There Will Be Rebounds: UCLA Basketball Looks To Improve Their Game On The Boards
The one thing UCLA basketball will look to improve more than anything this year are rebounds and it looks like this season might not disappoint. When head coach Steve Alford set out on getting his first recruiting class, he noticed that the Bruins have been a little thin under the basket and sought out players accordingly which landed him a Top 20 class that included five-star prospects 6’8″ power forward Kevon Looney and 7’0″ center Thomas Welsh. Last season, the only viable threat to the low post was 6’9″ sophomore center Tony Parker. Though he did a respectable job, he was the only player outside 6’9″ point guard Kyle Anderson that had any affect on the glass. David Wear and Travis Wear were fantastic shooting forwards, but underneath the basket they did not have much clout. That changes this season.
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UCLA’s season opens this Friday against Montana State and their big men look to make some headlines in this contest. But before that, the Bruins have gad two opportunities to test their mettle. UCLA had an official exhibition game against Azusa Pacific just over a week ago and had a closed scrimmage against UNLV this past Saturday. One thing that can be learned form these two games is that rebounds were plenty.
Last season, the Bruins were sixth in the conference in offensive rebounds (35.4 per game) and ninth in defensive rebounding (33.6 per game). Though the Bruins out rebounded their opponents last year with a +1.7 margin, it was nothing in comparison to conference leading Arizona who averaged 38.1 rebounds per game with a +7.1 margin. Compared to them, UCLA was not horrible last year, but they were not great either.
In UCLA’s only official exhibition, the Bruins out rebounded Azusa Pacific 56-45. Freshmen Looney and Parker each pulled down boards in the double digits as they had 12 and 10, respectively. The Bruins biggest offensive weapon Norman Powell even got to the glass as he had tied for the third highest rebounds on UCLA with seven. He shared that stat with sophomore Wanaah Bail who was seldomly used last season, so it is good see a hint of development with him. How Bail will be used in the long-term is yet to be seen, but if he can pull down at least five boards per game, it will maximize the Bruin’s chances of dominating rebounds.
January 5, 2014; Los Angeles, CA, USA; UCLA Bruins forward Wanaah Bail (1) moves to the basket against the Southern California Trojans during the second half at Pauley Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
Apparently in their secret scrimmage against UNLV, the Bruins won the battle of the boards 49-28 with both Parker and Looney once again making the biggest impact. Not only is Parker continuing to be a factor under the boards, but now he has at least two other options in the front court and some help from the guard positions. Add in freshman Gyorgy Goloman and you have a recipe for some big rebounding games.
Overall, it is nice to see that UCLA has a formidable group that will not only go out and challenge for rebounds, but will also get better and more efficient at doing it. Azusa Pacific was no pushover, but out rebounding UNLV is pretty big (the Rebels are expected to do well in their conference this season). The Bruins will face tougher competition early in the season so for them to get their rebounding game in order at this point is a huge step in being able to compete this year. We will know for sure where UCLA stands as the season starts Friday.