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The UCLA men’s basketball team has revived jerseys worn by the 1964 championship-winning Br

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Modern apparel has reverted to such retro styles as this warm-up jersey from the Wooden Era on di

It could have been a UCLA Store marketing strategy, but it turned out to be purely a special tribute to Bruins coaching great John Wooden.

Following the unveiling of the Nell and John Wooden Court in Pauley Pavilion on Dec. 20, 2003, the UCLA men’s basketball team pulled off its warmups to reveal replicas of the uniforms worn by Wooden’s first NCAA championship team of 1964.

Similar “throwback” jerseys have become wildly popular in recent years, as shown by pop culture icons publically donning the retro gear and jersey sales’ skyrocketing.

But Chris Carlson, the director of basketball operations at UCLA, said the fashionable nature of the uniforms was not at the forefront of his mind when he and Sports Information Director Bill Bennett thought up the idea of having the men’s team wear them at the UCLA-Michigan State game.

“Having the team wear the commemorative jerseys was a way to acknowledge the special nature of the day,” Carlson said.

“It was unplanned for the jerseys to be worn more than once, but they were received so well that the team has continued to wear them,” he said.

He added that not only were they a hit with the players – some alumni also were “tickled by the look.”

Equipment Manager Mike McBride worked with adidas to tailor the look to suit UCLA’s men.

“Of course, the shorts are a bit longer than they were back then,” Carlson said.

Coach Ben Howland hinted at the jerseys almost being good luck charms.

“Since we won the (Michigan State) game, we figured we had better keep wearing the jerseys,” he said.

Indeed, the men’s basketball team won four consecutive home games wearing the retro jerseys. This winning streak ended last Saturday, when the Bruins lost to Arizona.

“I think we will continue to wear the jerseys anyway,” Howland said. “It is kind of a fun thing to do.”

UCLA athletes are not the only ones who are sporting throwback jerseys. Both the Golden State Warriors and the Atlanta Hawks donned them for their Jan. 19 NBA games.

Also, rappers Jay-Z, Ja Rule and P. Diddy have been known to wear throwback jerseys while performing.

Given the current fashion, it seems reasonable to expect the jerseys would be a hit with UCLA students and alumni, but they are not currently for sale at the UCLA Store.

“We are looking into getting the basketball jerseys that the men’s team is currently wearing, and we are hoping to have them for next season,” said UCLA Store buyer Richelle Campbell.

The jerseys that the store would sell are made overseas. Thus, they could not be mass-produced and shipped in time to sell them in the current season, she said.

If the UCLA Store does decide to sell the jerseys in the 2004-2005 season, and if their sales at all mimic the success of the NBA’s retro merchandise line, they could experience some significant gains.

In 1997, the NBA began to sell throwback jerseys. More recently, they started a line of retro-inspired jerseys, hats, sweatshirts and more, called Hardwood Classics.

“Over the past three years we have seen huge incremental growth in the sales of retro merchandise,” said NBA spokesman Matt Bourne.

“Our sales of NBA retro merchandise have tripled in the past year,” he added, also noting that the NBA has experienced a 60 percent increase in merchandise sales overall.

Throwback jerseys are also sold online at sites such as www.sabasports.com, at prices in the $200-$400 range.

“If the UCLA Store sold throwback jerseys made of the same quality and material as the jerseys they sell currently, I imagine they would sell them for considerably less than the average online rates,” said Dan Moyes, adidas’s on-campus representative.

In the meantime, Bruin fans seem happy with the basketball team’s new “old” look.

“If (the Bruins) keep winning in (the jerseys), then I would buy one,” said third-year economics student Peter Sinajon. “I think they are cool – anything retro is in.”

And although another third-year economics student, Erin Kane, was not thrilled with the look of vintage jerseys, she said she liked the sentiment behind them.