UCLA Basketball: Malcolm Lee expected to play despite small cartilage tear

Photo Blaine Ohigashi-Daily Bruin

The Fabulous Forum
The who, what, where, when,
why — and why not — of L.A. sports

UCLA Basketball: Malcolm Lee expected to play despite small cartilage tear

By Ben Bolch
The Los Angeles Times
March 8, 2011 | 12:07 pm


UCLA Coach Ben Howland said Tuesday morning that he expected junior guard Malcolm Lee to be able to play in the Bruins' Pacific Life Pacific 10 Conference tournament quarterfinal Thursday despite being diagnosed with a small cartilage tear in his left knee.

"He should be able to play with that and play through it," Howland said. "It's been done a lot. I think he's going to be fine."

Lee, the Bruins' second-leading scorer and top perimeter defender, hurt the knee Saturday when he fell hard underneath the basket on UCLA's final offensive possession of regulation during its 58-54 overtime victory against Washington State. Lee kept playing with the injury, making two free throws with 8.9 seconds left in regulation and four more in the final 6.9 seconds of overtime.

On Thursday, UCLA will play the winner of the game between seventh-seeded Oregon and No. 10-seeded Arizona State, which play on Wednesday night.

_____________


Malcolm Lee expected to play for UCLA in Pac-10 tournament

An MRI exam reveals a small cartilage tear in the junior guard's left knee, but he is assured by doctors that playing won't make it worse. So the Bruins expect to have their best backcourt defender when they face Oregon or Arizona State on Thursday.

By Ben Bolch
The Los Angeles Times
7:40 PM PST, March 8, 2011



Malcolm Lee caused a stir Monday afternoon when the UCLA guard tweeted, in not so delicate terms, that his life wasn't going the way he wanted.

The three-letter tweet went viral on fan message boards, with many assuming the worst regarding an MRI exam taken that day on Lee's injured left knee.

Turns out there was no reason to get all atwitter.

Lee was diagnosed with a small cartilage tear but is expected to be in the starting lineup Thursday evening at Staples Center when the Bruins play Oregon or Arizona State in a Pacific Life Pac-10 tournament quarterfinal.

Doctors gave Lee the option to put off surgery until after the season, promising the Bruins' second-leading scorer that he could not aggravate the tear. Surgery is expected to sideline him one month.

"The key to it is that we've been assured that he's not in any danger of injuring it worse," UCLA Coach Ben Howland said Tuesday.

Lee said he wasn't sure exactly when he injured the knee during UCLA's 58-54 overtime victory at Washington State on Saturday, only that he started feeling discomfort after falling underneath the basket with 8.9 seconds left in regulation.

"I didn't get hit in my lower body, I didn't hyperextend it," he said. "I just got up and it was acting funny."

Lee said his pain "comes and goes," but he expected to be able to play 35 minutes or so Thursday. Howland said he might slightly reduce Lee's minutes, particularly if the Bruins advanced past the quarterfinal round.

But guards Jerime Anderson and Tyler Lamb, who would absorb Lee's minutes, were both ailing Tuesday. Anderson sat out practice because of an illness that has bothered him since Sunday, and Lamb was diagnosed with strep throat.

_____________


Malcolm Lee will play through hurt knee

By Peter Yoon
ESPNLosAngeles.com
Archive
Updated: March 8, 2011, 6:21 PM ET


UCLA's all Pac-10 guard Malcolm Lee has a slight cartilage tear in his left knee but is not expected to miss any playing time, he said Tuesday.

Lee, who is averaging 13.2 points a game and is UCLA's top defender, injured his knee during the Bruins' season finale Saturday at Washington State. He had an MRI in Washington and then another when the team returned to Los Angeles on Sunday.

Lee, a junior who was also named to the conference's all-defensive team, said the injury would probably require surgery after the season but it isn't the type of injury that can get worse if he plays through it. He's experiencing pain and swelling, but wouldn't need to wear a brace to play on it.

"The knee is stable as far as ligaments, but there is a piece of cartilage floating," he said. "To me it's not really a big deal. I just want to play and be out there fighting for my team. This injury is not forcing me to be out, it's more about pain tolerance."

The injury occurred on the final play of regulation during UCLA's overtime victory against Washington State. Lee was fouled and crashed to the ground. He remained in the game and made two free throws to send the game to overtime. He went to the locker room for treatment during the early part of overtime, but returned and made four free throws to seal the victory.

"I just got up to walk and my knee gave out a little bit," Lee said. "I didn't get hit in my lower body, I didn't hyper extend it, I just got up and it was acting funny."

Coach Ben Howland said Lee would not practice Tuesday and do only shooting drills on Wednesday as the second-seeded Bruins prepare for their Pac-10 tournament opener on Thursday against either No. 10 Arizona State or No. 7 Oregon. Howland said he would also probably limit Lee's minutes during the game. Lee is averaging 35.5 minutes in conference games, but Howland said he'd probably go only about 30 on Thursday.

"The bottom line is we're hoping to quiet it down," Howland said, later adding, "I don't expect him to be hampered."

Reserve guards Tyler Lamb and Jerime Anderson would get more minutes in lieu of Lee, but they are both dealing with illnesses. Anderson was to miss practice Tuesday with an unspecified illness and Lamb has tested positive for strep throat, though Howland said Lamb would practice through it.