Overall record: 25-10, 13-5 in the Pac-12
Head coach: Steve Alford
Tenure at UCLA: First season
Career coaching record: 463–235
Home court: Pauley Pavillion
Starters: F David Wear, F Travis Wear, F Kyle Anderson, G Jordan Adams, G Norman Powell
Bench: G Zach LaVine, C Tony Parker
Overview: After spending six years at New Mexico, Steve Alford enters his first season as the headman of the Bruins. Led by an impressive sophomore tandem in forward Kyle Anderson and guard Jordan Adams, Alford's UCLA team has the talent to battle Arizona for the Pac-12 Title. Because Shabazz Muhammad was the focal point of Ben Howland’s offense last year, Kyle Anderson had a somewhat disappointing freshman campaign, averaging only 9.7 points. With Muhammad and Larry Drew II no longer in town, Anderson will have the ball in his hands far more in what he announced will be his last season in college. Anderson’s running mate, Adams, was the Bruin’s best player at times last year. The 6-foot-5 guard averaged 15.3 points, a mark he hopes to improve on coming off a broken foot suffered in the Pac-12 Tournament. Adams and Anderson will be joined in the backcourt by freshman point guard Zach LaVine, who is expected to replace Larry Drew II in the starting lineup, and freshman shooting guard Isaac Hamilton.
Travis and David Wear are likely to start in the frontcourt with sophomore Tony Parker in relief. Parker, a 6-foot-9 center, lost 25 pounds in the offseason and is ready to prove why he was a McDonald’s All-American. UCLA opens the season ranked No. 22 and takes on Duke Dec. 19 at Madison Square Garden.
One thing that needs to go right: Parker develops into a force in the middle, providing a complement to the Wear brothers on offense and a physical body on defense.
One thing that could go wrong: LaVine doesn’t pan out to be the stud freshman that he is expected to be, forcing Adams and Anderson to facilitate rather than be score-first threats.
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