Which Bruins Will Show Up in NCAAs?

Last year, UCLA’s freshman basketball players were diamonds in the rough. You could say that they are still in the rough, but that would be an understatement. After last year’s title, I’m sure a lot of them were thinking about going to the NBA after their sophomore or junior years. Forget it!

It’s a shame they don’t have a teacher as a coach. Where are you, Larry Brown?

MARVIN J. WANETICK

Lake Arrowhead

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To all the critics of this year’s Bruin team, I say lighten up. This is a talented, entertaining, great group of young men who have been well coached and lots of fun to watch. Their one fault is that, lacking a healthy point guard and against every team pointing to beat the national champion, at times they play like freshmen and sophomores. Is that because they are? If they made no mistakes, they’d be in the pros now.

ALLEN PULSIFER

Malibu

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As the UCLA Bruins stagger toward early elimination in the NCAA tournament, I think their problems can be traced to two decisions Jim Harrick made early in the season.

First, he played Jelani McCoy almost exclusively, even though in Ike Nwankwo [who since has transferred to Long Beach State] and omm’A Givens he had two more experienced big men.

Then, when Cameron Dollar was injured, Harrick tried to make a point guard of Toby Bailey, his only real three-point shooter. This has been a disaster. I wonder what would have happened if he had tried J.R. Henderson at the point. At 6 feet 9, Henderson is certainly no Magic Johnson but he’s a better ballhandler and passer than Bailey, and think of the matchup problems he would create. The move would have freed front court time for Givens, who looked good in a brief stint at power forward and might have kept Nwankwo aboard for depth.

I guess we’ll never find out if it would have made a difference.

WILLIAM BRADSHAW

San Diego