UCLA trying to hobble through tough season

Injuries typical of Bruins' season

By AL BALDERAS
THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Published: Feb. 27, 2010
Updated: 8:15 p.m.


LOS ANGELES - The epitome of UCLA's basketball season was written about two minutes before the start of Saturday's game against Oregon.

Senior Nikola Dragovic, who injured his left shoulder in Thursday's victory over Oregon State, had taken a cortisone injection and was finally starting to feel better.

He then stepped on a stray basketball and sprained his right ankle.

The result? Seven points, one rebound and one assist in 34 minutes. And a Sunday-morning appointment to have the ankle X-rayed.

"My parents came to Thursday's game and one of my shoulders popped out," said Dragovic, who surprisingly didn't have a rain cloud hanging a few inches above his head. "I came back, got a shot before the game and was feeling a little better. I could raise my arm above my shoulder. And then two minutes before the game starts I step on the ball ...it happens."

Dragovic is not expected to practice until Wednesday at the earliest.

Sadly for the Bruins, things like this have been happening all season.

Reeves Nelson, who took 15 stitches above his right eye after crashing face-first to the floor in a game at Washington State on Feb. 18, missed his second game in a row. He's not sitting because of the injury to his right eye. He's out because a follow-up exam revealed a small tear in the retina of his left eye.

It's thought the second injury was the result of the impact when he hit his head.

Nelson was shooting baskets before Saturday's game but that doesn't necessarily mean that his return to action is imminent.

"He's going to be re-evaluated on Wednesday," UCLA coach Ben Howland said of Nelson. "He is only allowed right now to ride a bike. He can't do anything with too much exertion because of the blood pressure behind the eye. He can shoot. He can ride a bike. That's what he's been doing."

Freshman Brendan Lane sprained an ankle at practice last Friday (on the last play of the final drill of the day), missed Thursday's game against Oregon State but returned on Saturday.


SAYING GOODBYE


Senior Michael Roll tied his career high with 25 points in Saturday's game, his final one at Pauley Pavilion.

In doing so, he made six 3-pointers, giving him 200 for his UCLA career. That pushed him into third place on the Bruins all-time list. He trails Jason Kapono (317) and Arron Afflalo (209).

"It's been a great run that I've had here," Roll said of his final home game. "It was a fun game. We fought. I was proud of that. We got down 14 and we fought back."


NOTES


Players and coaches from UCLA's 1970 NCAA championship team were honored in a halftime ceremony on Saturday, with former coach John Wooden, 99, in attendance. ...

The Ducks, who came to Southern California this weekend packing a 2-7 road record, beat both USC and UCLA in Los Angeles for the first time since the 2001-02 season.