Washington Huskies vs. UCLA Bruins 03/03/2011

UCLA Bruins vs. Washington Huskies

Clarence S. “Hec” Edmundson Pavilion, Seattle, Washington

Thursday, 6 p.m. PST

TV: ESPN

Radio: 950 KJR

• UCLA is big. Real big. Freshman Joshua Smith reportedly lost nearly 50 pounds after signing with the Bruins as a 6-feet-10, 320-pound 17-year-old but remains listed at (and looks to be significantly heavier than) 305. The Kentwood product’s minutes have increased steadily as his conditioning has improved: he is now able to play 25-30 minutes per game without making fatigue fouls. His countables (11 points, six rebounds, a block, a steal and 56% from the floor for the season) have improved marginally but his elongated defensive presence has been a real factor for the Bruins down the stretch.

• Sophomore forward Reeves Nelson is one of the nation’s grittiest players. The Bruins’ scoring leader and rebounder (14 points, nine rebounds) matched his ubiquitous tattoos with facial accessories last season, though not by choice. Nelson wore some sweet goggles after scratching his cornea December 6 against Kansas. He was concussed against Cal in February. Two weeks later, he left a pool of blood on the floor in Pullman and required 15 stitches. Still, he refused to miss shots, shooting 65% from the field. He has continued to play his heart out (and head off) this year and has posted 12 double-doubles, but two of his stats reflect UCLA’s biggest bugaboos: his 59.6 FT% and 2.5 TO/g. The Bruins rank 230th in the country in free throw percentage and 282nd in turnover percentage.

• “Small” forward Tyler Honeycutt provides a huge matchup problem for opponents at 6-feet-8. Honeycutt is a volume shooter (4.7 3PA/g) and prolific shotblocker (2.0 bpg) and because he often matches up with opponents’ third-tallest players, he also grabs 7.4 rebounds per game. He has three games this season with seven or more turnovers.

• Junior wing Malcolm Lee is an athletic streak shooter, a solid defender and not a lot else. Lee’s shot selection has progressed from atrocious to abysmal since last season: if we’re calling contested 16-foot floaters Fredettes, the off-the-dribble, heels-on-the-line 20-footer off the back iron might as well be renamed the Malcolm Lee. Lee nearly joined the Bruin exodus this past offseason—center J’Mison Morgan and guards Matt Carlino and Mike Moser all transferred—but opted to stick with the club. He is drawing NBA attention, mainly due to his size-strength combination and the successes of former athletic UCLA combo guards Jrue Holiday and Russell Westbrook.

• Point guards Lazeric Jones and Jerime Anderson split time at point guard for UCLA. Anderson was the Bruins’ starter for much of last season, contributing underwhelming minutes but limiting turnovers. This year, Anderson lost his starting spot to six-foot junior Jones, a junior college transfer who played alongside Derrick Rose in high school. Jones has had some struggles around the rim but is perhaps the team’s best three-point shooter. He is one of five Bruins averaging (almost) double-figures at 9.9 points per game.

• Brendan Lane, Anthony Stover and Tyler Lamb fill the remainder of the minutes for the Bruins. Lane is a 6-feet-9 forward who blocked shots at an alarming rate during the nonconference season (1.9 per game) before seeing his minutes fall off in conference play. Stover, frighteningly long at 6-feet-10, is a freshman shot-blocking specialist. He averages 0.9 blocks per game in only 8.1 minutes. Lamb is a highly touted freshman with a silky runner. He has all the athletic tools (6-feet-5, long, quick, strong) but has yet to figure out offense at the college level.

• Coach Ben Howland is in his eighth year at UCLA with a career record of 187-80. Under Howland, the Bruins reached back-to-back Final Fours in 2007 and 2008.

• The Dawgs got out in transition against the slower-footed Bruins, using big runs and a home-like atmosphere in their 74-63 win on Wooden Court. The stands at Pauley were packed full of the UW fans who had made the trip to San Diego to watch the Holiday Bowl the night before; Lorenzo Romar said after the game that he’s never experienced an LA crowd so full of purple.

• Matthew Bryan-Amaning got his off-balance layups to fall, converting eight of 15 shots on his way to 21 and 10. MBA and Aziz N’Diaye played excellent defense on Smith, who fouled out after only 22 minutes.

• Justin Holiday’s defense of Honeycutt was key for the Dawgs’ effort—Honeycutt was lost on offense and struggled to find open looks. Holiday contributed nine points, eight boards, three assists, a three, a block and a steal.

• Neither team could find consistency from long range. The two squads combined to shoot 6/26 (23%) from beyond the arc. Darnell Gant made his only attempt count though, a big shot to stretch the lead to nine with just over three minutes remaining.

• Isaiah Thomas played one of his best games of the year. He had 17 points and nine assists, but the intense example he set for the rest of the team was perhaps his biggest contribution. He had only two turnovers, reflecting a very clean game. The Huskies had nine turnovers, UCLA just 10.

• The win marked the Huskies’ first victory at Pauley Pavilion since the Brandon Roy era and only their fourth in the 46-year history of the arena. Pauley closed for renovation after UCLA’s drubbing of Arizona on Saturday and will reopen in 2012.

• Washington since lost Abdul Gaddy for the season. Gaddy didn’t do a lot on offense against UCLA but provided size on defense, matching up with the 6-feet-5 Lee. CJ Wilcox has been starting in Gaddy’s place and will do so again on Thursday.

• This will be a true home game for the Huskies, even though the last one sure seemed like one.

• Washington’s struggles against zone defense are well documented, but UCLA has a significant size advantage over UW. The Bruins will have to choose between playing to their strengths or to the scouting report—if the Huskies are able to impose their tempo against a man defense, look for UCLA to switch up their looks on defense.

• Scott Suggs (strained left MCL) practiced Tuesday and is listed as probable for Thursday’s game. Suggs missed the last three games after injuring his knee early against Arizona State.

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