SportsLine.com Report
March 23, 2000

Sweet 16: UCLA season comes to screeching halt

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- Their 35-point victory over Maryland in the second round seemed like a long, long time ago.

So just as the high-flying victory had showed what the UCLA Bruins are capable of -- and what they hope to duplicate in the future -- their appearance in the Sweet 16 was something they'd like to forget.

Iowa State used its quickness, defense and balance to turn back the Bruins in a convincing 80-56 regional semifinal decision.

The alley-oop passes that were dunks against Maryland became turnovers against Iowa State. The Cyclones were just too well-schooled in what the Bruins were trying to do, and closed the door quickly and conclusively.

The UCLA team that had won eight games in a row just never got rolling against Iowa State. The Bruins had saved their season by going on a late roll that got them to the Sweet 16, but once they arrived in Auburn Hills and the game began, they didn't look like they belonged.

Marcus Fizer, Stevie Johnson and Michael Nurse had 16 points each as the second-seeded Cyclones whipped the Bruins every which way, outscoring them 40-28 in each half.

Jerome Moiso, with 15 points, was the only UCLA player in double figures. UCLA point guard Earl Watson, who had laser surgery on his left eye Monday for a partially detached retina, was ineffective against Iowa State's Jamaal Tinsley. He fouled out after accumulating eight points in 31 minutes of action.

Tinsley added 14 points to help the Cyclones (32-4) extend their winning streak to 10 games.

How They Got There

The Bruins were all over the road, beating North Carolina in Chapel Hill, losing six of seven in February, winning at No. 1 Stanford in March. In the end, they had built a big enough payload -- December wins over quality teams from Purdue and Pepperdine -- to cover for their February breakdowns.

They won eight in a row right into the Sweet 16 before faltering.

Starting Lineup

• PG Earl Watson (6-0, 183, Jr.) 11.5 ppg, 5.9 apg, 3.9 rpg, 3.1 TO pg
  The team leader, he's versatile enough to be a shooting guard playing the point or a point guard playing off. Watson was nothing short of brilliant in the second round against Maryland, with 17 points and a school-record 16 assists. He hit 5 of 6 attempts from 3-point range. And in the first round against Ball State, his shot wasn't going down (4 points), so he contributed 12 assists and 4 steals.
• SG JaRon Rush (6-6, 210, So.) 12.9 ppg, 5.6 rpg
  Of the six or seven Bruins who are crowded into the messy wing positions, Rush is set apart by his ability to take the ball to the hole and break down a defender off the dribble. He's not a real high-percentage shooter, but he takes, and makes, big shots. In the tournament, though, he's making good decisions, hitting 11 of 20 shots (14 points in each game), with only 3 turnovers in 51 minutes. Doesn't actually start, since coach Steve Lavin likes to use senior Sean Farnham as a good-luck charm.
• SF Jason Kapono (6-8, 210, Fr.) 16.3 ppg, 4.4 rpg
  SportsLine.com's national freshman of the year, he's part of the Pac-10's best freshman class in more than a decade. From 15 to 22 feet, Kapono has a sweet shooting stroke, he can handle the ball, is an above-average passer and has the instincts to make a play when the game's on the line. He's lighting it up from long range in the NCAAs, hitting 7 of 14 from 3-point range, which gets everything else going.
• PF Jerome Moiso (6-10, 230, So.) 12.9 ppg, 7.6 rpg, 1.6 blocks pg
  Early in the year Moiso talked openly about moving to the NBA. But after a spotty season (good one night, dreadful the next), Moiso probably learned that he needs more than that almost-impossible-to-stop-left-handed flip hook of his. He's agile, has terrific jumping ability, but needs true confidence, and sometimes backs away from physical play. His 16 rebounds and 4 blocked shots fit nicely with his 26 points in the tournament.
• C Dan Gadzuric (6-11, 245, So.) 9.8 ppg, 7.1 rpg, 1.5 blocks pg
  At midseason, Gadzuric said he was ''playing like I'm in a daze.'' It could have been a wasted season, but Gadzuric played well down the stretch, fighting off painful tendinitis in both knees, and adding a much-needed aggressiveness to his game, as evidenced by his 12 rebounds against Ball State. Has explosive moves. A poor free-thrower (39 percent on the season, and 3-for-9 in the tournament).

Keys to Success

Listen to Earl Watson about the Maryland game: "From the tipoff we just came out so focused. I could see it in the team's eyes. We were ready from the jump."

That's the idea. It's the whole key for UCLA.

The shift of unheralded junior point guard Ryan "Moose" Bailey into the lineup seemed to put the Bruins in proper alignment late in the season. It relieved of his ball-handling duties and responded with a Pac-10 Player of the Week award in late February.

But now that the tournament is in full swing, Watson stays on the ball more. The Bruins are as talented as any team, and with Moiso tapping into his vast potential and Gadzuric showing how effective he can be when he's playing tough and with confidence … this team has a lot going for it.

Basically, if a team lets the Bruins get out and run -- as Maryland did -- it's asking to get beat.

The Coach

In Lavin's third full season, he again proved to be a master of one thing: damage control. He might not be a strong bench coach, a good technician or an organized, teach-em-the-fundamentals type, but as he has shown since replacing Jim Harrick early in the 1996-97 season, he recruits well and he survives.

For much of the season, Lavin seemed to have difficulty establishing a rotation, substituting at will, playing odd combinations, which typified the Bruins' up-and-down season. But by March, UCLA played its best basketball, which is the a nice statement for an improving coach.

The Bench

Stanford got more attention for being deep, but no team in the West has a bench with more resources than UCLA. Ray Young, Matt Barnes, Billy Knight, Rico Hines and Ryan Bailey are good enough, as a group, to play .500 in the Pac-10 if they formed their own team.

All have started at times. All have been in Lavin's doghouse at others. You never can be sure what you'll get.

Offense

The Bruins are best as an open-court, athletic team -- a good-shooting group that led the league in shooting percentage since the first week of March. They can score from every position, with no weakness. But the lack of an established point guard scuttled them too often. They were ninth in the Pac-10 in turnovers (16.5 per game), which is a flaw that is often exposed in the tournament.

Defense

The Bruins are athletic, but not an especially good defensive team. Moiso and Gadzuric have strong shot-blocking skills. Kapono lacks quickness on the wing, and Watson has been careless, fouling out and getting into foul trouble much too often. The Bruins are more apt to out-score an opponent than shut them down.