Mata Injures Ankle, Out Two Weeks

By Bruin Basketball Report

With individual basketball workouts starting just recently, the Bruins experienced another setback along the front line when center Lorenzo Mata suffered a sprain to his right ankle. He has been fitted with a walking boot and will be out of action for at least two weeks.

Mata, a player who always plays at full throttle whenever he's on the court, has had a long list of injuries during his career at UCLA ranging from a broken nose to a fractured knee cap.

He missed the start of fall practice last season after he underwent arthroscopic surgery to repair an injured right knee.

Although UCLA welcomes freshman sensation Kevin Love this year, the Bruins will start this season with less personnel at the power spots than last season with James Keefe out with a injured shoulder and Ryan Wright gone after transfering to Oklahoma this summer.

Mata is the lone senior on the roster and the Bruins need him healthy and active on the court if they expect to advance deep into the NCAA tournament this season.

Last season Mata averaged 6.6 points, 5.4 rebounds, and a team-leading 1.2 blocks in 23.1 minutes a game.

Mata should be available to return to action when the Bruins kick-off team practices on October 12.

Darrick Martin Gets Ready For 13th Season In NBA

By Bruin Basketball Report

Darrick Martin is still having too much fun to quit just yet.

According to the Toronto Star, the former UCLA Bruin has agreed to a partially-guarenteed one year contract to play for the Toronto Raptors in the upcoming 2007-08 NBA season. It will be his third year with the Raptors and thirteenth in the league.

The 36 year-old veteran will be counted on again to serve as a third-string point guard behind developing players T.J Ford and Jose Calderon. The Raptors open training camp across the ocean in Italy next week

Martin is valued by the Toronto organizaton for his veteran presence and leadership with younger players. His partially-guarenteed contract provides him with some financial security while allowing the Raptors flexibility if his roster spot is needed for another player during the season.

He played in 31 games last season averaging 3.0 points and 1.4 assists in 7.2 minutes of action per contest and was a reliable shooter from beyond the arc hitting on 35.1% of his long distance shots.

Martin played four seasons at UCLA from 1988 to 1992. He averaged 9.3 points and 4.9 assists in his career. His best season as a Bruin was as a junior when he averaged 11.6 points and 6.8 assists per game. He currently ranks third in assists (636) and fifth in steals (179) on the UCLA all-time career list.

(photo credit: NBA.com)

UCLA Finalizes 2007-08 Men’s Basketball Schedule

The UCLA Athletic Department has finalized its men’s basketball schedule for 2007-08, which is highlighted by 26 televised games on five different networks, including the possibility of two more games to be televised.

The Bruins will make 13 appearances as part of the Pacific-10 Conference’s television package with Fox Sports Net; eight national or regional telecasts on FSN, three on CBS and one each on ABC and ESPN. UCLA has two additional opportunities for exposure when wildcard selections are announced on Feb. 25, 2008.

In addition to the Pac-10’s FSN package, eight more games will be televised locally as part of the Bruins’ package on FSN Prime Ticket and FSN West in Los Angeles.

Additionally, the Bruins will make four more appearances on the ESPN family of networks in conjunction with the CBE Classic on Nov. 12-13 and Nov. 19-20 (ESPN2 or ESPNU).

KCAL will be televising the Wooden Classic contest against Davidson in Honda Center on Dec. 8.

UCLA, the defending back-to-back regular season Pac-10 champion, opens defense of its conference crown in early January at Stanford (Jan. 3). The 2008 Pac-10 Tournament, featuring all 10 teams, will once again be held at the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles (March 12-15).

While all but one game time has been set, the schedule is tentative and subject to change.

Tentative 2007-08 UCLA Men’s Basketball Schedule

Date/Opponent/TV/Time

Fri., Nov. 2 Azusa Pacific (Exhibition) uclabruins.com 7:30 pm

Mon., Nov. 5 Chico State (Exhibition) uclabruins.com 7:30 pm

Fri., Nov. 9 Portland State uclabruins.com 7:30 pm

Mon., Nov. 12 CBE Classic

Weber State vs. Cal State San Bernardino 5:15 pm

UCLA vs. Youngstown State ESPN2 8:00 pm

Tue., Nov. 13 CBE Classic

Preliminary Consolation 4:45 pm

Preliminary Final ESPN2 7:30 pm

Mon., Nov. 19 @CBE Classic Semifinal ESPN2/U 6/8:30 pm CST

(Sprint Center, Kansas City)

Tue., Nov. 20 @CBE Classic Final ESPNU/2 6:45/9:15 pm CST

(Sprint Center, Kansas City)

Fri., Nov. 23 Yale uclabruins.com 7:30 pm

Wed., Nov. 28 George Washington FSNPT 7:30 pm

Sun., Dec. 2 Texas in Pac-10/Big 12 Series *FSN/FSNPT 5:00 pm

Sat., Dec. 8 Davidson KCAL 2:30 pm

@ Wooden Classic (Honda Center)

Dec. 10-14 Finals Week

Sat., Dec. 15 Idaho State FSNW 5:00 pm

Tue., Dec. 18 Western Illinois uclabruins.com 7:30 pm

Sat., Dec. 22 @ Michigan CBS 2:00 pm ET

Sat., Dec. 29 UC Davis FSNPT 4:30 pm

Thu., Jan. 3 @ Stanford *FSN/FSNPT 7:30 pm

Sat., Jan. 5 @ California *FSN/FSNPT 3:00 pm

Thu., Jan. 10 Washington FSNPT 7:30 pm

Sat., Jan. 12 Washington State *FSN/FSNPT 11:30 am

Sat., Jan. 19 USC CBS 12:30 pm

Thu., Jan. 24 @ Oregon *FSN/FSNPT 7:30 pm

Sat., Jan. 26 @ Oregon State FSNPT 8:00 pm

Thu., Jan. 31 Arizona State FSNPT 7:30 pm

Sat., Feb. 2 Arizona ESPN 6:00 pm

Thu., Feb. 7 @ Washington State *FSN/FSNW 7:30 pm

Sun., Feb. 10 @ Washington *FSN/FSNPT 1:30 pm

Sun., Feb. 17 @ USC *FSN/FSNPT 7:00 pm

Thu., Feb. 21 Oregon State FSNW 7:30 pm

Sat., Feb. 23 Oregon ABC 12:30 pm

Thu., Feb. 28 @ Arizona State FSNPT 8:30/9:00 pm MT

Sun., Mar. 2 @ Arizona CBS 2:00 pm MT

Thu., Mar.6 Stanford WC 8:00 pm

Sat., Mar. 8 California WC TBD

Mar. 12 - Mar. 15 Pac-10 Tournament @ Staples Center, Los Angeles, CA

Mar. 20 - Mar. 23 NCAA First and Second Round

Mar. 27 - Mar. 30 NCAA Regional

Apr. 5 & Apr. 7 NCAA Final Four

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

All times Pacific

All games broadcast on AM 570 (KLAC) and the Bruin Network

*FSN/FSNW – Pac-10 National or Regional game on FSN West in Los Angeles

*FSN/FSNPT – Pac-10 National or Regional game on FSN Prime Ticket in Los Angeles

FSNPT – FSN Prime Ticket in Los Angeles

FSNW – FSN West in Los Angeles

WC – Wildcard selections to be chosen on Feb. 25

Link to official schedule

(UCLA Press Release)

Bruin Recruiting: Prep News Roundup (9/24)

By Bruin Basketball Report

Prep News Roundup is published every Monday.

Commits

UCLA: On the heels
of signing current freshman center Kevin Love, perhaps the top newcomer
in college basketball this season, the Bruins have landed four players
in virtually everyone's top 60. Leading the way is guard Jrue Holiday,
ranked No.3 by both rivals.com and scout.com. Gibbons said he's better
at the same age than ex-Bruin star Arron Afflalo. Along with shooting guard Malcolm Lee and point Jerime
Anderson, UCLA also got San Jose-Mitty star Drew Gordon, whose rating
slipped a bit last summer because of injuries.  Inside Bay Area 9/21

 

Recruits

Blue-chip high school basketball center J’Mison Morgan returned to
his hometown of Dallas on Sunday morning after his two-day recruiting
visit to Kansas University. Sources say the 6-foot-11 Morgan — who has not taken calls from
reporters since the summer AAU season regarding recruiting — had a good
time on his visit, but did not orally commit to KU. Morgan, who attends South Oak Cliff High, visited LSU last week. He
also may make visits to Alabama, Kentucky and UCLA. He has said he’ll
announce his college choice on Nov. 2, his birthday. Lawrence Journal World 9/17

California Supreme got 28 points and 13 rebounds by 6-9 sophomore
Jeremy Tyler of San Diego High - and, by the way, he could be the best
center or power forward prospect in the West right now, regardless of
class level - and 29 points (with eight 3s) by Mater Dei sophomore
guard Gary Franklin. Press-Telegram 9/18

The Dominguez High team, competing as "The Hood," had an impressive weekend that was capped by beating Stoneridge Prep...Jordan Hamilton scored 34 points with six rebounds in the final for The
Hood, while junior teammates Aaron Moore and Myron Green added 19 and
12, respectively. Press-Telegram 9/18

The Terps are involved with No. 10 rated Deshawn Painter, No. 12 Isaiah Armwood, No. 16 Karron Johnson, No. 20 Daniel Orton and No. 24 Wally Judge. They all had solid summers. Painter is an explosive and long face-up four man. Armwood finishes drives as well as any big man in class. Johnson is physical and can flat out score in bunches. Orton is a physical low block scorer who can swat shots in the paint. Baltimore Sun 9/18

For six of the last seven years, McKale Madness has signaled the start of the men's college basketball season at Arizona. For one year at least, that tradition will be shelved when UA head coach Lute Olson and his staff conduct a normal practice rather than the fan-friendly event....That's not to mention the impact the event can have on recruiting. In recent years, current Wildcats Chase Budinger, Jerryd Bayless and Alex Jacobson have attended the event as recruits, as well as class of 2009
targets David and Travis Wear. Wildcat Online 9/19

What had been rumored for months was expected to be confirmed Wednesday
when 6-foot-10 center Renardo Sidney shows up for the first day of
classes at Los Angeles Fairfax. Sidney said Tuesday that he was leaving Lakewood Artesia, the state Division III basketball champion, to enroll at Fairfax. "I'm kind of excited," he said....Fairfax Coach Harvey Kitani said he would wait to see whether Sidney
arrived next week and showed that he was living within the Fairfax
attendance boundary. "When he gets processed and checks in, then
I'll know he's coming to Fairfax," Kitani said. "I've seen him play a
few times, and he's a special player. He's big, strong, has
inside-outside ability." LA Times 9/19

J'Mison Morgan (No. 23 ranking)- Down to Alabama, Kansas, Kentucky, LSU, Louisville and UCLA, Morgan has already visited LSU and Kansas. This weekend the five-star center is on the west coast visiting UCLA. Morgan has been a prime target for the Jayhawks for some time, and they are hoping the Darrell Arthur/Dallas South Oak Cliff High School connection can help them land him. Scarlet Nation 9/20

J'Mison Morgan, a 6-foot-9, 260-pound center from
South Oak Cliff High in Dallas, is on an official visit and was at the
Rose Bowl. He was joined by the UCLA basketball team and coaching staff. LA Daily News 9/23

Dallas center J'Mison Morgan has visited LSU and Kansas and this
weekend was headed to UCLA. Several newspaper reports have reported
that he might visit Kentucky next weekend. The 6-10 Morgan is one of
the top uncommitted big men in the Class of 2008. Courier Journal 9/23

(photo credit: Courier Journal)