Happy they’re playing Cal!
Many of the UCLA players are excited to be playing Cal in the
first round. They think it is one of the best first round matchups
that they could have hoped for.
“We feel Cal is a good fit for us,” senior Rico
Hines said. “We match up well with them. We beat them once
and we know their players.”
UCLA defeated Cal on Jan. 26 at Pauley Pavilion in a slow
tempoed 64-57 game, but Cal got revenge on the Bruins with a
69-51win at Haas Pavilion on Feb. 21.
Dating back to 2000, UCLA has split its last six games with the
Golden Bears.
On the road to Los Angeles
The Bruins will be going to a hotel when the Pac-10 tournament
gets underway despite the Staples Center being just 15 miles from
the UCLA campus.
Head coach Steve Lavin says going to a hotel will help the team
focus and avoid unnecessary distractions. However, not all of the
players are happy about the decision. Especially Jason Kapono.
“It stinks that you don’t get to sleep in your own
bed even though (the Staples Center) is so close,” Kapono
said. “Plus, we’re missing classes, so obviously
I’m a little upset.”
Awards all around
UCLA coaching legend John Wooden and former forward Marques
Johnson, who played for Wooden and Gene Bartow from 1973-77, were
both honored this week.
Wooden was announced as a member of the inaugural class of the
Pac-10 Basketball Hall of Honor. He coached UCLA for 27 years,
compiling a record of 620-147 and led the Bruins to 10
championships.
Johnson helped lead the Bruins to their 10th championship in his
sophomore season, and led the team in scoring and rebounding as a
senior captain in 1976-77. In that year, he won the first Wooden
Award and also won National Player of the Year.
Pac-10 notes
The Oregon Ducks won the Pac-10 in both football and basketball
this year. This feat has been accomplished 15 other times, but this
is the first time Oregon has done it … Stanford’s Casey
Jacobsen is leading the Pac-10 in scoring, and his teammate Curtis
Borchardt is leading the conference in rebounding. Should they hold
their positions through the rest of the season, it will mark the
first time since 1982 that players from the same team led both
categories … USC senior center Sam Clancy has 1,583 career
points, third all-time in Trojan history.
Compiled by Christina Teller and Greg Schain, Daily Bruin Senior
Staff.