UCLA Loses but Anderson Plays Well

Senior Jerime Anderson best contribution to UCLA basketball has been his consistent health, playing in almost every game to this point nearing the end of his fourth year in Westwood. Watching him play though, I typically view him as an ineffective player, habitually missing ill advised threes, playing inconsistent defense, and the whole time feeling under-utilized. This season didn’t appear much different. But Saturday afternoon at the Sports Arena Jerime Anderson played by far the best game I have seen him play in his UCLA career. In the second half, Anderson single-handedly Anderson did the things to get the Bruins back in the game—but they still didn’t win the game.

When Cal had asserted itself in the second half as the superior team, he came hard around some screens on the perimeter, and drew fouls on Cal’s reserve bigs on the floor who came out to hedge the screens. He opportunistically took the ball coast to coast a few times, made a three down the stretch, and looked to get his teammates quality shots rather than his own when he attacked the basket. He showed a level of urgency and intensity with the clock both on and off that the rest of the Bruins hanging their heads did not share. This is much different than against Washington last week where he spearheaded the stand around and wait to lose strategy they executed to perfection.

This run of good play came directly on the heels of one spectator who disparagingly remarked, after Anderson hit a three point basket at the end of the first half, “I will let (Jerime) Anderson shoot that 100 times out of a hundred.” He went on to shoot 100 times better than I remembered him shooting (6 for 10 from the field, including 2 of 4 from 3 point land). I never thought he passed the eye test (ie: does he look like a player helping his team), but after looking a little closer at his numbers from his previous seasons I want to step back a bit from my criticism.

As a freshman he played in every game averaging 8 minutes. Sophomore year Anderson averaged 5.8 points a game, but he shot 50% from the field overall, and was second on the team in 3pt field goal percentage. The 2010-11 version brought comparable numbers in all 34 games, but he averaged a few less minutes and assists (20 and 89 for the year compared to 24 and 100), and his field goal percentage was a bit lower too. To his credit he only averaged one 3pt field goal a game, and led the team in 3pt field goal percentage. This season he averages the second most minutes with 32 and is second in assists. Not breathtaking numbers, but effective numbers.

So my point is that I owe the senior from Anaheim an apology. His numbers stand up much better to the type of player he is compared to my impressions of his play.

But his play Saturday, the rest of the season, and throughout his whole career retroactively, is not going to get the proud UCLA basketball program into the tournament, or even the NIT tournament necessarily. The 11 national championship banners moved from Pauley Pavilion to the Sports Arena did not hand Cal a loss Saturday. In fact Cal swept both the LA schools in all four games for the first time since . . . I’m too young to know (psss it was 1959-58). Anderson brought urgency on Saturday when his teammates demonstrated resignation to this loss and all their losses. The fans responded with Anderson as UCLA made a run to close the lead of 17 to 7. I was impressed by how loud the arena could be, but that may be just in contrast to the soundless vacuum on Thursday at the Galen Center. But the lack of consistency continues to catch up with the Bruins. Even the historic pedigree of John Wooden cannot make up UCLA’s inconsistency, nor trump the Pac 12’s woeful pedigree this season and get the Bruins in the tourney.

In the game and on the season UCLA cannot find any rhythm. In the game, the incessant shuffling and subbing of players could be to blame. Nobody ever gets into the flow of the game as Howland continues to substitute. I understand Smith needs frequent rests because he is flat out of shape (see Plasche’s column in Sunday’s paper where Smith admits it). And I understand the desire to get him back in the game because he is potentially the best player on the floor. But the rotating players have no continuity, consistency, or even confidence.

Lucky for UCLA is that they have a good way to get their confidence up already scheduled as USC takes a chartered flight down the street to the Sports Arena on Wednesday for a contest. Yeah, that is right, Wednesday. That neither team has much to play for could make for an interesting game, but the Bruins are too inconsistent to predict that.

For up-to-the-minute buzz, follow us on Twitter and join our Facebook Fan Page.