Thursday, November 20, 1997
Small Bruin lineup barely steals thunder from NBC
WRAP: Stats not up to par, but coaches pleased at chance to
evaluate team
By Mark Shapiro
Daily Bruin Staff
It’s a good thing these guys can jump, because with a starting
lineup no bigger than 6 feet 5 inches, the UCLA men’s basketball
team got all it could handle in a 76-74 victory over NBC-Thunder
Wednesday night.
With 6-foot-9-inch senior J.R. Henderson sidelined due to back
spasms, the game was a trial by fire for the Bruins’ small lineups.
It was senior Toby Bailey who was the largest Bruin at tip-off
before 6,294 fans at Pauley Pavilion.
It was Bailey again who, with the Bruins clinging to a 75-74
lead with nine seconds left, grabbed a defensive rebound and
knocked down a game-clinching free throw.
"I felt like I was in high school again," said Bailey, who was
celebrating his 22nd birthday. "We were really scrappy and really
small out there today. We’re just doing whatever we have to do
right now to win while we don’t have all our guys."
With two minutes to go, the Bruins held a 70-65 lead, but
NBC-Thunder went on a 9-2 run to take a 74-72 lead with only 25
seconds left.
It was another Lilliputian member of the Bruin squad,
6-foot-2-inch freshman Baron Davis, who brought UCLA back from the
abyss when he hit on a driving bank shot and converted the
three-point play to give the Bruins a lead they would not
relinquish.
"I was just trying to get a quick shot and an opportunity at a
rebound," Davis said. "I was looking to get the ball to Toby. I saw
a huge gap, so I took advantage of that."
While the Bruins netted their second victory of the exhibition
season, the small lineup had more than its share of problems.
An abysmal 37.7 percent shooting performance (including 3-18 on
three-pointers) paired with 20 turnovers left much to be desired by
the coaching staff. The fact that the small lineup, which will be a
cornerstone of UCLA’s season, got a full game’s worth of experience
made the numbers a secondary consideration.
"It’s tremendous, the fact J.R. is out is really a blessing
tonight," head coach Steve Lavin said. "I know he can play; I don’t
need to evaluate him. I needed to be able to evaluate our smaller
lineup.
"I don’t think we played very well tonight. What I was happy
with was the fact that they were able to play together and get a
win in a close game."
The Bruins held a 10-point lead at halftime, and were up by as
many as seven in the waning minutes of the second half. NBC-Thunder
was able to rally back behind Shann Ferch’s four second-half
three-pointers and 29 total points.
"The whole game was frustrating in terms of watching it," Lavin
said. "I was just pleased that we were in a closely played game so
our players could tell what that feels like."