Basketball preview: Howland questions schedule, late season start

Gilbert Quiñonez
Published: Monday, December 8, 2003

Ben Howland didn’t make the schedule.

But he wishes he did.

The first-year UCLA men’s basketball coach has questioned several components of the Bruin schedule, including starting the season as late as Nov. 29.

“I don’t like having just six games before Christmas,” Howland said.

Before the season opener against Vermont, the Bruins were one of only four Division I teams (out of a total of 326) who hadn’t started their season. Some teams had played as many as four games by that point.

“No matter how much you practice, you can’t practice a game,” center Ryan Hollins said. “You need game experience.”

There were a few factors that prevented UCLA from starting this season earlier.

According to NCAA rules, teams could not play any non-preseason tournament games before Nov. 21 this season; That was the night before the annual UCLA-USC football game.

According to Marc Dellins, UCLA’s sports information director and an associate athletic director, the annual rivalry game puts a huge drain on game staff personnel, so the athletic department wanted to stay away from scheduling a game that weekend.

UCLA’s schedule makers are comprised mainly of the current coach (this year’s schedule came mostly from former coach Steve Lavin’s input) and Athletic Director Dan Guerrero, with input and assistance from Dellins. They traditionally try to start the season on the Monday or Tuesday of the week after scheduling non-preseason tournament games are allowed, but for several reasons, no game was scheduled until Saturday.

“That’s how it worked out,” Dellins said.

Howland also complained about non-conference games during the Pac-10 season, in which there are always two weeks where only one game against USC is scheduled.

In those two weeks, UCLA always schedules games against USC and another non-conference foe, limiting practices.

“It helps to get some practice during the year, and there isn’t much time because it is all spent preparing for the next opponent,” Howland said.

The non-conference games usually end up on a CBS national telecast.

“It’s good exposure,” Howland said. “All kids want to be on national TV. We will still play one non-conference TV game in the middle of (the season). But it’s tough to play two.”