Sunday, December 22, 2013

No. 22 UCLA Returns Home to Host Weber State on Sunday

Jordan Adams leads UCLA with 20.2 points per game this season (photo by Ben Solomon)
Courtesy: UCLA Athletics
Release: Saturday 12/21/2013
Article Link
LOS ANGELES – The No. 22 UCLA men’s basketball team (9-2) hosts Weber State (2-4) on Sunday, Dec. 22, at 4 p.m. in Pauley Pavilion. The marks the third all-time meeting between these two basketball programs, with UCLA holding a 2-0 edge in the series.
GAME INFORMATION
Venue: Pauley Pavilion (13,800)
Tipoff Time: 4:05 pm (PT)
TV: Pac-12 Networks
TV Talent: Rich Waltz (play-by-play), Don MacLean (analyst)
Radio: AM 570 (KLAC)
Radio Talent: Chris Roberts (play-by-play), Tracy Murray (analyst)
SIRIUS Satellite Radio: Ch. 137
SIRIUS XM Radio: Ch. 192
LISTEN TO THE BRUINS
Each of UCLA's basketball games are broadcast on the radio on AM570. Fans can also tune to a broadcast of the Weber State game this Sunday via the TuneIn radio app (link available here).
SUNDAY'S HOLIDAY PROMOTION
UCLA will an "Ugly Holiday Sweater" contest at Sunday's home game versus Weber State. Be sure to dust off your favorite "ugly" holiday sweater for a chance to win great prizes and find yourself featured on the video board in Pauley Pavilion. For more information about upcoming UCLA in-game promotions, visit this website.
THE LATEST
- UCLA has opened its season with nine wins in its first 11 games for the first time since beginning the 2008-09 campaign with a 14-2 mark ... the Bruins opened this year with an 8-0 record.
- Through games played Friday, Dec. 20, the Bruins ranked 12th in the nation in scoring (86.7 ppg), second in field goal percentage (52.9) and fifth in assists (18.3 apg) ... UCLA’s 86.7 points per game ranks second in the Pac-12.
- UCLA has logged a 1.75 assist to turnover ratio through 11 games, the second-best such mark in the Pac-12 through Dec. 20 ... UCLA has registered more assists than turnovers in each of its nine victories.
- Sophomore Jordan Adams has led UCLA in scoring, either by himself or tied with teammates, in 10 of 11 games and has scored in double figures in all 11 games, reaching the 20-point plateau seven times.
- Sophomore Kyle Anderson has emerged as one of the country’s most dynamic and versatile players, currently the only Pac-12 player to rank among the top five in rebounds (8.8 rpg), assists (6.7 apg) and steals (1.81 spg).
AGAINST WEBER STATE
UCLA has recorded a 2-0 all-time record in the series against Weber State. Most recently, the Bruins earned a 70-42 victory in a first round contest of the 2007 NCAA Tournament against the Wildcats. The only other meeting between both programs took place in the Bruins’ first game of the 1972 NCAA West Regional (UCLA won, 90-58, in Provo, Utah). Last season, Weber State finished 30-7 with an 18-2 record in the Big Sky Conference (second place finishes in the Big Sky’s regular-season standings and conference tournament).
GETTING BUCKETS
Sophomore guard Jordan Adams leads UCLA with 20.2 points per game, having scored at least 20 points in seven of 11 contests. Adams scored a career-high 30 points against Morehead State (Nov. 22, Pauley Pavilion) and registered his first collegiate double-double in UCLA’s 80-71 loss at Missouri (Dec. 7). The resident of Atlanta, Ga., finished second in scoring for UCLA last season, having averaged 15.3 points per game as a freshman.
TRIPLE THREAT
No player in the country is averaging as close to a triple-double as is UCLA’s Kyle Anderson (13.9 ppg, 8.8 rpg, 6.7 apg). Through games played Friday, Dec. 20, Anderson was the nation’s only player to be averaging at least 11.0 ppg, 7.0 rpg and 6.0 apg. Eastern Washington’s Drew Brandon (11.7/7.3/5.9), Connecticut’s Shabazz Napier (15.0/6.8/6.1) and BYU’s Kyle Collinsworth (12.7/8.3/5.1) all trail Anderson in that vaunted category.
MAKING HISTORY
Kyle Anderson registered the third triple-double on record in school history on Nov. 22, logging 13 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists in UCLA’s 81-70 victory against Morehead State. That marked UCLA’s first triple-double since Dec. 18, 1995, when Toby Bailey had 23 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists against Stephen F. Austin. Through his UCLA career, Anderson has finished three assists shy of a triple-double in five games (twice last season, three times this season). Against Duke last Thursday, Anderson had 15 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists and five steals.
BIG OFF THE BENCH
UCLA freshmen Zach LaVine and Bryce Alford have played instrumental roles off the bench. In all, the Bruins’ bench this season has accounted for 30.3 percent of its total scoring (289/954). LaVine ranks second on the team with 13.2 points per game. Alford has scored 7.2 points per game and ranks 15th in the Pac-12 with 3.3 assists per game. LaVine scored 21 points against Nevada on Nov. 28 and followed that with an 18-point effort versus Northwestern on Nov 29. Alford scored a season-high 18 points against Northwestern, connecting on 7 of 9 shots.
HIGH OCTANE
The Bruins have averaged 86.7 points through their first 11 games, the program’s highest per game offensive output this early in a season since averaging 88.8 ppg after 11 contests in 1994-95, the last year in which UCLA won the NCAA Championship. Earlier this season, UCLA compiled a seven-game streak of at least 80 points scored in victories. That feat had not been accomplished since the 1994-95 campaign (streak from Feb. 22-March 17, 1995).
STEPPING UP
Senior forward David Wear scored a team-leading 16 points in UCLA’s 80-63 loss to Duke at Madison Square Garden on Dec. 19. The 6-foot-10 product from Huntington Beach, Calif., made 6-of-7 field goals and connected on 4-of-4 three-point attempts. He enters Sunday’s game against Weber State averaging 8.0 points and 4.7 rebounds per game. He has shot 55.7 percent from the field (34/61) and at a 66.7 percent clip from three-point range (8/12).
LOOKING AHEAD
Following UCLA’s game against Weber State on Dec. 22, the Bruins will return to action in Pauley Pavilion against Alabama on Saturday, Dec. 28. The UCLA-Alabama contest will be nationally televised on ESPN2, with Dave Pasch and Bill Walton on the call. UCLA has not faced Alabama since March 18, 2006, when the Bruins tallied a 62-59 victory in a second-round contest of the NCAA Tournament (en route to advancing to that season’s NCAA title game). Alabama has gone 5-5 this season, heading into a showdown against Xavier on Saturday, Dec. 21.
EXPERIENCED BRUIN
Norman Powell has played in more games in a UCLA uniform than any other current UCLA basketball player. Powell has played in 79 career contests, making 21 starts, as he nears the midpoint of his junior season. The native of San Diego, Calif., has played in all 79 games since the start of the 2011-12 season. He scored 19 points on 8-of-13 shooting against Chattanooga on Sunday, Nov. 24. Powell has logged career averages of 6.2 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game. Powell has scored in double figures in seven of the Bruins’ 11 games this season.
INJURY REPORT
Freshman Noah Allen suffered multiple fractures to his face after a collision with one of Oakland’s players on Nov. 12. He underwent surgery on Nov. 14. A timetable for his return has not been determined. Freshman Wanaah Bailmissed UCLA’s first five games of the season recovering from left knee surgery before making his collegiate debut in Las Vegas on Thursday, Nov. 28. Senior Travis Wear missed UCLA’s first three games (appendectomy on Oct. 28).

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