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Gophers vs. UCLA: Getting to Know the Bruins
By J.B. Bauer
Player Previews for the UCLA Bruins
The Minnesota Golden Gophers will face a talented group in Texas when they take on the UCLA Bruins this Friday night. Here's a look at the individual players the Gophers will battle.
http://www.gopherhole.com/news_article/show/240159?referrer_id=388419
Minnesota will travel to Austin, Texas to take on the UCLA Bruins Friday night in the NCAA tournament. In order to get better acquainted with the Gophers’ competition, today we take a look at the players that will be on the court for the Bruins. Later this week we’ll look at how the teams match up and key areas to watch.
UCLA was ranked #13 in both the AP and Coaches preseason polls, but their roster looks quite different from what it did back in early November.
Juniors Tyler Lamb and Joshua Smith transferred from the program early in the basketball season. The departures of Lamb, a 6’5” guard, and Smith, an enormous 6’10” center, were announced in late November just three days apart.
Head coach Ben Howland has had plenty of time to adjust for the November roster changes. However, last week’s injury to key player Jordan Adams during the Pac-12 tournament didn’t provide much opportunity for Howland to game plan for their championship contest with Oregon. The Ducks won 78-69.
UCLA is expected to essentially play a six-man rotation while also trying to get freshman big man Tony Parker into the game for spot minutes. There’s enough talent for UCLA to win without Adams, but it’s an especially tough hit for the team considering the timing.
THE PLAYERS
Jordan Adams
6’5”, 220, FR
Selected stats: 15.3 points, 3.8 rebounds, 54.3% 2FG, 30.7% 3FG (46/150), 84.3% FT, 2.2 steals
After leading his team back from a double-digit second half deficit, Adams broke a bone in his foot at the end of Friday’s 66-64 win over Arizona. The freshman guard scored a team high 24 points including 11 at the free throw line.
He’s out for the rest of the season and you’ll hear that UCLA is missing their second leading scorer. While that’s accurate, he has also easily been UCLA’s best overall player this season according to Value Add (www.valueaddbasketball.com). Not only has Adams been the Bruins’ top offensive contributor, he also has been their second best defender behind 6’9” Kyle Anderson.
In his last five games, Adams averaged nearly 4 steals per game and his 4.2% steal percentage was second best among all Pac-12 players (and lower than only Shannon Scott and Victor Oladipo in the Big Ten). On offense, his turnover rate is a very low 10.2%.
Much of his time will likely go to Norman Powell who has a steal percentage of just 1.6% and a turnover rate of 20.0%.
UCLA’s biggest edge against Minnesota is in the area of turnovers. Indeed, the Bruins need others to pick up the scoring for their injured teammate, but perhaps more importantly they need to maintain their advantage and win the turnover battle against the Gophers.
Kyle Anderson
6’9”, 235, FR
Selected stats: 9.8 points, 8.6 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.71/1 assists/turnovers, 1.8 steals
Minnesota fans know what it’s like to debate player positions. Should Rodney Williams play the 4 or the 3? Is Andre Hollins far better as an off guard instead of playing the point? Should Trevor Mbakwe start at center?
UCLA’s Kyle Anderson is in a different league in terms of position possibilities. The 6’9” freshman played mostly point guard until he arrived at UCLA. It’s possible he’ll get back to playing the point with the Bruins in the future, but more likely he’ll stick with being a 4/3 type on offense.
Anderson doesn’t have great quickness and he’s also not a big, physical guy. However, he’s long and rangy which enables him to guard a number of positions.
Anderson is highly talented and can make an impact in numerous ways. Above all else has been Kyle’s defensive rebounding (almost 23% DR%) and the Bruins could really use a big game on the glass from him against Minnesota’s top-ranked offensive rebounding.
His shooting hasn’t been great (44.0% eFG) and he’s not much of a 3-point shooter (8/37 for 21.6%). In addition, against top-100 RPI opponents his eFG% is 10% less than when he’s going up against lesser competition. Nonetheless, he’s capable of a 15-point game and Gopher fans will likely come away intrigued and impressed.
Larry Drew II
6’2”, 180, SR
Selected stats: 7.6 points, 2.5 rebounds, 7.4 assists, 3.1/1 assists/turnovers, 1.4 steals, 45.3% 3FG (29/64)
After three up and down (partial) seasons at North Carolina, Drew has put together a solid senior showing back in his home state of California.
Some of Minnesota’s current players faced him when they beat then-#8 North Carolina 72-67 in Puerto Rico. Drew finished with 2 points, 3 assists and 4 turnovers in 24 minutes.
A pass-first point guard, Drew has managed to lower his turnover rate this year while boosting his assist rate to an impressive 35%. He doesn’t shoot often (takes 12.5% of his team’s shots when on the court), but has been far more accurate from deep this season (45.3% compared to 30.7% during his time at North Carolina).
Drew has attempted 10 or more field goals just six times this season (but three times this month) and is more dangerous feeding his teammates than scoring himself. However, this is an experienced senior guard who will be looking to make his mark in this game. That could prove to be good or bad for UCLA.
Defensively, he’s been able to pick up a fair amount of steals without fouling. He’s been charged with 4 fouls on four different occasions this year, but more often than not finishes games with only a foul or two. That’s important because UCLA needs him on the floor for most of the game’s 40 minutes.
Shabazz Muhammad
6’6”, 225, FR
Selected stats: 17.8 points, 5.3 rebounds, 49.3% eFG, 9.9% OR%, 10.7% TO rate, 5.2 FD/40, 40.0% 3FG (40/100)
Muhammad is a physical left-handed scoring wing with good size. Like many players, give him plenty of time and space and he’ll knock it down from deep. His 3-point field goal percentage is a strong 40%, but that’s not how he’ll beat you.
Where Shabazz excels is attacking the basket. How well Minnesota plays him off screens and is able to defend without fouling are important to Friday’s outcome.
The future NBA lottery pick already shoots more than 30% of his team’s shots when he’s on the floor. Even with UCLA’s second leading scorer injured, there’s not a lot of room for Muhammad to take more attempts. Nonetheless, 15 would be a reasonable projection for his shot attempts Friday night.
Muhammad can draw contact well and should earn at least a few trips to the charity stripe. Minnesota will foul him. Keep an eye on which of the Gopher defenders foul him and at what point in the game those fouls come.
Tony Parker
6’9”, 275, FR
Selected stats: 200 minutes played, 2.2 points, 1.1 rebounds
Parker is a talented big man that can score on the blocks. He’s got good hands and great size, but hasn’t seen much playing time this season.
While watching Minnesota’s Mo Walker and Parker go at it would be interesting, don’t expect to see much of it. Coach Howland would love to get Parker in for about 10 minutes, but I’m not sure Tony can go more than a few possessions without fouling.
He did play 17 minutes against USC’s big men and notched 8 points on 4-of-7 shooting.
Norman Powell
6’4”, 215, SO
Selected stats: 5.9 points, 2.1 rebounds, 51.8% eFG
Powell has averaged almost 22 minutes per game this season and could see considerably more with Jordan Adams out. UCLA needs him to provide solid defense and to limit mistakes on offense.
In his two seasons with the Bruins, Powell has shot just 31.6% 3FG (50/158), but that’s where half of his attempts come from. His 59.8% 2FG is impressive, but he doesn’t shoot often and the majority of his attempts are high-percentage at-the-rim instead of jump shots.
A stat line like he had against Oregon last Saturday would be great for the Bruins: 10 points (3/6 shooting, including 2/4 3FG), 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 turnover and 1 steal in 37 minutes.
Travis Wear
6’10”, 230, JR
Selected stats: 11.2 points, 5.2 rebounds, 1.0 blocks
This North Carolina transfer, like so many UCLA players, likes to take jump shots. Maybe a little bit too much. However, he’s managed to convert 50.8% of his 2-point attempts (only 13 3FG attempted).
The challenge for Travis will be to rebound and up his physicality for this one. His 13.3% DR% isn’t great for a 6’10” guy and his 6.0% OR% is very low considering he brought in 13.2% of his offensive rebounding chances a year ago.
He’s dealt with some injuries this year, but has been playing solid basketball over the past two weeks. He can convert at the rim if Drew II is finding him. A 12 to 15 point, 5 to 8 rebound performance is not out of the question.
David Wear
6’10”, 230, JR
Selected stats: 7.0 points, 5.0 rebounds
See Travis Wear above. They’re identical twins, with David coming off the bench and getting about 6 fewer minutes per game.
David has been a bit better on the boards, but his 15.3% DR% is down from last year’s solid 18.1%.
Neither of the Wear twins is very physical and David is almost immune to contact (draws 1.9 fouls per 40 minutes).
By J.B. Bauer
Player Previews for the UCLA Bruins
The Minnesota Golden Gophers will face a talented group in Texas when they take on the UCLA Bruins this Friday night. Here's a look at the individual players the Gophers will battle.
http://www.gopherhole.com/news_article/show/240159?referrer_id=388419
Minnesota will travel to Austin, Texas to take on the UCLA Bruins Friday night in the NCAA tournament. In order to get better acquainted with the Gophers’ competition, today we take a look at the players that will be on the court for the Bruins. Later this week we’ll look at how the teams match up and key areas to watch.
UCLA was ranked #13 in both the AP and Coaches preseason polls, but their roster looks quite different from what it did back in early November.
Juniors Tyler Lamb and Joshua Smith transferred from the program early in the basketball season. The departures of Lamb, a 6’5” guard, and Smith, an enormous 6’10” center, were announced in late November just three days apart.
Head coach Ben Howland has had plenty of time to adjust for the November roster changes. However, last week’s injury to key player Jordan Adams during the Pac-12 tournament didn’t provide much opportunity for Howland to game plan for their championship contest with Oregon. The Ducks won 78-69.
UCLA is expected to essentially play a six-man rotation while also trying to get freshman big man Tony Parker into the game for spot minutes. There’s enough talent for UCLA to win without Adams, but it’s an especially tough hit for the team considering the timing.
THE PLAYERS
Jordan Adams
6’5”, 220, FR
Selected stats: 15.3 points, 3.8 rebounds, 54.3% 2FG, 30.7% 3FG (46/150), 84.3% FT, 2.2 steals
After leading his team back from a double-digit second half deficit, Adams broke a bone in his foot at the end of Friday’s 66-64 win over Arizona. The freshman guard scored a team high 24 points including 11 at the free throw line.
He’s out for the rest of the season and you’ll hear that UCLA is missing their second leading scorer. While that’s accurate, he has also easily been UCLA’s best overall player this season according to Value Add (www.valueaddbasketball.com). Not only has Adams been the Bruins’ top offensive contributor, he also has been their second best defender behind 6’9” Kyle Anderson.
In his last five games, Adams averaged nearly 4 steals per game and his 4.2% steal percentage was second best among all Pac-12 players (and lower than only Shannon Scott and Victor Oladipo in the Big Ten). On offense, his turnover rate is a very low 10.2%.
Much of his time will likely go to Norman Powell who has a steal percentage of just 1.6% and a turnover rate of 20.0%.
UCLA’s biggest edge against Minnesota is in the area of turnovers. Indeed, the Bruins need others to pick up the scoring for their injured teammate, but perhaps more importantly they need to maintain their advantage and win the turnover battle against the Gophers.
Kyle Anderson
6’9”, 235, FR
Selected stats: 9.8 points, 8.6 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.71/1 assists/turnovers, 1.8 steals
Minnesota fans know what it’s like to debate player positions. Should Rodney Williams play the 4 or the 3? Is Andre Hollins far better as an off guard instead of playing the point? Should Trevor Mbakwe start at center?
UCLA’s Kyle Anderson is in a different league in terms of position possibilities. The 6’9” freshman played mostly point guard until he arrived at UCLA. It’s possible he’ll get back to playing the point with the Bruins in the future, but more likely he’ll stick with being a 4/3 type on offense.
Anderson doesn’t have great quickness and he’s also not a big, physical guy. However, he’s long and rangy which enables him to guard a number of positions.
Anderson is highly talented and can make an impact in numerous ways. Above all else has been Kyle’s defensive rebounding (almost 23% DR%) and the Bruins could really use a big game on the glass from him against Minnesota’s top-ranked offensive rebounding.
His shooting hasn’t been great (44.0% eFG) and he’s not much of a 3-point shooter (8/37 for 21.6%). In addition, against top-100 RPI opponents his eFG% is 10% less than when he’s going up against lesser competition. Nonetheless, he’s capable of a 15-point game and Gopher fans will likely come away intrigued and impressed.
Larry Drew II
6’2”, 180, SR
Selected stats: 7.6 points, 2.5 rebounds, 7.4 assists, 3.1/1 assists/turnovers, 1.4 steals, 45.3% 3FG (29/64)
After three up and down (partial) seasons at North Carolina, Drew has put together a solid senior showing back in his home state of California.
Some of Minnesota’s current players faced him when they beat then-#8 North Carolina 72-67 in Puerto Rico. Drew finished with 2 points, 3 assists and 4 turnovers in 24 minutes.
A pass-first point guard, Drew has managed to lower his turnover rate this year while boosting his assist rate to an impressive 35%. He doesn’t shoot often (takes 12.5% of his team’s shots when on the court), but has been far more accurate from deep this season (45.3% compared to 30.7% during his time at North Carolina).
Drew has attempted 10 or more field goals just six times this season (but three times this month) and is more dangerous feeding his teammates than scoring himself. However, this is an experienced senior guard who will be looking to make his mark in this game. That could prove to be good or bad for UCLA.
Defensively, he’s been able to pick up a fair amount of steals without fouling. He’s been charged with 4 fouls on four different occasions this year, but more often than not finishes games with only a foul or two. That’s important because UCLA needs him on the floor for most of the game’s 40 minutes.
Shabazz Muhammad
6’6”, 225, FR
Selected stats: 17.8 points, 5.3 rebounds, 49.3% eFG, 9.9% OR%, 10.7% TO rate, 5.2 FD/40, 40.0% 3FG (40/100)
Muhammad is a physical left-handed scoring wing with good size. Like many players, give him plenty of time and space and he’ll knock it down from deep. His 3-point field goal percentage is a strong 40%, but that’s not how he’ll beat you.
Where Shabazz excels is attacking the basket. How well Minnesota plays him off screens and is able to defend without fouling are important to Friday’s outcome.
The future NBA lottery pick already shoots more than 30% of his team’s shots when he’s on the floor. Even with UCLA’s second leading scorer injured, there’s not a lot of room for Muhammad to take more attempts. Nonetheless, 15 would be a reasonable projection for his shot attempts Friday night.
Muhammad can draw contact well and should earn at least a few trips to the charity stripe. Minnesota will foul him. Keep an eye on which of the Gopher defenders foul him and at what point in the game those fouls come.
Tony Parker
6’9”, 275, FR
Selected stats: 200 minutes played, 2.2 points, 1.1 rebounds
Parker is a talented big man that can score on the blocks. He’s got good hands and great size, but hasn’t seen much playing time this season.
While watching Minnesota’s Mo Walker and Parker go at it would be interesting, don’t expect to see much of it. Coach Howland would love to get Parker in for about 10 minutes, but I’m not sure Tony can go more than a few possessions without fouling.
He did play 17 minutes against USC’s big men and notched 8 points on 4-of-7 shooting.
Norman Powell
6’4”, 215, SO
Selected stats: 5.9 points, 2.1 rebounds, 51.8% eFG
Powell has averaged almost 22 minutes per game this season and could see considerably more with Jordan Adams out. UCLA needs him to provide solid defense and to limit mistakes on offense.
In his two seasons with the Bruins, Powell has shot just 31.6% 3FG (50/158), but that’s where half of his attempts come from. His 59.8% 2FG is impressive, but he doesn’t shoot often and the majority of his attempts are high-percentage at-the-rim instead of jump shots.
A stat line like he had against Oregon last Saturday would be great for the Bruins: 10 points (3/6 shooting, including 2/4 3FG), 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 turnover and 1 steal in 37 minutes.
Travis Wear
6’10”, 230, JR
Selected stats: 11.2 points, 5.2 rebounds, 1.0 blocks
This North Carolina transfer, like so many UCLA players, likes to take jump shots. Maybe a little bit too much. However, he’s managed to convert 50.8% of his 2-point attempts (only 13 3FG attempted).
The challenge for Travis will be to rebound and up his physicality for this one. His 13.3% DR% isn’t great for a 6’10” guy and his 6.0% OR% is very low considering he brought in 13.2% of his offensive rebounding chances a year ago.
He’s dealt with some injuries this year, but has been playing solid basketball over the past two weeks. He can convert at the rim if Drew II is finding him. A 12 to 15 point, 5 to 8 rebound performance is not out of the question.
David Wear
6’10”, 230, JR
Selected stats: 7.0 points, 5.0 rebounds
See Travis Wear above. They’re identical twins, with David coming off the bench and getting about 6 fewer minutes per game.
David has been a bit better on the boards, but his 15.3% DR% is down from last year’s solid 18.1%.
Neither of the Wear twins is very physical and David is almost immune to contact (draws 1.9 fouls per 40 minutes).
