UCLA's impressive 77-60 Pac-12 Conference victory over Colorado on Saturday afternoon at the Los Angeles Sports Arena sets the sort of example that makes parents proud.

The Bruins tallied a season-high 26 assists, which helped lead to their most dominant performance of the season. Senior guards Lazeric Jones and Jerime Anderson led the way again for UCLA (12-9, 5-4) as Jones finished with a game-high 17 points and nine assists. Anderson added eight points and eight assists.

"I thought we were patient," Jones said. "We made good decisions. Coach has really been focusing in practice on pushing it and making good decisions. We were aggressive penetrating but also knew when to push it and when to pull it out (and find open shooters)."

It wasn't just the senior guards who made an impact. Sophomore Tyler Lamb was lauded by Coach Ben Howland for having "one of his best games as a Bruin," after he finished with 13 points, six assists and three steals. Freshman Norman Powell added six points, including a 3-pointer to end the first half and give UCLA a 40-36 lead.

Howland touted Lamb's defensive performance against Colorado's leading scorer Carlon Brown, who was held to six points on 2-of-7 shooting and three turnovers. Lamb and Brown have known each other since middle school, even playing on the same AAU team, and Lamb said Howland challenged him before the game to slow him down.

"Lamb played great defense today on Brown," Howland said. "Tremendous, awesome job today. He really, really took the challenge on (against Brown)."

It wasn't just Lamb who accepted the challenge against Colorado (14-7, 6-3), which has been an impressive addition to the Pac-12 basketball ranks.

The front court played well too. Travis Wear finished with 14 points and seven rebounds while his twin brother, David Wear, had 11 points and three rebounds. Josh Smith added eight points, including one of the more bizarre plays of the season. Smith excited the crowd with a forceful two-handed slam but landed on the basketball and fell to the ground. Smith didn't suffer a serious injury, but it looked strange and potentially unlucky.

Even sophomore center Anthony Stover, who played just three minutes, made an impact. He had two blocks, including a crowd-pleasing rejection that drew a standing ovation. As Stover came out of the game soon after the block, he turned and nodded to the pleased UCLA crowd before taking a seat on the bench.

At every angle, it was as complete a victory as UCLA has delivered this season.

"This was real important for us," Howland said. Great team effort - we worked so hard in practice this week. They earned (it)."

Now, UCLA needs to apply that same formula to earn more conference road victories.

UCLA guard Jerime Anderson isn't looking at a sense of urgency as a senior moment. Nobody could blame him if he did - especially after the Bruins lost at Oregon State and Oregon last week.

Instead, the senior point guard took exception to the idea that he should be looking at the clock to his college career after UCLA's blowout victory over visiting Utah, 76-49, on Thursday night at the Los Angeles Sports Arena. The win was Coach Ben Howland's 200^th victory at UCLA.

"I guess as a senior I don't have very much time left, but that's not how I'm looking at it," said Anderson, who had 13 points, three assists and three steals. "My sense of urgency is I want my team to win games. We need to get back into the race of trying to win the Pac-12. There's a lot time left. When my year is over, my year will be over. Until then, I am going to practice as hard as I can and I am going to play as hard as I can. Whether I'm a senior or a freshman, it should be the same for every player on the team."

Anderson answered the question with a bit of an edge. He didn't snarl or yell, but it was apparent he wasn't counting UCLA (11-9, 4-4) out of anything just yet. And his declaration came shortly after Howland praised his effort against the Utes (5-15, 2-6).

"Very efficient, solid defense," Howland said. "Jerime had one of his best games as a Bruin tonight."

Anderson was one of four Bruins to score in double figures, joined by Josh Smith, who scored a game-high 14 points, David Wear (13 points) and Tyler Lamb (10 points).

And there were plenty of highlights from the blowout win:

* The Bruins (11-9, 4-4) shot a blistering 58.7 percent from the field, including a light's out 73.7 percent after halftime.

* UCLA stacked a 14-4 run over final 6:35 of the first half into a dominating 42-17 run during a stretch that lasted 18:05.

*UCLA outrebounded Utah, 34-23.

* UCLA made 9 of 16 3-pointers and held Utah to just 5-for-16 after it made its first three 3-pointers of the game.

"It was a real confidence booster for us," Wear said. "We had two really good days of practice and coming out and doing what we did in practice with high intensity for 40 minutes and not having any letdowns (was needed)."

Anderson said the Bruins can't suffer letdowns, such as the second half against Oregon, again.

"We have to refuse to let it happen the rest of the year," Anderson said. "We have a lead like that and should be able to keep it."

It might just take a play on words for the Bruins to put last week's loss to USC behind them.

Scratch that - ask coach Cori Close, and it's a certainty that the only way her team can rebound this week is to, well, rebound.

"We have to rebound, that's the bottom line," Close said. "This team is best when we can use our versatility and attack before the defense sets its rotations, but we can't do that until we get rebounds and secure that end of the floor."

The crashing of the boards will be just one of several aspects to look out for this week, with UCLA hosting Oregon State tonight at 7 p.m. at the John Wooden Center, followed by an afternoon tilt against Oregon on Saturday.  

While rebounding continues to be one of the coaching staff's primary preaching points this season, it was made clear against USC that the Bruins will need to generate more offense. And according to Close, it's a situation that has been duly noted.

"Oregon State plays a lot of zone, and they're going to try and play off of Rhema (Gardner) and Mariah (Williams)," Close said. "We've been working on how to put Mariah and Rhema in positions where they can score because I expect Oregon State to really try and make our role players make plays."

Speaking of the opposition, the Beavers come into Westwood boasting the talents of one Patricia Bright, who leads the conference in blocked shots (3.76 swats per game). But be that as it may, Bright's interior presence won't exactly be top priority.

"Bright is a a great player and does her job really well, but I'm more worried about stopping their three-point shots and keeping them out of the lane," Close said. "If she starts to alter the game with her shot-blocking ability, we'll move her around and do some things to limit that factor."

This week figures to provide a clearer perspective of where exactly the Bruins stand in a rather convoluted Pac-12 battle; Stanford has clearly separated itself from the pack with a 6-0 conference record, but as it stands, UCLA (2-3) remains just two games behind second-place USC (4-1), with four other teams tied with the Bruins for fifth place.

In the end, these are two very winnable games for the blue and gold, and two wins keep the Bruins in the thick of the conference race.

UCLA started the season as the favorite in the Pac-12 Conference men's basketball race and looks busy reminding everyone why - especially USC.

The Bruins crushed their neighbors, 66-47, on Sunday night at Galen Center. It was their third win in a row and pushed the Trojans (5-13, 0-5) to their sixth loss in a row.

Coach Ben Howland pointed to his teams' efforts in practice to improve their offensive execution and called a 44-19 rebounding advantage, "awesome."

"It's been our main focus since the Cal game - get better on the offensive end, which takes the pressure off of us," Howland said. "This is big for us to get a true road win and to beat our USC rivals. Both of those are big for us - no question."

UCLA took over during the first half, turning a 9-9 tie into a 37-19 halftime lead, using runs of 14-1 and 11-0 to take over.

"Being here and playing against those guys, once we started clicking, rebounds and pushing the ball one after another we were able to get the lead up to 15-16 points," David Wear said.

USC coach Kevin O'Neill called the Bruins a team that's "ever-improving," which should have Bruins fans beaming with excitement. Twins David and Travis Wear combined for 32 points and 15 rebounds, which shows their continued progression as players. And senior Lazeric Jones continued to grow comfortable with his move to the wing, adding 15 points and five assists.

"Right now we've found our niche a little bit," said Travis, who had a game high 19 points and eight rebounds. "We just need to expand on this and keep improving."

Now, the Bruins need to ride this momentum on its upcoming road trip to face Oregon and Oregon State and stay near the top of the conference standings.

Sometimes guys can be tough on each other - especially good friends.

Going bald? You've probably already heard it from your oldest friends. Wearing an ugly shirt is a sure-fire way to be on the receiving end of some trash talk from buddies. But Tyler Lamb was quick to deny giving teammate Josh Smith a hard time about putting on some extra weight during this past offseason.

"No, no, no, I'm not making Josh mad," Lamb said when asked if he or his teammates called him fat when he returned to campus this fall weighing well over 300 pounds.

Coach Ben Howland and the training staff have been working with Smith, whose improved conditioning during the course of the season has the Bruins believing he can continue to progress and cause problems for the opposition.

"So much attention from defense, the other guys," David Wear said about playing with an effective Smith. "He definitely opens a lot of guys on our team to get the ball in scoring opportunities."

Wear and Smith paired up for one of the most impressive offensive sets in the Bruins 75-58 win over Arizona State when they executed a textbook give-and-go for an easy bucket.

"I saw he was in the post and had his man sealed," Wear said. "I called for (the ball), gave him the ball and acted like I was going to go screen away and cut down the middle. I saw my man go to double and yeah, it was just a wide-open play."

Lamb used the phrase "commands attention" when explaining the impact Smith has on the Bruins offense. If he has that sort of presence for the Bruins on Sunday night, it could be another runaway victory.

"I hope he continues to take off from where he was (against ASU)," Howland said.

"Blanket Statements"

• Ben Howland is right - every game is a "must win" now: Howland used this very phrase with reporters earlier this week. He knows the Bruins need to win the Pac-12 Conference to assure a spot in the NCAA Tournament and now it's crunch time. They've passed the halfway point on the regular season and the Pac-12 won't be overloaded with at-large bids. Beating a 5-12 USC team that is winless in its first four Pac-12 games is most definitely a must-win. 

• Keep going inside - early and often: Lazeric Jones might be the Bruins leading scorer and most dangerous offensive player - it's why Howland's decision to play him more on the wing is such a good one. But that doesn't mean UCLA shouldn't make Travis and David Wear and Josh Smith the focal points of the offense. Wear teams down and pound them with the size advantage. It should open things up for Jones and the rest of the perimeter players, which leads to our last statement.

• UCLA needs to make more 3-pointers to keep winning: The Bruins are averaging .345 as a team from behind the arc, good for 10^th in the Pac-12, which isn't so good. The Bruins need to make more, preferably at a 40 percent clip, to keep winning.

This isn't just an exciting weekend for UCLA and USC fans - it's the sort of sports weekend that affects work production and has fans salivating all week.

Football fans are stoked with the NFL playoffs while the pro version of the LA championship happens Saturday night with the Lakers and Clippers facing off in Staples Center.

And there's a full slate of college basketball - with UCLA's trip to Galen Center to face crosstown foe USC wrapping up the weekend.  

It comes for the Bruins after a sweep of the Arizona schools last week at Honda Center and a week of rest and practice.

"It's good from my standpoint," Coach Ben Howland said about the Pac-12 schedule that has UCLA taking the week off before playing USC. "It's an important week of practice. It's the last time we'll have four or five practices in a row before a game. We've got to utilize this."

Sophomore guard Tyler Lamb said playing in the crosstown rivalry was one of the reasons he wanted to attend UCLA and said he knew it wasn't just a big deal for the team, but for alumni too. Forward David Wear said he's fielded a few questions from his classmates too.

"A couple people were asking me what time it was at and are excited because it's USC," Wear said. "They wanted to go out and watch it."

For sports fans, it's just a fantastic finish to what is shaping up to be a fun weekend of viewing and cheering. 

UCLA men's basketball coach Ben Howland isn't always given his due when it comes to his sense of humor. The intense, focused coach let loose a little bit during his weekly press conference in Westwood leading into Sunday's rivalry game at USC.

When a question came up about who the team's best dunker is - and if he cared - it lead to a room full of smiles after somebody asked him about his dunking prowess as a player.

"I was a 'use-the-backboard, fundamentally-sound, off-the-backboard, layup guy," Howland said before smiling and answering if it was by necessity or choice that he used his fundamentals instead of athleticism. "Both.

"I was also a tight shorts, tight short shorts guy. It's funny you go back and see the old games, just funny. There's so much material now on these shorts, you're just used to it now."

Associated Press sports reporter Beth Harris poked at Howland, mentioning that he's referenced that's how he attracted his wife Kim, which caused a room full of straight-faced reporters to chuckle.

And for the record, Howland agreed that freshman Norman Powell is the team's best dunker.

Bruin fans could get used to that sort of game.

UCLA capped a stellar week in Orange County with a 75-58 Pac-12 Conference victory over Arizona State at Honda Center on Saturday night.

And it started in the post, where sophomore Joshua Smith did his best to make up for missing Thursday night's win over Arizona due to a concussion. The 6-foot-10 center had his best performance of the season with 18 points and four rebounds in 21 minutes. Coach Ben Howland pointed out that Smith not only looked for his shots, he attacked the basket.  

"He opens up everything for us," said senior guard Lazeric Jones about Smith. "There are a lot of cuts to the basket, wide open jump shots. Josh is a force, and teams have to help down on him or he can make them pay for it if they're playing him 1-on-1. And Josh is a good passer too, so for him to be aggressive can really help us."

He was accompanied by Travis and David Wear, who both followed up great games on Thursday night with another solid showing. Travis had 16 points and seven rebounds, five on the offensive glass. David had eight points and nine rebounds.

It wasn't just the post players who stood out. Jones and Jerime Anderson continued to give the Bruins (9-7, 2-2) multiple attack points. Jones had eight points, 10 assists and two steals, while Anderson had seven points, four assists and four steals. Tyler Lamb and Norman Powell both added nine points each as well. Powell and Smith paired for all 27 bench points for the Bruins, which only gave up six to the short-handed Sun Devils (5-10, 1-2), who suspended three players for their trip to Southern California and were limited to six scholarship players.

"Our players seized the opportunity," Howland said. "We had a great weekend. It was a positive step."

UCLA hasn't had the season it anticipated, just two games above .500, but it's an interesting time for the team, which is still in the thick of the Pac-12 race. Players and Howland both pointed to three strong practices early in the week that led to a pair of victories. Now, they'll rest for two days before having a full week of practice before playing rival USC at the Galen Center on Sunday, Jan. 15.

"I'm glad we've got a week off," Howland said. "They're starting school (again). We need this time.

"These practices will be real big in the weeks to come (for us)."

The Bruins need to turn those practices into more performances like their wins over Arizona and ASU to prove their coach right. 

The odds continue to stack up for the UCLA women's basketball team in what's surely been an increasingly trying season, and yet, the Bruins keep on fighting.

After losing to Arizona 74-66 Thursday in Tucson, UCLA took another personnel hit midway through the first half of Saturday's game against Arizona State, when Moriah Faulk went down with an injury and would not return the rest of the way. And yet the Bruins managed to clinch their first Pac-12 road win of the season, beating the Sun Devils 64-48 in Tempe.

Notes from the two games in the desert are as follows:

Against the Wildcats

Foul trouble simply sealed the Bruins' fate on Thursday. Never mind the fact that the Wildcats enjoyed a 25-10 advantage in free-throw attempts, the key stretch was when Markel Walker and Thea Lemberger had to sit out a good chunk of the second half, each with four fouls. Just how crucial was the absence of those two players? After Lemberger picked up her fourth personal and took a seat on the bench with 9:18 left in the game (Walker had already sat out at the 14:04 mark), Arizona went on an 18-6 run to complete the come-from-behind win.

Against the Sun Devils

At this point, the Bruins' season is going the way of some cruel Shakespearean play, especially so after Faulk became UCLA's fourth casualty to injury in the first half. But behind the efforts of Walker, the Bruins persevered. The third-year forward played a game worth of a fantasy basketball league, sprinkling the box score with 15 points (she went 2-for-2 from behind the arc), 13 rebounds (six offensive and seven defensive), five assists, and three steals.

"I just want to do whatever I can to help this team win," Walker said. "I know I'm one of the more versatile players on the team, so I try to get my teammates good looks when I can, rebound the ball, and whatever else I can."

"I can't put a price tag on Markel's efforts," UCLA head coach Cori Close added. "She is one of the smartest basketball players I've been around, and she was very steady for us today. Her work on the boards, both offensively and defensively, was such a huge boost for us."

But more than anything, Close attributed today's win to the team's preparation coming into the game. The Bruins apparently went through some rigorous practice and film sessions, and their efforts certainly paid off.

"I'm most impressed with our preparation yesterday. Honestly, that's what led to the victory today," Close said. "Yesterday, every single player watched every single one of their minutes from the game before with an individual coach. The reality is, I thought our players were in a battle, and they responded so well to different things. When Arizona State went to zone defense in the second half, we were right on target. We knew exactly what we were going to do, we moved the ball quickly and got ourselves quick, easy shots."

Other observations to note: Corinne Costa had the jumper going today, knocking down a few shots from 10-15 feet away from the basket. It's a facet of her game that the sophomore center isn't quite known for, but apparently the ability has always been there.

"She hasn't had too many opportunities with that shot, but Corinne is actually a really good shooter, and she's more confident shooting the ball facing the basket than she is with her back to the basket," Close said.

And on the subject of role players, Close also dished credit to Rhema Gardner, who grabbed eight rebounds (several of which came at key junctures down the stretch), and Mariah Williams, who had six assists.

Said Close: "I think about the role players on this team, and they all did their jobs today. Corinne was hitting those jumpers and was a force in the middle, Rhema came through with eight rebounds in 16 minutes, and Mariah was really selfless. The role players were the glue for us today."

Branding partnerships are tricky - but when done well, it's as comfortable as a favorite T-shirt.

UCLA, John Wooden and The Original Retro Brand, a popular apparel company that takes pop culture graphics and couples them with super soft, nice-fitting T-shirts, announced its exclusive UCLA John Wooden collection earlier this week to coincide with the Wooden Classic on Thursday night at Honda Center pitting Pac-12 Conference foes UCLA against Arizona.

UCLA t-shirts touting Wooden's 10 national championships and the phrase "What Would Wooden Do?" are included in the collection. The brand already has cache with the student body, as it worked with the UCLA student section, "The Den," to create its official T-shirt for this season.

The coupling is so snug, the Wooden family worked with the company, which will donate proceeds from the collection to support the "Nell and John R. Wooden Scholarship Fund," which is awarded to a deserving UCLA undergraduate student each year.

"Coach Wooden's passion, work ethic and dedication to being a mentor to his players will never be forgotten and is a perfect fit for our brand," said Marc Herman, owner of The Original Retro Brand.

Branding is a tricky thing - especially for a program like UCLA - which currently partners with adidas to create its official apparel and team uniforms. In today's world of chrome and matte green helmets, it's more important than ever UCLA works with adidas closely to create the present and future look for Bruins fans, players and staff.

But pairing the iconic history of the UCLA basketball program, John Wooden, with a popular and trendy apparel line allows UCLA to honor its past without forgetting its focus is still on the future.

Any UCLA fans who haven't had a chance to see the Bruins during their OC portion of the Bruin Road Show should definitely make the trip for Saturday's 7:30 p.m. tip-off for the Pac-12 Conference game against Arizona State at Honda Center.

It's a great venue to watch basketball - one of the great mysteries in pro sports is how an NBA team has never moved here full-time - and the Bruins played well in their win over Arizona on Thursday night, so it should be an interesting game as the Bruins try to get back to .500 in conference play.

Hand shake

UCLA basketball fans got a chance to meet new UCLA football coach Jim Mora at halftime of the Arizona game. Mora told Bruin fans he wants to make them feel proud to be wearing UCLA apparel and even led the crowd in the traditional 8-clap cheer.

After Mora left the court, he ran into Arizona coach Sean Miller, who was headed back out to the court with his team, but stopped to shake Mora's hand and offer him congratulations on the new gig.

Lamb Looking More Like a Lion

UCLA sophomore guard Tyler Lamb is quickly becoming one of the more exciting players to watch on the Bruins. He might not be getting the attention seniors Lazeric Jones and Jerime Anderson get as primary ball handlers, but Coach Ben Howland pointed out Lamb's defense against Arizona's Eric Fogg and in previous games. Lamb is the Bruins' best perimeter defender, which is a point Howland makes on a regular occasion to the media. If he can improve his 3-point shooting, which is just over 30 percent this season, Lamb will quickly be more than a defensive standout for the Bruins.

Jones Moves To Wing

Lazeric Jones has become such an an effective scorer for the Bruins, they've moved him to the wing and used Jerime Anderson as the ball-handler. It's something we discussed in a previous post and it was an effective way to use the pair of point guards against Arizona. But that doesn't mean Jones isn't still getting used to the change.

"I've never played off the ball in my life," Jones said. "It's a lot different.

"I'm trying to get used to it. If it helps us get wins, I'll do whatever the coach tells me to do."

High expectations have followed David and Travis Wear throughout their basketball careers, and while UCLA coach Ben Howland has exercised patience with the twins so far, that time might be coming to an end.

After the pair bludgeoned Arizona and led the Bruins to their first Pac-12 Conference victory, 65-58, on Thursday night at Honda Center, Howland set their best performance of the season as a baseline level of expectation, noting he'd like to see "more rebounds hopefully, less foul trouble."

It was about all he could ask after Travis finished with a career-high 20 points, as well as five rebounds and three blocks, and David had 14 points and five rebounds. The pair did it without center Josh Smith, who sat out with a concussion suffered in practice Wednesday.

"We need our bigs to score down low," said senior guard Lazeric Jones, who added 13 points, five rebounds, four assists and three steals. "Games like this, when my jump shot is not falling, it didn't make a lot of difference for us because they were banging down low.

"We need them to do that."

It's clear from the rotation and performance on the court that UCLA's success this season will be placed in the hands of the Wear twins. If UCLA is going to rebound in the second half of the season and make a run at the conference title and an NCAA Tournament bid, their continued growth is a must.

"They do not have very much (college game) experience," Howland said. "They didn't play much as freshmen (and sat out last season due to transfer rules). They have game experience like (true freshman) Norman (Powell), even though they are older."

They didn't look inexperienced against Arizona, battling for position down low and leaving a strong impression on Arizona. Coach Sean Miller said they "were very good getting the ball inside," and forward Solomon Hill said their "length is a big part of their success."

"That was a big emphasis the last couple days in practice, making sure everything was going toward the hoop and no fadeaways or shying away from contact," David Wear said. "It was unfortunate that we both got in foul trouble, so we couldn't be as aggressive as we would have liked to be. But still we came and set the tone early that we were going to play hard, play aggressive and hold it down low."

Howland said the pair practiced well, and it was important for them to see that translate to a game. Now, they'll just need to keep performing at that high level - with a lot more rebounding and a few fewer fouls.

What a conference-opening week it was for UCLA women's basketball: a win and a loss to show for the Bruins' first meetings with two teams projected to be in the upper echelon of the Pac-12 in Cal and Stanford.

But it's bags packed and on to the next one for UCLA, who will be facing host Arizona at 6 p.m. tonight at the McKale Center before taking on Arizona State on Saturday. A quick roundup of the week that was and the week to come for the blue and gold:

Swinging the Ball

As the game against Stanford indicated, ball movement is an essential must for the Bruins. For most of the possessions in the second half, the offense seemed stagnant, though that will happen more times than not against a disciplined and experienced Cardinal team. And given the shortage of players, the scoring will have to be generated more through fundamental plays than one-on-one isolations.

"The reality of the situation is that we don't have a surplus of firepower weapons to take over the game," coach Cori Close said. "It's really important that we use each other to get easier shots."

The Emergence of Lemberger

After having a career night against Cal and showing just what she's capable of, Thea Lemberger had a quiet follow-up against Stanford. But the importance of the sophomore guard to this team hasn't been lost on Close.

"Thea is one of the most efficient players on our team and ends up being one of our best defenders, meaning she anticipates well and stays in her defensive stance," Close said. "I'm a big believer of needing your best players and your point guards to be the hardest workers, and I'm hardest on Thea about that. I hold her to the highest standard, and she wants to become an elite-level point guard.

"Honestly, I think she's the most-improved guard in the conference as I've watched film, but I'm not holding her to the most-improved-guard standard, I'm holding her to the standard of who she wants to become."

The leaps have certainly been many for Lemberger, who averaged just 7.7 minutes in 14 games as a freshman last season, and it'll be interesting to see how her game evolves by season's end. As of now, tab Lemberger as the proverbial X-factor of a young group.

A Peek at the Wildcats

Arizona hasn't looked too shabby thus far this season, having compiled an 11-2 overall record, and will be motored by its guard play. The Wildcats have three guards in Davellyn White (18.9 points per game), Candice Warthen (16.8 ppg), and Shanita Arnold (8.9 ppg, 5.1 assists per game) who generate a brunt of the offense and will be looking to push the ball.

"It'll be a battle of styles; Arizona is a good team that wants to have quick shots and lots of possessions, and we want to have a teamwork game," Close said.

One other note: This marks a homecoming week for freshman guard Moriah Faulk, who hails from Phoenix. It's a situation that Close hinted could play a significant hand in how the Bruins fare.

"Moriah knows a lot of those players, and sometimes the homecoming brings out the best in players,and other times, they play too big or press too hard," Close said. "I know she'll be focused, so my hope is that she'll make some marked improvement this week."