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UCLA Basketball & New Pauley Pavilion -- It's Time to Come Home

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Published on Apr 24, 2012 by UCLABRUINSdotCOM

Synopsis: New Pauley Pavilion at UCLA opens this Fall. Season tickets are available now to all UCLA fans for the first time. To explore New Pauley Pavilion and get your tickets, visit http://www.uclabruins.com/pauley-pavilion-seat-selection.html

UCLA recruit Shabazz Muhammad's genes a great fit for basketball

UCLA recruit Shabazz Muhammad's genes a great fit for basketball

Shabazz Muhammad's father Ron Holmes and mother Faye Muhammad were basketball stars at USC and Long Beach State, respectively. The family tree also includes a former NFL receiver and other athletes.

By Chris Foster
The Los Angeles Times
12:10 PM PDT, April 21, 2012

Ron Holmes, then a USC basketball player, was with a buddy at a summer league basketball game in 1982 when he saw his future on the court.

Watching Faye Paige play, Holmes said to his friend, "See that No. 10? She's going to be my wife and we're going to make some All-Americans."

Shabazz Muhammad has a chance to fulfill that prediction.

Muhammad, Ron and Faye's 18-year-old son, is a 6-foot-6 swingman who is widely regarded as the nation's best or second-best high school senior. He's set to begin his college basketball education at UCLA in the fall, but has already been extensively home schooled on the subject.

Shake his family tree and basketballs drop out.

Or, as Holmes puts it: "The athletic genes were there."

Holmes scored 1,211 points, 20th in school history, in four seasons at USC, and his allegiance to the Trojans has prompted some early personal ground rules about cheering for UCLA. For example, "I won't do the eight clap," he says. Also, powder blue remains out of the wardrobe.

Paige, who changed her name to Faye Muhammad after converting to the Muslim faith, played for Long Beach State teams that were so good, she says, "We barely took note of the Bruins."

Shabazz's aunt, Robin Holmes, played at Cal State Fullerton. She recalls UCLA being "hated," and games with Long Beach State having a family feud feel.

"Faye was a very difficult person on the court," Robin says diplomatically.

All three played in Pauley Pavilion and won in their final games there. All are eager to see Muhammad begin his career in what next season will be a renovated arena.

Faye jokingly attributes her son's college choice to "karma."

"Shabazz got a UCLA throwback jersey when he was younger and came home one day to find his dad had cut the 'UCLA' out of it," she says. "I brought that up the other day. I told Ron that he should have never done that to the jersey."

Holmes says his son's decision "felt a little weird," but blood is thicker than water under the bridge.

"The UCLA coaches are all good guys," Holmes says.

Holmes, who played at El Toro High, taught his son the game as it was passed down from his parents. Leroy and Ethel Holmes both played in high school.

"This goes back a lot further than Ron and Faye," Robin Holmes says. "Our mom was the matriarch. She used to take us out and school us."

Robin says she has one concern about her nephew: that he will be too much like her brother.

"Ron wouldn't know defense if it bit him in the butt," she says. "I tried to work with Ron. It didn't help."

Her remark stems from a good-natured sibling rivalry. A more intense type grew from Long Beach.

Faye Muhammad was taught to compete by her older brother, Mel. But basketball wasn't the first lesson. Stephone Paige, another older brother, had 377 receptions in nine seasons with the NFL's Kansas City Chiefs.

Faye's first athletic challenge as a kid?

"Mel made me put the football equipment on and play defense on [Stephone]," she says.

She fared better in basketball.

"It kept me out of trouble," Faye says. "My mom would go house to house, picking up my friends in our yellow station wagon, and take us to play. It was nonstop basketball. I was hooked."

Faye was a star athlete at Long Beach Poly High, and she made a quick transition to Long Beach State, where she was third in the 400-meter hurdles at the NCAA track and field meet as a freshman.

A knee injury slowed her athletic career, but she remained a vital part of the 49ers' success in basketball. Long Beach had a 130-27 record during her five seasons in the program; her senior year the 49ers went 29-5 and reached the 1986 NCAA West Regional final.

Faye scored 1,245 points for Long Beach and never lost to UCLA, including a final 85-69 victory at Pauley Pavilion. "We always handled them, whether at home or Pauley," she says.

Her husband also had some success on UCLA's home floor. Ron and USC defeated the Bruins twice in 1985, his senior season, including an 80-78 four-overtime thriller at Pauley Pavilion.

"All I remember is I missed some free throws in that game," Ron says. "It should have never gone to overtime."

Assuaging the pain is the knowledge that he pulled in the rebound that ignited a rush up the court for the buzzer-beating layup that won the game. The victory gave the Trojans a share of the Pacific 10 Conference championship, their last regular-season title.

Robin also won her last game at Pauley Pavilion, a 65-55 Fullerton victory in 1985, her junior season. Now vice president for student affairs at the University of Oregon, she finished with 1,731 career points, fifth on Fullerton's all-time scoring list.

Robin's games against Long Beach and her future sister-in-law are remembered as stressful for everyone.

"I would tell Coach, 'Please don't put me on Robin, her family is going to be here,'" Faye recalls. "We'd get to the game and the first thing Coach [Joan] Bonvicini would say was, 'Faye, you have Holmes.'"

The tension was just as thick in the other locker room.

"I remember every game," Robin says. During one, Faye was playing so well that Robin says she ended up pleading with her: "I said, 'Back off, you're killing me.' She kept sticking it to me."

The real pressure, though, came from the stands.

"My mom was pretty vocal, and she did not like that Faye was so tenacious," Ron says. "I wanted Robin to do well, too. But Faye and I were dating."

His solution?

"I kept quiet," Ron says.

Faye says she could beat Ron in a game, too — under certain conditions.

"I had one rule: no dunking," she says. "If he couldn't dunk, he couldn't beat me."

Their son, though, is an entirely different matter.

Says Faye: "I stopped being able to beat him when he was in the eighth grade."

Parker signing solidifies nation's top recruiting class for UCLA

Photo from The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Parker signing solidifies nation's top recruiting class for UCLA


By SCOTT M. REID / THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Published: April 23, 2012 Updated: 11:02 p.m.

LOS ANGELES - UCLA solidified the nation's top recruiting class with the signing of McDonald's All-American Tony Parker on Monday.

Parker, a 6-foot-9, forward/center out of Miller Grove High School in Lithonia, Ga., joins a recruiting class that already included Las Vegas Bishop Gorman's Shabazz Muhammad, the consensus national player of the year, and guard Kyle Anderson, a McDonald's All-American out of New Jersey's St. Anthony High School.

UCLA also signed another Georgian, Jordan Adams, a small forward who is at Oak Hill Academy in Virginia, Parker and Adams played for current Bruins assistant Korey McCray on the Atlanta Celtics AAU team.

Parker chose the Bruins over Ohio State, Kansas and Georgia.

"It is icing on the cake today to have Tony Parker join this recruiting class," Howland said. "He is a great player that has an unbelievable work ethic. I'm so excited for our program to have a quality big man like Tony join our team and Bruin family.

"He has all of the intangibles to go with being a very talented player. He is a driven and motivated talent that plays with physicality, toughness, enthusiasm and passion. He's the first player in the history of the state of Georgia to play in and win four straight state championships. He is a winner and has an unbelievably bright future."

Parker led Miller Grove to four consecutive Georgia 4A state titles. He averaged 16.8 points, 11.0 rebounds and 3.0 blocks a season, and posted 21 points, 13 boards and three blocks in the state title game.

Parker won a gold medal with the U.S. national team at the 2010 FIBA Under-17 World Championships. He also was a member of the winning U.S. squad at the 2009 FIBA Under-16 Americas championships. He had a game-high 12 rebounds for the East at the 2012 Jordan Brand All-American Game earlier this month.

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UCLA adds center Tony Parker to round out stellar recruiting class

Tony Parker, a 6-9, 280-pound center from Georgia, commits to UCLA, joining Shabazz Muhammad, Kyle Anderson and Jordan Adams in a basketball recruiting class that Scout.com ranks No. 2 in the nation.

By Chris Foster
The Times of Los Angeles
9:05 PM PDT, April 23, 2012

Tony Parker, last of the blue-chip high school seniors on UCLA's basketball recruiting wish list, gave three reasons Monday after announcing that he had chosen the Bruins.

Shabazz Muhammad, Kyle Anderson and Jordan Adams.

Parker, a 6-foot-9, 280-pound center from Lithonia, Ga., was in the spotlight alone in making his choice later than most, but the moment he signified his decision by putting on a UCLA cap, he became part of a foursome.

"I thought I would go somewhere where I could really succeed with the freshmen that came in with me," Parker said. "I have three great guys coming there with me, Shabazz, Kyle and Jordan."

Parker was the last piece to a recruiting class that will be expected to reinvigorate a program that has meandered the last three seasons. The Bruins, beset by turmoil, finished 19-14 last season and missed the NCAA tournament for the second time in three years.

Parker joins Muhammad, the Las Vegas Bishop Gorman High forward considered the No. 2 player in the nation; Anderson, a 6-8 guard from Jersey City (N.J.) St. Anthony, and Adams, a forward from Mouth of Wilson (Va.) Oak Hill Academy.

"This was icing on the cake today, having Tony join this recruiting class that is really special," UCLA Coach Ben Howland said.

As to whether it expunges the bad taste from the 2011-12 season, Howland said, "It doesn't change anything. The past is done. The whole key is to learn from it."

UCLA's recruiting class was ranked third in the nation by Scout.com before Parker committed. His presence pushed the Bruins' class to No. 2 — past Arizona but still behind national champion Kentucky.

The influx of freshman talent in Tucson and Westwood improves the Pac-12 Conference's reputation after the league sent only two teams — Colorado and California — to the NCAA tournament.

Howland knows well the pitfalls that can scuttle a recruiting class. UCLA had the nation's No. 1-ranked recruiting class in 2008. Yet Jerime Anderson was the only one of the five recruits who remained four seasons, and UCLA never advanced further than the NCAA tournament's second round.

"These are the problems you want to have," Howland said of renewed expectations. "I have no doubt this class will turn out to be a great class when people look back on it."

Parker was eager to face the expectations after winning four Georgia state high school titles. He had narrowed his choices to Ohio State, Kentucky, Kansas and Georgia, which hoped staying home would be appealing.

Parker wanted more.

"To stay home and just be a hometown hero, I don't think that's pressure," Parker said. "I think that's kind of the easy way out. If you go someplace far away, that's pressure. I'm a piece of coal. I'll be a diamond when I leave UCLA."

Parker joins his former AAU coach, Korey McCray, now a UCLA assistant. Parker told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that McCray is "like an older brother to me, and he has been looking out for me for a long time."

Howland said that McCray was key to landing Parker and Adams, who is from Lawrenceville, Ga..

"If he weren't on staff, we wouldn't have gotten either of those kids," Howland said.

How long any of the four will remain is to be seen. UCLA has had nine players jump to the NBA early, three after their freshman seasons.

"We'll see what happens," Howland said. "What I have to worry about is not getting caught short-handed, like we did this year. I have to try to anticipate."

On Monday, Parker was talking about arriving, not leaving, and he was already in anticipation mode.

"UCLA is where I can succeed and improve," Parker said. "Especially with the guys I'll be coming in with."
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Parker puts Bruins near head of the class

 

By Jon Gold jon.gold@dailynews.com twitter.com/insideucla Staff Writer

The Los Angeles Daily News

Posted: 04/23/2012 11:06:31 PM PDT
Updated: 04/23/2012 11:10:31 PM PDT

They say it's darkest just before the dawn.

If that's the case, get Ben Howland some shades because things are looking pretty bright in Westwood.

After missing the NCAA Tournament for the second time in three years, the UCLA basketball team continued its impressive offseason haul by picking up the commitment of Scout.com's No. 20-ranked prospect, Tony Parker of Miller Grove High in Lithonia, Ga., on Monday.

The 6-foot-9 Parker announced his intentions in front of a packed audience in a 45-minute ceremony and chose the Bruins over Ohio State, Georgia and Duke.

Parker became the fourth member of a monster recruiting class for Howland and joined No. 2-ranked Shabazz Muhammad, No. 4 Kyle Anderson and No. 76 Jordan Adams, enough to secure UCLA either the No. 1 or No. 2 ranking from most top recruiting services.

"It is icing on the cake today to have Tony Parker join this recruiting class," Howland said. "He is a great player that has an unbelievable work ethic.

"I'm so excited for our program to have a quality big man like Tony join our team and Bruin family. "

Parker will be in a crowded frontcourt that includes returning juniors Joshua Smith, Anthony Stover and David and Travis Wear, but Howland insisted he would battle for playing time early.

With a backcourt that returns Tyler Lamb and Norman Powell and adds North Carolina transfer Larry Drew Jr., the Bruins could jump into the preseason top 10.

"(Parker) is going to come in and compete right away for a starting position," Howland said. "This thing is wide open. We have 11 on scholarship and each position will be contested. He's competing for major minutes right away as a freshman."

Parker's commitment comes on the heels of Muhammad's selection of the Bruins over Kentucky and Duke, and he's now the second signee largely credited to assistant coach Korey McCray.

Parker and Adams played on McCray's Atlanta Celtics AAU team, and Howland gave McCray, whom he hired before last season, his due.

"No question, Korey McCray has done an incredible job recruiting both Jordan Adams and Tony Parker from his home state," Howland said. "Were he not on staff we wouldn't have gotten either one of those kids."

Howland highlighted the foursome's winning ways in high school as the group combined to go 128-13 last season. Adams led Oak Hill Academy to a 44-0 record, Muhammad guided Bishop Gorman to a Nevada state title, Anderson went 65-0 in his final two seasons at famed St. Anthony's in New Jersey and Parker became the first player to win four Georgia state championships. He also took home the Atlanta Journal-Constitution's "Mr. Basketball" honors this past season.

Howland knows with the star-studded lineup comes increased expectations. He almost sounds relieved they're back.

"What's the alternative to that?" Howland said. "That's my answer to that. These are the kinds of problems we want to have. High expectations, we have those anyway.
"We've failed to meet the high expectations we've had for this program two of the last three years."

Tony Parker headed to UCLA Bruins

Tony Parker headed to UCLA Bruins

 

 

By David Ching | DawgNation

ESPN.com

Updated: April 23, 2012, 10:12 PM ET

 

 

LITHONIA, Ga. -- UCLA added another big piece to one of the nation's top college basketball recruiting classes Monday when ESPN 100 center Tony Parker joined the Bruins.

Parker (Lithonia/Miller Grove), the No. 26 overall prospect in the ESPN 100 and No. 7 center, picked the Bruins over a list of finalists that included Ohio State, Duke, Georgia, Kansas and Memphis.

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More on UCLA's Recruiting Haul

UCLA's impressive haul of prize recruit Tony Parker lands the Bruins a top-rated class and the kind of talent that will quickly turn around the struggling program, writes Dave Telep. Blog
 

For Ben Howland, his team, and dispirited UCLA fans everywhere, the timing of pulling in Tony Parker couldn't possibly be better. All that remains is turning this talent into a team, Eamonn Brennan writes. Blog

• Updated class rankings
• Best available prospects

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The four-star prospect's decision pushes UCLA ahead of Kentucky to take over the No. 1 recruiting ranking among 2012 classes nationally.

"I just thought UCLA was the perfect place for me to get better, be successful," Parker said at the end of an hour-long ceremony at which he announced his decision. "With the prestigious open run that they have in the summertime, I just thought UCLA would be a great place. I have three great guys recruiting me in Kyle Anderson, Shabazz (Muhammad) and Jordan (Adams)."

The Bruins' class jumped from No. 12 to No. 3 in ESPN's team rankings two weeks ago when Muhammad (Las Vegas/Bishop Gorman), the No. 2 overall prospect in the ESPN 150, joined Anderson (Fairview, N.J./St. Anthony), the No. 5 player, and Adams (Lawrenceville, Ga./Oak Hill Academy), No. 41, among UCLA signees.

Now the Bruins add a McDonald's All-American in Parker, who led Miller Grove to four straight Georgia state titles and averaged 16.6 points and 11 rebounds per game as a senior.

"I think they can contend to be the No. 1 class in the country now," Miller Grove coach Sharman White said. "You've got Kentucky who's got a strong class, but this group that they got has got a little bit of everything. It's pretty good. It's right there. If not No. 1, I'd definitely say it's 1 or 2."

UCLA hopes the group will collectively make an immediate impact -- and Parker said that was one of the determining factors in joining the Bruins instead of signing with Duke, Ohio State or Georgia, the other three schools whose caps were positioned on the table in front of him at the ceremony before he chose the UCLA cap and opened his jacket and revealed a UCLA T-shirt.

"Duke, Ohio State and UGA: Those three schools were right behind. I love (Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski), I love what he had going, but I just thought UCLA was a better fit for me and the people I was coming in with," Parker said. "Ohio State, it doesn't get no better for a big man there. But I just thought I would have to work harder at UCLA and would probably come in with more of a chip on my shoulder."

Aided by its proximity and the attraction of playing with Miller Grove teammate Brandon Morris, who committed last fall, Georgia made a late push to acquire Parker's services. He said he did not feel pressured to stay close to home, however.

David Ching/ESPN.com Tony Parker, the No. 26 overall prospect in the ESPN 100, vaulted UCLA to the No. 1 overall recruiting class, according to ESPN.

"I really don't think there would have been any pressure at all to stay home, be around the people you've been around and just be a hometown hero," Parker said. "I don't think that's pressure. I think that's kind of the easy way out. If you go somewhere far, that's pressure. I think I'm probably coal and I'll be a diamond by the time I get to UCLA."

After reaching the NCAA tournament in five consecutive seasons with coach Ben Howland -- including three straight Final Fours and one trip to the national championship game -- the Bruins have missed the tournament in two of the last three years. Last season they finished in the middle of the pack in a mediocre Pac-12, at 19-14 overall and 11-7 in conference play.

However, UCLA is poised to return to national prominence quickly after adding four top-50 prospects.

UCLA assistant coach Korey McCray, hired last summer by Howland to help recruit out of state, was Parker's AAU coach with the Atlanta Celtics before taking the UCLA job. McCray played a vital role in recruiting Parker and Adams, another former Atlanta Celtics player. Parker is also close with Muhammad and Anderson, who said they had been working hard on getting Parker to UCLA.

The 6-foot-9, 270-pound Parker will add a post punch to the class' dynamic tandem of Muhammad, a super athletic scorer, and Anderson, an inside-outside threat. And White said Parker will bring intangibles to the group of freshmen, which already had bonded at All-Star games and summer camps before deciding to sign together.

"Tony brings a stability. He brings a calming force to the two, those guys, and I think they're going to jell well together," White said. "I've seen them together at the Jordan Game and I've seen them at the Nike Skills Academy that I worked and I can see those guys jelling really well. They've already started bonding and I think Tony's like the glue."

Information from ESPNLosAngeles.com's Peter Yoon is included in this report.

Photos from Tony Parker's announcement show

Photos from Tony Parker's announcement show from The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (link)

It's official...Tony Parker signs LOI

UCLA Signs Tony Parker to National Letter of Intent

Parker's signing moves Bruins to No. 1 on ESPN 2012 recruiting class rankings.

Tony Parker

UCLA Men's Basketball
April 23, 2012

LOS ANGELES -
Photo Gallery from AJC | 2012-13 Season Ticket Information

UCLA head coach Ben Howland announced today the signing of Tony Parker to a National Letter of Intent to attend UCLA in the fall of 2012.

Parker, a 6-foot-9-inch, 270-pound forward/center out of Lithonia, Ga. (Miller Grove High School), is a McDonald's All-American and joins the Bruins' signing class that is currently rated No. 1 in the country and consists of fellow McDonald's All-Americans, Kyle Anderson, a 6-foot-8-inch, 225-pound point guard out of North Bergen, N.J. (St. Anthony High School) and Shabazz Muhammad, a 6-foot-6-inch, 215-pound wing out of Las Vegas (Bishop Gorman High School) and Jordan Adams, a 6-foot-5-inch, 220-pound wing out of Atlanta (Oak Hill Academy).

"It is icing on the cake today to have Tony Parker join this recruiting class," Howland said. "He is a great player that has an unbelievable work ethic. I'm so excited for our program to have a quality big man like Tony join our team and Bruin family. He has all of the intangibles to go with being a very talented player. He is a driven and motivated talent that plays with physicality, toughness, enthusiasm and passion. He's the first player in the history of the state of Georgia to play in and win four straight state championships. He is a winner and has an unbelievably bright future."

Parker led the MGHS Wolverines to four straight Georgia 4A state titles while averaging 16.8 points 11.0 rebounds and 3.0 blocks per game as a senior in 2012. He scored 21 points and had 13 rebounds and three blocks in the state championship win over Southwest DeKalb (Decatur, Ga.) as the Wolverines ended the year 24-9. A two-time gold medalist with USA Basketball, Parker captured an 8-0 record and a gold medal at the 2010 FIBA U17 World Championships in Hamburg, Germany. He also helped USA to a 5-0 record and a gold medal in the 2009 FIBA Americas U16 Championship in Mendoza, Argentina, as he averaged 8.2 points and 6.6 rebounds per game. He contributed 10 points, seven rebounds and two blocks for the East team, which lost 106-102 to the West in the 2012 McDonald's All-American game on March 28. Parker scored eight points and had a game-high 12 rebounds for the East, which lost 99-95 to the West, in the 2012 Jordan Brand All-American Game on April 14 in Charlotte, N.C.

While at Miller Grove HS, he ended his high school career on a 16-game winning streak and an overall postseason record of 20-0 under head coach Sharman White. He was named the Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Mr. Basketball for the state of Georgia in 2012. He was named the Georgia Hoops 2009 Freshman of the Year after averaging 7.5 points and 10.3 rebounds per game while starting 32 contests and leading the Wolverines to a 30-3 record and the first of four state titles. Miller Grove HS went 117-19 (.860) in his four years as a starter (2009-12).

Parker is ranked as the No. 20 player in the nation by Scout.com and ranked No. 26 by ESPN.com and No. 27 by Rivals.com. He is rated as the No. 6 center in the country by Rivals, at No. 7 by ESPN and No. 8 by Scout. He joins Muhammad, who is ranked as the No. 1 player in the nation by Rivals.com and No. 2 by ESPN.com and Scout.com. ESPN and Scout have him rated as the No. 1 small forward in the country while Rivals ranked him as their No. 1 shooting guard. Kyle Anderson is rated as the No. 3 player in the country by Rivals.com, the No. 4 player by Scout and No. 5 by ESPN. Anderson is rated the No. 1 small forward by Rivals and the No. 2 small forward by ESPN and Scout behind Muhammad. The fourth signee of the class is Jordan Adams, who is rated the No. 41 player in the country by ESPN.com. Adams is also rated No. 62 by Rivals and No. 75 by Scout. ESPN rates Adams as the No. 9 small forward in the country while Rivals has him at No. 14 and Scout at No. 16. Muhammad's signing to UCLA jumped the Bruins from No. 12 on ESPN's recruiting class rankings to No. 3. Parker's signing to UCLA jumped the Bruins from No. 3 to No. 1 on that same list. UCLA is the only program to land two of the top five recruits in the 2012 class.