Bruins’ Balance Upsets Xavier’s Equilibrium

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. — It was all for one and one for all Saturday in UCLA’s defeat of the Xavier Musketeers.

“People say they have four No. 1 NBA draft choices, and their most valuable player might be the fifth guy,” was Xavier Coach Skip Prosser’s impression of the Bruins, after watching them storm the Palace of Auburn Hills to oust his Musketeers, 96-83, from the NCAA basketball tournament. Teamwork is why UCLA has won 11 games in row, transforming from one of November’s most mixed-up teams to one of March’s most pumped-up.

Neither an elbow to the chest (Jelani McCoy’s), a finger in the eye (J.R. Henderson’s) nor a cut on the arm (Charles O’Bannon’s) could keep the Bruins from coming to each other’s aid. The teamwork involved was such that Cameron Dollar, the only Bruin starter who did not score in double figures, was television’s choice as UCLA’s player of the game.

Dollar is that “fifth guy” Xavier’s coach was talking about. He made one basket in 39 minutes, yet was named a Midwest Regional game’s outstanding player. That is what teamwork is about. It is about Dollar making as many assists (eight) as the entire Xavier team. It’s about a point guard getting more rebounds (six) than all but one of Xavier’s starters.

It was about McCoy blocking five Musketeer shots (in only 19 minutes).

It was about Henderson, who’s taller than every Musketeer player, bringing the ball upcourt against their press.

It was about Brandon Loyd, who’s shorter than every Musketeer player, outrebounding three of their starters.

It was about Toby Bailey doing some fine passing, matching Dollar assist for assist.

It was about Kris Johnson popping for 10 important points, on a tender ankle.

And, it was about Charles playing the Palace.

To a crowd of 21,020 here in Detroit Piston country, O’Bannon looked like a left-handed Grant Hill, his game seeming to improve by the hour. UCLA’s coach, Steve Lavin, made a little speech on O’Bannon’s behalf, saying, “I think the people who have followed us for the last two months--and this isn’t sour grapes or anything--will tell you that Charles has been playing national-player-of-the-year-level basketball, up there with the Tim Duncans, the Jacque Vaughns, the Raef LaFrentzes.”

Nobody had to sell Xavier’s coach on that, after a 28-point O’Bannon performance that included an over-the-shoulder shot with virtually no view of the hoop. However, it was the balance of the entire UCLA team that really caught Prosser’s eye.

“I love their ingredients,” Prosser said, as though the Bruins were a stew.

Most of the Musketeers were impressed.

“I can’t compare them with any other team we’ve played,” said Xavier guard Lenny Brown, whose 23-6 club’s victims included Cincinnati, Temple, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Long Island, tournament teams all. “They’re a good team all around. They are athletic in all five spots. We haven’t faced a team with athleticism and quickness [like UCLA’s] all year.”

Xavier’s top scorers--Brown and guard partner Gary Lumpkin--had UCLA hands in their face from beginning to end. They missed 22 of 29 shots, between them.

“We didn’t knock down our shots,” Lumpkin said. “UCLA’s a good team. If you don’t get back on transition defense, UCLA will hurt you.”

And Xavier did whatever it could to hurt UCLA, except draw swords.

A few of the Bruins felt that not Kansas, not Duke, not Arizona, no opponent treated them this roughly all season. Bailey said the Musketeers tried to “bully their way” to a win. In McCoy’s opinion, they pushed, elbowed, clawed and eventually put him out of the game with “a cheap shot” to the sternum. The UCLA center wrote off Xavier as a good team that couldn’t “come in and punk us.”

No punks are expected at the Alamodome, a few days from now. UCLA’s next opponent, Iowa State, is a mature team, one with several players who are either married or parents. Another of the Cyclones, reserve guard Brad Johnson, is the son of Judi Nash, a former Miss America. Even so, UCLA doesn’t expect to be treated with congeniality.

What the Bruins want most is to keep playing the way they are playing, with self-confidence and unselfishness.

“The Lou Holtz, conservative side of me doesn’t want to say we’re playing the best basketball of anyone in the country,” Lavin hedged, after someone suggested UCLA was doing exactly that.

“We bottomed out like the Grand Canyon early on. We got that 48-point Guinness Book of Records loss at Stanford, that worst-loss-ever asterisk that will be beside my name forever.

“Adversity either brings you together or breaks you apart. It definitely brought us together.”