LOS ANGELES -- Scandal surrounded the UCLA basketball program last week. A highly publicized article in Sports Illustrated was released tainting the image of past and present members of the Bruins basketball team, while painting head coach Ben Howland as an enabler.
Instead of folding, the team came together sweeping the Washington schools, including picking up their biggest win of the season over the Pac-12 regular season champion, Huskies.
“We knew that it was a tough week for our whole school and program,” UCLA guard Tyler Lamb said. “I think that kind of helped us focus in because it was like getting away from everything when we were in the gym together and I think that helped us.”
The Bruins (18-13) are going to have to carry over that same demeanor to have success in the Pacific Life Pac-12 Tournament, beginning with first round opponent USC (6-25) on FOX Sports Net Wednesday.
In the win against Washington they executed different than they had for most of the season. For just the second time this season, the Bruins came away with a win in a game they trailed at halftime. It’s been a notoriously rough season for the Bruins closing out tight games down the stretch but something they were able to do against the Huskies last Saturday.
“Right now we’re able to finish off close games and we’re winning close games, so I think that’s the biggest difference right now,” UCLA forward David Wear said.
The Bruins realized a long time ago that the only chance of making it to the NCAA Tournament rested on being able to win the Pac-12 Tournament.
That time has come and the task is daunting. Finishing fifth in the conference, the Bruins will have to win four games in four days to earn the automatic NCAA bid.
Executing down the stretch is always pivotal in conference games, which are generally highly competitive with teams playing for their competitive lives. Another key is being able to endure the grind which could come with having to play on four consecutive days.
“It’s going to be more of a mental toughness than a physical toughness,” Wear said. “Your body is going to be beaten up. You just have to get in the mindset that you’re not going to feel 100% but at the same time you gotta go out there and you gotta win the game.”
“You got to be tough to be able to come back from back-to-back-to-back games,” Howland said. “All the kids that play in this tournament all have aspirations of someday being an NBA player. You look what they’re doing this year (in the NBA). It’s incredible to me how many teams are playing back-to-back-to-back games on the road. It’s incredible, so it can be done.”
If the Bruins are to do it and win four games in as many days, they must first tackle their first round opponent, USC. Despite the non-traditional conference schedule in the Pac-12’s first season --not having a home and home with each opponent--the first round game for the Bruins has tradition written all over it. The conference tournament marks the third meeting with Trojans. Having swept the Trojans in the regular season, UCLA knows the challenge that lies in trying to defeat their rivals for a third time this season.
“To play a team for the third time and a rival team is difficult,” Howland said. “I know that the players for USC would love to finish their season with a win over us.”
