it and will feed off of it. Win or lose, the Bruins will be ready to play. This will not be an easy game for the Gators. No doubt we have our work cut out for us, but we are not going to back down like we did last year. Everyone is healthy and every shot will be challenged. Hell, I bet even Ben wishes he could strap it on and set some picks!

GO BRUINS!!!!!!

by norcalbruin95 on Mar 30, 2007 9:55 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

funny thing

Mata is 6-9 and 240 and Horford is 6-9 235. Also Mata has bigger arms than Horford. How the hell do they keep calling us small? So what Noah is
6-11 other than him most our players about the same size as theirs.

Collison 6-1 vs Green 6-0
Humphrey 6-2 vs Shipp 6-5
Brewer6-9 Vs Affalo 6-5
Noah 6-11 vs Mata 6-9
Horford 6-9 vs Moute 6-8

Other than Brewer who is 4 inches taller than Affalo and Noah who only has 2 inches on Mata, they aren't bigger than us. We also have Aboya and Keefe who are two more 6-8 guys. Most our guys actually out weigh their players too!

by abby8065 on Mar 30, 2007 10:09 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Elbow Syndicate?

Gimme a break . . . Mata is from Huntington Park and will bow down to nobody. And let's not "leave out" Aboya . . . I not only saw the Kansas (and Pitt) games live, but I have watched the second half of the Kansas game 5 times since Saturday and the way Aboya double-teams the ball inside is just this side from criminal. He's a beast and I'll take the Aboya-Mata double-team over Kimberly Noah anytime!

by charnaw on Mar 30, 2007 10:22 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Elbows

I've commented on this several times before -- Noah gets away with a lot of cheap elbow shots.

Watch him rebound and go for the face with his elbows.

I have no doubt that if the ref's let us play tough, Mata will completely handle Noah and Horford. Mata is stronger and tougher.

But, if they call fouls on Mata, Aboya, and Luc, AND they let Noah play dirty --

I won't even go there.

I do have a strong feeling that if Noah deliberately puts an elbow in a Bruin face, one of our guys is going to "accidentally" flatten him.

sjh

by Class of 66 on Mar 30, 2007 11:08 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Excellent point

Noah is very gracious and giving when it comes to swinging his elbows.

If he doesn't learn now not to do it, he will do it to the wrong guy at the next level who will really teach him a lesson.

by Barnes2JJ on Mar 30, 2007 11:15 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

These guys make me laugh

They think they are being smart predicting Florida to win. Yeah, really insightful choice there, buddy, great analysis. And I love that they think Noah is some kind of tough guy. That little biatch grew up in France enjoying his daddy's millions and the professional tennis circuit. What a joke. And now he acts like he's "from the hood". Give me a break. Horford and Green are also sons of past professional sportsmen. The only one with a "tough" upbringing on that team may be Brewer. They act like complete jerks, as if they are from some tough neighborhood, meanwhile they grew up pretty comfortably.

But what irks me the most is their SHEER HYPOCRISY! They come back to school to win back-to-back championships and "make history"...and yet they have NO RESPECT for past history! So why do they think they are any better, why should anyone remember them? In the grand scheme of things, years down the road, they will still just be a speck of dust in the annals of college basketball. No class and no style, completely forgettable.

by tasser10 on Mar 30, 2007 10:49 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

just wanted to add

This assclown states we haven't faced a great defense like Florida this year; wasn't Kansas supposedly the best defensive team in the country?

by abby8065 on Mar 30, 2007 10:57 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

It's a joke

We've played Wazzu, Pitt, and even U$C...athletically, Florida is more gifted, but those teams have more discipline. Whatever, just let'em talk, all that matters is the game.

by tasser10 on Mar 30, 2007 11:11 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

This will be entertaining

Our boys have taken crap like this all tourney. I don't think for one minute that Florida will score over 60 points. The Bruins will be FIRED UP.

Duke and North Carolina called: They want Steve Lavin back. GO BRUINS!!

by Allofmybros on Mar 30, 2007 11:03 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Good thoughts

Sorry, don't have a chance to read all this today - I've got to catch a plane to Atlanta.

by mizzou on Mar 30, 2007 11:32 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Send it to Joakim Noah

He'd be happy to know that the Gator haters are gone. With nothing left to prove, perhaps he shouldn't even show up tomorrow.

by BruinsRule on Mar 30, 2007 11:53 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Another article on AA

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17820986/

by bruinbabe2000 on Mar 30, 2007 12:13 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

This guy is looking to make a name for himself

who is he anyway?? Its easy to pick Florida to win ... they are returning five starters who won last year. So what value added analysis does this clown provide?? Nothing. He just pounds his chest as if he was going to play the game himself. What a joke. This is about as weak a column as I have ever seen. People will do anything these days to make a name for himself.

We know what his next column is going to look like. If Florida wins, the whole "Im brilliant I told you so." If UCLA win, "I told you it was the biggest upset in the history of sports." What a friggin clown.

by DumpDorrell on Mar 30, 2007 12:42 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

correction: himself = themselves

by DumpDorrell on Mar 30, 2007 12:43 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Did you see the Gregg Doyel Article?

http://cbs.sportsline.com/collegebasketball/story/10096426

"UCLA All-American Arron Afflalo can't score -- not with any efficiency, anyway -- against Florida's Corey Brewer. This isn't a theory. This is a fact." -Gregg "The Moron" Doyel

No, it's not a fact, it is an opinion. A writer should know the difference. It is a fact that Afflalo didn't score with much efficiency against Brewer last year. That doesn't make it a fact that he cannot score against Brewer anymore than UCLA's loss to Oregon in January proved the "fact" that UCLA can't beat Oregon (it would beat them by 12 one month later), or Afflalo's scoring 3 points in the Pac-10 tourney vs. Cal proved it is a "fact" that Afflalo cannot score against Cal (he averaged 19 in their other two meetings).

Or that Afflalo lighting up Brandon Rush for 24 proved the "fact" that Rush cannot handle Afflalo. It was one game, and AA had the upper hand. Here's to AA having another game just like last Saturday in him tomorrow and that he shows the Gators who's the boss man.

by BruinsRule on Mar 30, 2007 1:42 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Has anybody read....

the article on si.com where they compare the two teams and choose which one has the advantage or edge? This guy actually feels that Florida has a coaching edge over the Bruins. Don't believe me? here is the link:

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/writers/bj_schecter/03/30/ucla.fla.breakdown/index.html

by king James on Mar 30, 2007 1:56 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

How seriously . .

can you consider the opinion of a guy that goes by the minker, "BJ"? Nuf sed.

by charnaw on Mar 30, 2007 2:05 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

"minker" = "moniker"

by charnaw on Mar 30, 2007 2:05 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Minker was right

It's a wanker who uses mink.

I can't wait for the game. I'm tired of all these pseudo-sports people trying to be controversial and put themselves in the story.

The story is on the court.

Not in some hack's column.

sjh

by Class of 66 on Mar 30, 2007 2:15 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Normally

I don't care about these "(reporter's name) said bad things about UCLA" articles, but the condescending tone of this one was a little annoying.

The funny thing is that UCLA was supposedly overmatched going up against a team that was touted as one of the best in the nation about 4 months ago. Even though most of those articles gave us little chance, the columnists weren't as sure of themselves of UCLA's defeat back then as they are now. Considering the wider gap between our football team and USC's, as well as the fact that upsets happen far less frequently in football than in basketball, it is strange that they would be this sure of a victory for Florida. And we all know how that game on December 3 turned out.

But columnists get paid to voice their opinions. Having strong opinions only encourages more angry fans to read their columns, and web site hits are what these guys are after, regardless of the reason.

Maybe Joakim Noah was wrong about who the "haters" are hating on.

GO BRUINS. HOOK 'EM HORNS.

by uclawarren on Mar 30, 2007 2:16 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

We were supposed to be dead a long time ago...

If I remember, most ESPN "experts" didn't have us in the Final 4. Yet, here we are. I thank Nestor for posting this one up, but personally, I know what we can do, so the haters can keep talking. Like uclawarren said, they are mostly trying to get attention anyways. We have our weaknesses and our strengths, but with the preparation and heart that this team has, I believe we will be ok. So pay them no mind; have faith in what the guys and Howland are doing, and the rest will work itself out God willing.

by sbizzy57 on Mar 30, 2007 2:50 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

and since he said his favorite rappers...

are from LA, and most national stations, and this guy, are probably in NYC, heres an LA rap lyric he might recognize.

F**k all the critics in the N-Y-C
And your articles trying to rate my LP
---Ice Cube-All the Critics in New York

by sbizzy57 on Mar 30, 2007 2:56 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

I can't wait

to reply to this guy after the game. :)

"Who am I dating? I'm dating a little orange basketball." ~ Arron Afflalo, 2007 Go Bruins!!!

by JKNaka on Mar 30, 2007 10:28 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Hell yes...

this Bozo and a dozen others.Especially our loser local media!

by pocho on Mar 31, 2007 12:52 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

You guys should see the local Tampa paper

There are large pictures of their starting five, each doing a Noah-esque primal scream. Although California has its problems in many areas, Florida certainly has California beat as the home of preening "look at me" wanna-be's, who truly aren't worthy to carry the equipment bags of our men of character.

I will proudly wear my UCLA gear all day today, and proudly wear it tomorrow, too. We will demonstrate to Gator fans that the Bruins Nation knows how to be gracious in victory despite having to deal with one of the most arrogant teams to come along in history.

These guys literally make me sick. We will be doing the world a favor when we send them back to oblivion where they belong.

by Fox 71 on Mar 31, 2007 4:27 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs