The Bruins are done. Perhaps, it's just as well.
They need some fresh karma after what was a train wreck of a season.
Picked to win the Pac-12 title, UCLA (19-14) began to unravel early, losing four of its first five games. Star forward Reeves Nelson began misbehaving on and off the court, became a huge distraction and finally was kicked off the team by Ben Howland.
The move helped calm a volatile situation, but the Bruins weren't consistent enough to challenge for league supremacy.
Then Sports Illustrated hit the program with a searing piece that quoted former players (anonymously) who said Howland allowed certain players to create havoc. They said he'd lost control of one of college basketball's iconic programs.
In an interview in the Los Angeles Times after UCLA's ouster from the Pac-12 tournament, Howland defended himself.
"Am I a broken man right now?" he said. "Have I lost confidence in myself? Absolutely not. It hurts. It's no fun, that's for sure, and did I have a tear in my eye when all this came down? Yes, I did.
"But in terms of all these attacks directed at me from the media through the Sports Illustrated article, it's been most gratifying to find out all the people who do care, who do love me and appreciate me. I've received so many great emails and texts from people who I have coached.
"I'm a good person and a good guy," he continued, raising his voice. "I'm a good coach, I do the right things for my players and I try to support them; I try to help them almost to a fault."
Asked about the magazine's intent, Howland said, "They really tried to blow me up."
At this point, what the Bruins may need most is an offseason. They've got it, left uninvited to the NIT. A newly renovated Pauley Pavilion will open for next season, and if the Bruins win, most will be forgotten.
If not, the heat on Howland will intensify.
NOTES, QUOTES
UCLA remains the city's top dog
--UCLA swept three games this season from city rival USC, allowing the Trojans an average of just 47.0 points per game. In a 55-40 Pac-12 tournament win, the Bruins limited the USC to 28.8 percent shooting.
--The Bruins had won three in a row and four of five before losing 66-58 to Arizona in the Pac-12 quarterfinals. There were no long faces afterward, however, as UCLA acquitted itself nicely with a competitive performance.
FINAL RECORD: 10-21, 6-12, 10th place in Pac-12.
2011-12 SEASON RECAP: Few teams experienced the turmoil UCLA went through this season. The year promised to be a bit unusual under the best of circumstances because the Bruins were orphans in Los Angeles while Pauley Pavilion was being renovated. Still, they were picked to win the Pac-12, and junior F Reeves Nelson was pictured on the cover of Sports Illustrated. Over the next few months, Nelson was kicked off the team for repeated behavioral issues, the Bruins were an afterthought in the conference race, and the program was skewered in an SI story that suggested coach Ben Howland had lost control of his players. Still, regular-season-ending wins over Washington State and Washington elevated the Bruins to a tie for fifth place in the final Pac-12 standings.
QUOTE TO NOTE: "Regardless of what was going on off the court, (everyone) came out every game, and I feel like they gave their all. We had our tough times, but this team was a family. We really stuck together, and I appreciate everyone for that." -- UCLA senior G Lazeric Jones.
STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL
THE GOOD NEWS: Travis and David Wear played solid, steady basketball in their first year after transferring from North Carolina. They weren't spectacular, but they were plenty good, and they should get better. Tyler Lamb could become a star. He's active, aggressive and can do a little bit of everything. The incoming recruiting class features five-star prospect Kyle Anderson, a 6-foot-8 point guard from St. Anthony's High in New Jersey. If the Bruins stumble through another season like this one, it won't be because they don't have talent.
THE BAD NEWS: What is to become of sophomore C Joshua Smith? He was so highly regarded entering this season that most viewed him as an all-Pac-12 player, and a few even speculated he could become conference player of the year. However, the 6-foot-10 post has not controlled his weight, so his stamina and ability to stay out of foul trouble have been compromised. He averaged 9.9 points and 4.9 rebounds in just 17.2 minutes per game. In two Pac-12 tournament outings, Smith played a total of just 17 minutes, contributing 12 points and three rebounds. Will he get in shape in the offseason and begin to fulfill his massive potential? Will he leave UCLA? Or does this even matter enough for him to attempt transforming himself?
KEY RETURNEES: The entire frontcourt is expected back, starting with twin sophomores Travis and David Wear. C Joshua Smith has two more seasons of eligibility, and F/C Anthony Stover will return after what was a disappointing sophomore campaign. On the perimeter, sophomore Tyler Lamb is expected to blossom into a central player. Freshman Norman Powell will compete for more playing time, if not a starting job.
ROSTER REPORT:
--Senior SG Lazeric Jones, who began the season at point guard, averaged a team-best 13.5 points, 3.5 rebounds and 4.1 assists. He scored at a 17.5 clip the last four games, during which he shot better than 47 percent from the field. That was preceded by one of his worst games of the season, a two-point performance on 1-for-12 shooting against Arizona.
--Sophomore G Tyler Lamb totaled just 12 points on 5-for-14 shooting and fouled out of both Pac-12 tournament games. He had been one of the team's most productive players in five games leading to that point, averaging 13.0 points, 4.2 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 2.6 steals over that span.
--Sophomore F Travis Wear, who averaged 11.5 points and 5.9 rebounds, shot at least 50 percent from the floor in eight consecutive games to end the season.
--Sophomore F David Wear averaged 10.2 points and 6.3 rebounds, but he converted just four of 18 shots and totaled 12 points in two Pac-12 tournament games.
