UCLA Bruins
Pac-12 (19-14, 11-7)
UCLA has not had a season the UCLA fan base is used to. In recent weeks, allegations have come out that head coach Ben Howland lost his team after their 2008 Final Four season. Amidst all the turmoil, the Bruins accumulated nearly as many losses as they had wins in 2011-2012. They did put up a better than .500 record in the Pac-12, but they had quite a few bad losses early in the season that dismantled their year. They had one five game win streak in December. After that, they had a tough time stringing more than two wins together. Hopefully UCLA can soon ascend to the top of college basketball again. They would love a return to the three straight Final Four seasons of 2006-2008.
Big Wins: 1/5 Arizona (65-58), 2/9 Stanford (72-61), 3/3 Washington (75-69)
Bad Losses: 11/11 Loyola Marymount (58-69), 11/15 Middle Tennessee (66-86), 1/19 Oregon State (84-87)
Coach: Ben Howland (9 seasons at UCLA)
Why They Can Surprise:
UCLA’s best shot to advance is by shooting the long ball and hunkering down on defense. They shoot over 38 percent from three point range, which is the best in the Pac-12. They are also enforcers in the paint. North Carolina transfers Travis and David Wear lead them on the interior. They are also the team’s leading rebounders. Their presence has been welcomed since this is not a very big team. The Bruins do a good job of maintaining possessions as well as they average 12 turnovers per game, which puts them in the top 50 in the country.
Why They Can Disappoint:
The Bruins aren’t very strong in any one offensive category. They average less than 70 points per game. Plenty of postseason teams put up more than that so their work will be cut out for them. Despite their prowess blocking shots, they only hold teams to 42.3 percent shooting from the floor. That will come back to haunt them. As good as they are at shooting 3-pointers, they only tend to make about five per game. That number will need to increase if they intend to progress through the tournament.
Probable Starters:
Lazeric Jones, Senior, Guard, 13.5 ppg, 4.1 apg
Jerime Anderson, Senior, Guard, 8.8 ppg, 4.2 apg
Tyler Lamb, Sophomore, Guard, 9.0 ppg, 2.8 apg
David Wear, Sophomore, Forward, 10.2 ppg, 6.3 rpg
Travis Wear, Sophomore, Forward, 11.5 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 1.2 bpg
Key Roleplayers:
Anthony Stover, Sophomore, Center, 0.5 ppg, 1.5 rpg, 1.4 bpg
Norman Powell, Freshman, Guard, 4.6 ppg, 2.2 rpg
Joshua Smith, Sophomore, Center, 9.9 ppg, 4.9 rpg
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 69.4 (140th in nation, 7th in nation)
Scoring Defense: 63.1 (77, 4)
Field-Goal Percentage: 46.8 (44, 3)
Field-Goal Defense: 42.3 (135, 6)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 5.3 (253, 10)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 38.3 (31, 1)
Free-Throw Percentage: 66.4 (254, 9)
Rebound Margin: 3.1 (76, 5)
Assists Per Game: 14.6 (50, 3)
Turnovers Per Game: 12.0 (50, 3)
Last Five Postseason Appearances:
UCLA 2011 NCAA Round of 64 win over Michigan State
UCLA 2011 NCAA Round of 32 loss to Florida
UCLA 2009 NCAA Round of 64 win over VCU
UCLA 2009 NCAA Round of 32 loss to Villanova
UCLA 2008 NCAA Round of 64 win over Mississippi Valley State
UCLA 2008 NCAA Round of 32 win over Texas A&M
UCLA 2008 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over Western Kentucky
UCLA 2008 NCAA Regional Final win over Xavier
UCLA 2008 NCAA National Semifinal loss to Memphis
UCLA 2007 NCAA Round of 64 win over Weber State
UCLA 2007 NCAA Round of 32 win over Indiana
UCLA 2007 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over Pittsburgh
UCLA 2007 NCAA Regional Final win over Kansas
UCLA 2007 NCAA National Semifinal loss to Florida
UCLA 2006 NCAA Round of 64 win over Belmont
UCLA 2006 NCAA Round of 32 win over Alabama
UCLA 2006 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over Gonzaga
UCLA 2006 NCAA Regional Final win over Memphis
UCLA 2006 NCAA National Semifinal win over LSU
UCLA 2006 NCAA National Final loss to Florida
*all team stats through 3/4
See All Men’s Basketball Postseason Capsules
