Moser leaving UCLA basketball programBy Jon Gold, Staff Writer
The LA Daily News
Updated: 04/05/2010 11:53:43 PM PDT
The dominoes keep falling for the UCLA men's basketball team.
Less than a week after the dismissal of sophomore center J'mison "Bobo" Morgan, head coach Ben Howland announced Monday freshman forward Mike Moser intended to transfer, though the destination is undecided.
The Bruins now have just six scholarship players on the current roster, including freshman forward Brendan Lane, who is expected to miss at least five months after knee surgery, and three committed incoming freshmen.
Moser averaged 0.6 points and 0.5 rebounds in 70 minutes across 15 games this season, with a season high of three points (on his only 3-pointer) in a 69-67 loss to eventual NCAA runner-up Butler on Nov. 27, 2009.
"Mike is a good kid, a great student and a very hard worker," Howland said. "I have enjoyed having him in our program. He has a great attitude and I'm supportive of him finding a program where he will have a chance to play more minutes than we envision he will have here."
Moser, from Grant High School in Portland, Ore., was rated the No. 7 small forward recruit in the country last season. He will leave UCLA after the spring quarter.
"The way the season worked out for me this year, I feel it is necessary for me personally to make a move somewhere else so I can play," Moser said. "I have enjoyed my time here at UCLA and have built great relationships with my coaches and teammates.
"I'm going to stay in Division I and haven't spoken to anyone at all about playing. I won't rush into a decision. I'll just wait and see what happens in the next few weeks."
Moser's exit leaves the Bruins with little margin for error, as he becomes the third player to transfer this year, joining Morgan and Drew Gordon, who transferred to New Mexico early in the season.
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Pac-10 basketball: Former Grant High star Mike Moser will leave UCLABy Mike Tokito, The Oregonian
April 05, 2010, 5:28PM
Mike Moser, a former standout at Portland's Grant High School, has decided to leave UCLA after the spring term and transfer to another school, UCLA announced Monday.
Moser, a 6-foot-8, 195-pound freshman forward, was a highly-recruited player at Grant who originally committed to Arizona, then rescinded after Lute Olson resigned as Wildcats coach. He chose UCLA after considering other Pac-10 schools, including USC, Oregon and Oregon State.
But Moser had a tough time adapting to UCLA and the defensive-oriented style it plays under coach Ben Howland. Moser missed some early practice time because of a back injury, but even when healthy, he struggled to get playing time despite the fact that the Bruins were depleted by injuries.
"I think there are things that the coaches are looking for in terms of defense -- he’s a decent defender, but that’s not his No. 1 strength," said Grant coach Tony Broadous, who said he spoke to Moser about two weeks ago. "He’s more of an offensive player. I think he didn’t totally fit in with the philosophy of UCLA."
Moser appeared in 15 of UCLA's 32 games and averaged 0.6 points and 0.5 rebounds.
"Mike is a good kid, a great student and a very hard worker," Howland said in a news release. "I have enjoyed having him in our program. He has a great attitude, and I'm supportive of him finding a program where he will have a chance to play more minutes than we envision he will have here."
Moser did not immediately return a phone message, but said in the release that he has not decided where to transfer to. Broadous said he believes Washington and Washington State are high on Moser's wish list, and Moser would probably prefer to play at another Pac-10 school. Broadous added that Moser should have plenty of options.
"A lot of major colleges were calling me since the middle of the season when they saw he wasn’t playing a whole lot," Broadous said. "Schools have been contacting me, ‘If he’s not happy, if he decides to leave, please let us know, keep us in mind.’"
Moser led Grant to a state title in 2008 and was a first-team all-state pick as a senior. He also played on the USA Junior National Select team and in the Nike Hoop Summit. Because of all that success, Broadous said the adversity Moser has faced in college might benefit him in the long run.
"Ever since high school, frankly, he hasn’t had much (adversity) because he’s always been the tallest and the best," Broadous said. "So now he has to go to UCLA where that’s not the case, and you have to fight a little bit and battle a little bit and work a little harder. He’ll have to sit out a year, and he can get stronger, work on some of his deficiencies, and he’ll be fine."
Moser has three seasons of eligibility remaining, although NCAA rules would require him to sit out next season if he chooses to transfer to another Division I school.
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