Valentine's Day hangover for UCLA

If you thought UCLA was killed by Arizona this weekend, step back in time a couple of days.

Like many creatures, the Bruins actually wandered into the desert, curled up and died.

It started at the end of the Arizona State game, when the Bruins couldn't pull away, couldn't hang on and couldn't catch up. Their weekend was over in Tempe, we just didn't know it until they got to Tucson.

Two games, two losses.

UCLA Coach Ben Howland acknowledged that the Bruins didn't have much time to prepare for Arizona. The ASU hangover didn't help.

Some impressive streaks also faded away under the desert sun, and we're not talking about those four blowout wins over Pac-10 opponents. At ASU, the Bruins lost their first weekend opener in conference play dating to a game against Stanford in 2005. That same season, UCLA started a winning streak at McKale Center, where home-court advatage finally returned for 'Zona after a four-year drought in its own hoops oasis.

It's too bad the state is abuzz over NBA All Star Week. If the Bruins visited later in the month month, maybe the "hope springs eternal" vibe of spring training would have rubbed off.

Instead, UCLA will return home to host the top team in the conference. The Bruins already fell to Washington earlier this season, and need a win to stay in the mix for the Pac-10 title. Otherwise, UCLA will be behind by 2 1/2 games with just five to go.

"This is going to be a gut-check week," Howland said.

Just as important as the Washington game is for the conference standings; it will test the Bruins (with time to prepare) against another up-tempo team. That sort of pressure caused headaches for UCLA in most of its losses this season and resulted in 14 first-half turnovers in its last game. Considering that late collapses and a lack of bench minutes were a concern last month, it's tempting to question conditioning — but the mistakes seem to be mental.

A combination of press and half-court zone has caused sloppy shooting and turnovers. When the Bruins weren't able to penetrate off the dribble, they fell back on their usually reliable outside shooting. Howland was unhappy with that approach because many of those shots from beyond the arc just weren't open.

The good news for UCLA is that the Huskies are better known for playing man-to-man defense instead of zone. If the Bruins can start penetrating (again) or hitting from the outside (again), the cure for this hangover may be a little hair of the Dawgs.

—Adam Rose

Photo: UCLA's Jrue Holiday drives on Arizona's Jamelle Horn.

Credit: Chris Morrison / US Presswire

Video: Ben Howland discusses loss at Arizona

UCLA men's basketball fell on Valentine's Day in Arizona, 84-72. The Wildcats hadn't won against UCLA on their home court in four years, but ended that streak and extended their seven-game run through the Pac-10. UCLA Coach Ben Howland explained what happened, and how a slow start doomed the Bruins the rest of the way:

—Adam Rose

Homecat advantage for Arizona in victory over UCLA

College students tend to be nocturnal creatures, but the 'Zona Zoo rose early Saturday morning. An over-capacity crowd of 14,611 was ready to make life tough on the Bruins.

After Arizona walked away with an easy 84-72 victory, interim head coach Russ Pennell acknowledged that he wasn't happy with support earlier this season when it looked like the Wildcats were destined to miss their first NCAA tournament in a quarter of a century.

"Back in the early part of the season, I was a little disappointed in some of the crowds that we had," he told reporters. "I felt like they were kind of writing this team off. I wasn't mad at anyone personally, I just thought my team was being a little bit disrespected."

What could have been drawing fans away in Tucson? A cactus-chopping competition?

Walking around the arena, another University of Arizona employee shared a similar perspective. "This is how it used to be when Lute Olson was here," he said in explaining how fans were finally "getting back on the bandwagon."

The bandwagon?

Apparently these guys had never experienced a Los Angeles crowd. Somebody should remind them that McKale Center's lowest attendance this season was 12,339 during a nonconference game. That's more than most Pac-10 arenas can hold, and would nearly fill Pauley Pavillion. The Bruins have sold out only a couple of home games this season (USC and Notre Dame) and it's been two years since everybody used their tickets on the same day.

Video: Bruin players reflect on upset loss to ASU

Arizona State upset UCLA, 74-67, on the hardcourt-turned-dance-floor Thursday night in Tempe, Ariz.

Even former Texas Longhorn Kevin Durant shied away from talking about it, out of consideration for former Bruin and fellow Oklahoma City Thunder teammate Russell Westbrook. Both took in the game while in town for the NBA All-Star festivities being held in the Phoenix area.

Michael Roll, Josh Shipp and Darren Collison did share a few thoughts. Collison was actually pretty upbeat about the way UCLA performed and the opportunity to play in a big game environment:

—Adam Rose

Video: Ben Howland on UCLA's 74-67 loss at ASU

It was a rough night for UCLA men's basketball in Tempe, Ariz. In the second half, it looked like the Bruins might pull away from Arizona State, but things fell apart down the stretch. UCLA Coach Ben Howland recapped the tough 74-67 loss to the Sun Devils:

Both teams were in the top 20 entering the game, and both teams probably will be in it after the weekend is over. At least for the next day and a half, UCLA is out of first place — half a game behind Washington. The Huskies (9-3 in conference) have played one more Pac-10 game than the Bruins (8-3)

—Adam Rose

So far, so good for UCLA on the road

UCLA is 19-4 overall, going 13-1 at home, 4-2 away and 2-1 at neutral sites. In conference, the Bruins are 4-1 on the road.

It's another reason for Coach Ben Howland to be happy with the way things are shaping up headed into tonight's rematch at Arizona State:

—Adam Rose

Bruins to put pressure on ASU

UCLA managed a season-low three steals the last time it faced ASU. The Bruins have improved since then — against USC, point guard Daniel Hackett had to play with his back to the basket.

In tonight's rematch against the Sun Devils, Coach Ben Howland hopes to see his Bruins turn up the heat:

—Adam Rose

UCLA will need its bench against ASU

In a loss to Arizona State at Pauley Pavilion earlier this season, UCLA's bench accounted for only 43 minutes in an overtime game. Of the four players off the bench, Michael Roll accounted for the majority of the minutes (43).

Since then, Coach Ben Howland has been making sure to get more bench production and it's helped in UCLA's four-game blowout streak. Tonight, the Bruins will face their toughest test in the last few weeks, headed into a rematch against ASU.

Here's Howland's take on why the bench is important in a matchup like this:

—Adam Rose

UCLA climbs in polls

After dishing out four straight beat-downs, UCLA is on the rise in the college basketball rankings. The Bruins are No. 6 in the ESPN/USA Today coaches poll and No. 11 in the Associated Press poll, jumps of six and four spots, respectively.

On the heels of a victory over Notre Dame on Saturday, Coach Ben Howland said his team is finally playing like it was ranked to start the season:

The Fighting Irish may have lost seven straight, but they've all come at the hands of tournament-bound teams. Their conference, the Big East, is easily the toughest in America. Their only loss to an unranked team was against Cincinnati, which is tied for sixth in a conference with six top-25 programs.

The Irish losing streak with current rankings (AP/ESPN) and margin of defeat:

• No. 5/7 Louisville — 10 points (overtime)
• No. 23/22 Syracuse — 19 points
• No. 1/1 Connecticut — 8 points
• No. 10/12 Marquette — 7 points
• No. 4/4 Pittsburgh — 13 points
• Unranked Cincinnati — 10 points
• No. 11/6 UCLA — 26 points

It can be dangerous to put too much stock into the common opponent debate, but it's tempting to say that UCLA should be able to hold its own against any of these top teams. Keep in mind that Notre Dame had to travel across the country for the early game at Pauley Pavilion (though the time difference only helped the Irish).

—Adam Rose

UCLA commit Reeves Nelson has run-in with the law [UPDATED]

UCLA men's basketball commit Reeves Nelson reportedly was cited this week on alcohol-related charges.

The four-star power forward out of Modesto committed more than a year ago, making him the first player in the Bruins' 2009 class.

Nelson missed a game for Modesto Christian on Tuesday and, according to Internet forums, is serving an automatic five-day suspension. A record check of Stanislaus County, where Modesto is located, indicates that Nelson was not arrested or booked. The system, however, does not show citations.

UPDATE: A reliable source has confirmed that Nelson was involved in an alcohol-related incident and was suspended for a short period of time. He apparently was in a vehicle that was involved in a minor accident (characterized as a "fender-bender") but was not behind the wheel. Expect additional information in the next few days.

—Adam Rose