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UCLA Basketball: 33 Days Without an Accident

By Ashley Tellier

Feb 27, 2016; Stanford, CA, USA; UCLA Bruins guard Isaac Hamilton (10) and guard Bryce Alford (20) talk during the game against the Stanford Cardinal in the 2nd half at Maples Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: John Hefti-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 27, 2016; Stanford, CA, USA; UCLA Bruins guard Isaac Hamilton (10) and guard Bryce Alford (20) talk during the game against the Stanford Cardinal in the 2nd half at Maples Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: John Hefti-USA TODAY Sports /
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UCLA Basketball hasn’t lost a player in 33 days. Is that cause for relief or concern?

It’s been 33 days since forward Jonah Bolden left the Bruins to go pro, making him the fourth player the UCLA Basketball team would lose before the beginning of the 2016-2017 season.

Related Story: 5 Takeaways from the First Game Down Under

Currently, the Bruins are on a three-game tour in Australia. In their first game against Sydney University, the Bruins dominated, defeating the local team 123-75. In that game, the Bruins rotated quite a bit, and they seemed to show a more fluid offense and improved defense.

In their second game, the Bruins didn’t get as lucky. Using a different starting squad from the previous game, the Bruins lost to Australian National Basketball League (NBL) professional squad Melbourne United 89-84. Blame it on returning to bad habits or maybe on playing a professional team, the Bruins will hopefully reflect on this game and make improvements for the next one.

That next game is actually happening tomorrow at 7 p.m. local time (2 a.m. PT) against the NBL’s Brisbane Bullets. Yes, another pro team.

While everyone worries about seeing the highly prized freshmen play, Coach Steve Alford’s adjustments, or Bryce Alford’s playing time, something else keeps this writer up at night.

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The Bruins won’t officially begin the fall schedule for another 75 days. Given the already thinning roster, staying healthy will be the key to a hopefully decent season for the Bruins—perhaps one where UCLA can make it to March Madness—and 75 days just seems so far away.

UCLA’s tour in Australia is a good thing for the Bruins. They are getting a chance to learn to play with each other, and hopefully, they are being coached to improve—maybe even contest shots.

But, as they play professional teams with bigger guys, the risk of injury increases. This wouldn’t be so bad if the Bruins hadn’t already lost a handful of key players.

Injuries are a cause for concern, and the question going into and through the season will be how healthy the Bruins will stay. But for now, we can all enjoy the fact that it has been a whole month and three days since the Bruins have had an injury. Let’s just keep it that way.

Next: 5 Things to Look for from Australia

Go Bruins!