Howland: "He’s just a beast"

Bruin head coach Ben Howland is not looking ahead to UCLA’s match with undefeated Washington State on Saturday. He’s worried about Washington on Thursday night.

"Washington is a problem," he said in a news conference on campus on Tuesday. "First of all, [Jon] Brockman is as good a competitor as there is in the conference. And he is so tough physically. He’s just a beast. You’ll see bodies flying when you’re around Jon Brockman. He’s a bull.

"[Ryan] Appleby is now an experienced shooter and can really get hot. He’s a guy you have to have constant awareness of. He’s more dangerous coming off of screens than anything; he has one of the quickest releases in the country. They have some older, experienced guys that won’t be affected by the road. If you watched the Washington-Washington State film from Saturday, it’s as physical a contest as you’ll see in the country. Anybody can beat anybody in this league on a given night."

As to the status of his Bruins, there were health problems to report as always:

>> "Darren Collison sustained food poisoning and was in the hospital, had an IV, had fluids; that was on Sunday night," said Howland. "He’s been sick for the last two days. I’m assuming it’s something he ate when he got back from the [Bay Area] trip. I’m just thankful that it’s something that’s going to be fine.

"He played very well on Saturday; that was his best half of the year. One thing we should never lose sight of is his intensity on the ball, his ball pressure is as difficult as anybody in the country to deal with. With Darren in [your face], it’s a hard deal. I thought he did a great job defensively on Saturday against their little point guard [Cal’s Jerome Randle], who had been the Pac-10 Player of the Week the previous week."

>> Howland was also happy with the play of forward James Keefe. "He’s so much further ahead than where he was a year ago, because of his knowledge and his experience. His minutes on Saturday [vs. Cal] were critical; in reviewing the film, he did a great job. He’s doing all the things defensively that we want him to do. He shot the ball really well yesterday. He’s going to play a critical role as we move forward during these next 16 games of Pac-10 play."

>> Of freshman center Kevin Love, Howland noted "I think he’s taking real pride in his defense now. And he should; he had a great weekend at that end of the floor. I thought we did the best job all year of getting him the ball in the second half against Cal. He took 17 shots over the weekend and make 12 of them."

>> And of the injured Michael Roll: "I’m not expecting to red-shirt Michael. I’m expecting Michael to [come back], but I don’t know how long it’s going to take. He’s walking in a boot still."

Howland repeated his emphasis on defense and how important it is to this team: "They understand how they got to the Final Four two years in a row and that’s what it takes. We were 3-17 from three on Saturday and won by 11. Some nights you’re not going to shoot it well, but your defense always gives you a chance."

Asked about the Washington State game, Howland preferred to talk about Washington, but acknowledged that the short turnaround from a 7:30 p.m. game on Thursday to an 11:30 a.m. start on Saturday will be difficult. And what of the methodical, bruising WSU defense, currently no. 1 in the nation against scoring (49.5): "It’s a root canal without novacaine."

Comments

[Lawrence Boesch]

I like Ben, but sometimes he's just too much. With 1:43 left in the Stanford game and a ten point lead, he was yelling as hard as any coach I've ever seen, for his team to get back on defense. If you put your pedal to the metal all the time, eventually your brakes will wear out.

[Philizay]

Howland may be too intense at times. However, with the strength and difficulty of playing in the Pac-10, I think it's good that he stays pressed on his team as if the game were close. Even though the Pac-10 has teams that are at the bottom of the conference, no school can be overlooked. Road wins will be hard, but I 'Love' the competitive nature of the conference- nothing is a gimme. Memphis is crusing right now and probably will for the rest of the season. A good reason for this is because Conference USA is weak. The opposite is true of the Pac-10, and I like how Howland reinforces this- through his intensity and his emphasis on defense. Go Bruins!

[Bruin Cstone]

actually, keeping your pedal to the medal may overwork your engine. keeping your break pedal on all the time might end up wearing out your breaks, but i didn't get the feeling you were talking about him slowing down, but rather, keeping his speed or intensity "up".

in regard to that, this is the way howland has been everywhere.....and he's been consistently successful. you MIGHT be right, but the evidence as it stands right now doesn't point that way.