Howland begging for scraps

The hands move. The feet shuffle ever so slightly.

Darren Collison has trouble standing still when he talks about basketball season, about a UCLA team stocked with backcourt talent.

Players who can run.

"We've just got to go," Collison says. "We can't really think about slowing it down."

Sounds like an intriguing shift in ethos from the gritty, blue-collar Bruins that fans have come to know in the Ben Howland era. But the coach steps in with a sobering reminder.

Running the floor can be tough without defense and rebounding.

"We need to be a scrappy team," Howland says.

And that's the challenge facing the fourth-ranked Bruins, who open tonight against Prairie View A&M in the first round of the 2K Sports Classic tournament at Pauley Pavilion.

On one hand, they look to be a perimeter-oriented squad, capable of pushing the ball in transition. Collison is joined by veteran swingman Josh Shipp and highly touted freshmen guards Jrue Holiday, Jerime Anderson and Malcolm Lee.

On the other hand, this is a team that has lost its top four rebounders and Kevin Love's considerable defensive presence inside.

And it is a Howland team.

In a previous incarnation, he rebuilt Northern Arizona as a top-shooting team. But then came a stint at Pittsburgh and, by the time he arrived in Westwood, Howland had adopted a Big East attitude.

Hard work. Low scores.

Blue-collar ethic has carried UCLA to three consecutive Final Four appearances. Asked if the 2008-09 Bruins will undergo a style makeover, Howland answered firmly in the negative.

Until players take care of the dirty work, he said, "everything is wishful thinking."

No Bruin is likely to replace Love's 10.6 rebounds a game last season. Instead, the team will need a coordinated effort, everyone pitching in.

It's a message the coach drives home with physical rebounding drills.

"Everyone's just getting knocked around," forward James Keefe said.

Keefe has been the team's best rebounder in practice. He should get help from Drew Gordon and J'mison Morgan, the two big men in UCLA's top-ranked recruiting class, who are expected to contribute immediately.

There is also senior center Alfred Aboya -- if he can overcome a tendency for early foul trouble.

"I don't know how else to say it, that has got to stop," Collison said. "We need Alfred out there."