Brendan Lane

UCLA's basketball team lost two players this week: Tyler Lamb and Joshua Smith . But dating back to 2008, the Bruins have had at least 11 players leave their program. Those departures include Chace Stanback (2008), Drew Gordon (2009), Mike Moser (2010), J'mison Morgan (2010), Matt Carlino (2010), Reeves Nelson (2011), Brendan Lane (2012), De'End Parker (2012), Anthony Stover (2012), Lamb and Smith. UCLA Coach Ben Howland was asked about the exodus of players after the Bruins' 82-56 win against Cal State Northridge on Wednesday, and he basically gave a non-answer, saying he'd answered it before.

UCLA's basketball team lost two players this week: Tyler Lamb and Joshua Smith . But dating back to 2008, the Bruins have had at least 11 players leave their program. Those departures include Chace Stanback (2008), Drew Gordon (2009), Mike Moser (2010), J'mison Morgan (2010), Matt Carlino (2010), Reeves Nelson (2011), Brendan Lane (2012), De'End Parker (2012), Anthony Stover (2012), Lamb and Smith. UCLA Coach Ben Howland was asked about the exodus of players after the Bruins' 82-56 win against Cal State Northridge on Wednesday, and he basically gave a non-answer, saying he'd answered it before.

UCLA tonight vs. Montana When: 7 p.m. Where: Pauley Pavilion. On the air: TV: Prime (9, delay). Radio: 570. Records: UCLA 3-3, Montana 3-3. Record vs. Montana: 4-0. Update: Coach Ben Howland said he would likely go with the same starting lineup he used against Kansas, when he replaced Joshua Smith with Brendan Lane in an effort to curtail Smith's foul trouble. Smith went on to record his first career double-double, played a career-high 28 minutes and committed only two fouls.

Joshua Smith graced the cover of the UCLA basketball game program Wednesday night, an awkward bit of timing considering that the talented but overweight junior center quit the Bruins' team earlier in the day, citing "personal reasons. " Smith's decision, announced several hours before the Bruins faced Cal State Northridge, made him the second player to leave the Bruins this week. Guard Tyler Lamb announced Sunday he would transfer. The Bruins then rolled over the Matadors, 82-56, playing up-tempo on offense and zone on defense at Pauley Pavilion.

Ben Howland gingerly descended the steps outside Pauley Pavilion on Wednesday afternoon, the UCLA coach still recovering from a ruptured Achilles' tendon sustained in June. "I can't dunk," Howland quipped when asked if he was 100%. That wasn't a problem for the players in uniform at the team's media day, a pleasant departure from a year ago, when the Bruins had no fewer than six players sidelined by injuries during some early practices. With only 10 eligible scholarship players, the Bruins cannot endure a similar spate of injuries if they hope to rebound from a 14-18 season in which numerous key players missed considerable stretches.

The enigmatic career of UCLA's Reeves Nelson veered into uncertainty Monday when Coach Ben Howland indefinitely suspended the temperamental forward for what was termed conduct unbecoming a member of the team. Nelson, the team's leading scorer and rebounder last season, will not be with the Bruins on Tuesday night at the Sports Arena when they play host to Middle Tennessee State. His status will be reevaluated after a meeting with Howland later this week. "This is a very disappointing situation for Reeves and for our basketball program," Howland said in a statement.

A look at the Bruins' first-round tournament game against Michigan State on Thursday STARTERS Michigan State; Ht.; Wt.; Stats; P.; UCLA; Ht.; Wt.; Stats Adreian Payne; 6-10; 230; 2.3 rpg; C; Joshua Smith; 6-10; 305; 10.6 ppg Draymond Green; 6-7; 230; 12.3 ppg; F; Reeves Nelson; 6-8; 235; 13.9 ppg Mike Kebler; 6-4; 205; 1.6 ppg; G/F; Tyler Honeycutt; 6-8; 188; 12.6 ppg Kalin Lucas; 6-1; 195; 17.2 ppg; G; Malcolm Lee;...

When it comes to sizing up UCLA basketball players, there's no one quite like Wes Long . In his early summer assessments, the Bruins' athletic performance coach saw a Brendan Lane who needed to beef up, a Joshua Smith who needed to slim down and a Tyler Lamb who also needed to drop weight to compete at the major-college level. So Long took the Bruins out on the football field, where they flipped giant tires and swung heavy ropes until their shoulders ached. Then they ran, ran, ran. If their new physiques are any indication, the Bruins appear ready to make a run at something better than last season's 14-18 record.

Joshua Smith graced the cover of the UCLA basketball game program Wednesday night, an awkward bit of timing considering that the talented but overweight junior center quit the Bruins' team earlier in the day, citing "personal reasons. " Smith's decision, announced several hours before the Bruins faced Cal State Northridge, made him the second player to leave the Bruins this week. Guard Tyler Lamb announced Sunday he would transfer. The Bruins then rolled over the Matadors, 82-56, playing up-tempo on offense and zone on defense at Pauley Pavilion.

UCLA BASKETBALL ROSTER STARTERS No./Name/Year/Pos./Ht./Wt./Ppg./Rpg./Apg./Comment 34/Joshua Smith/So./C/6-10/315/10.9/6.3/0.6/ Coach Ben Howland says he wants Smith to be nation's most dominant big. Oh, that's all? 22/Reeves Nelson/Jr./F/6-8/235/13.9/9.1/1.6/Illustrated man could get ink from national media for more than his tattoos. 12/David Wear/So./F/6-10/225/2.9*/1.7*/0.4*/North Carolina transfer baffles science as world's tallest small forward. 1/Tyler Lamb/So./G/6-3/200/2.6/1.

The NCAA put Baylor on three years of probation Wednesday after an investigation turned up hundreds of impermissible telephone calls and text messages sent to prep recruits by coaches and assistants on the basketball teams. The violations were considered to be major infractions, and they were announced less than a week after the Bears women's team won the national championship with the first 40-0 season in NCAA history. Still, it could have been much worse for Baylor. All of the penalties were proposed by the school and accepted by the NCAA after a review of nearly 900,000 phone and text message records found that 738 texts and 528 calls were against the rules.

Ben Howland's exit interview Tuesday wasn't a literal farewell, though some might have thought the UCLA basketball coach was on his way out after a volatile season. In fact, just hours before Howland met with reporters for his final session of the 2011-12 season, UCLA Athletic Director Dan Guerrero released a statement indicating that Howland would be the team's coach next season, his 10th at UCLA. Howland began his news conference by reading a prepared statement, something he said he didn't usually do but that he wanted to do in this case because "I'd just like to make sure I'm clear on my message and not let my emotions get in the way. "  The statement began: "This past season has been the most challenging of my 31 years as a college basketball coach.

UCLA will try to win its first game against a Division I opponent outside of Southern California on Saturday but will do so without 6-foot-10 forward Travis Wear . Wear suffered a high ankle sprain in the Bruins' 71-69 loss to Washington on Thursday and is unlikely to play against Washington State. He is second on the team in scoring and rebounding, averaging 11.8 points and 5.2 rebounds per game. High ankle sprains generally linger, but Coach Ben Howland said Wear's is "mild.

One win over Arizona, UCLA's best of the season, and Coach Ben Howland's voice was dual-toned Friday. Maybe even triple-toned. Definitely not the monotone that had marked his lifeless summations and conversations after the Bruins lost their opening two Pac-12 Conference games — one a nail biter, the other a run away — last weekend. A day after UCLA defeated Arizona, 65-58, for its first conference win, Howland punctuated his sentences with verbal high-fives. On his team's offensive execution, especially in shooting 57.1% in the first half when the Bruins used a 17-4 run to build a seven-point lead, Howland said his big men, most notably David and Travis Wear, did a good job of posting up and shooting.

The enigmatic career of UCLA's Reeves Nelson veered into uncertainty Monday when Coach Ben Howland indefinitely suspended the temperamental forward for what was termed conduct unbecoming a member of the team. Nelson, the team's leading scorer and rebounder last season, will not be with the Bruins on Tuesday night at the Sports Arena when they play host to Middle Tennessee State. His status will be reevaluated after a meeting with Howland later this week. "This is a very disappointing situation for Reeves and for our basketball program," Howland said in a statement.

UCLA BASKETBALL ROSTER STARTERS No./Name/Year/Pos./Ht./Wt./Ppg./Rpg./Apg./Comment 34/Joshua Smith/So./C/6-10/315/10.9/6.3/0.6/ Coach Ben Howland says he wants Smith to be nation's most dominant big. Oh, that's all? 22/Reeves Nelson/Jr./F/6-8/235/13.9/9.1/1.6/Illustrated man could get ink from national media for more than his tattoos. 12/David Wear/So./F/6-10/225/2.9*/1.7*/0.4*/North Carolina transfer baffles science as world's tallest small forward. 1/Tyler Lamb/So./G/6-3/200/2.6/1.

Like the home court being renovated around them, the UCLA Bruins are far from a finished product. But Coach Ben Howland proclaimed himself excited about his team after an 84-59 exhibition victory over Cal State Los Angeles on Tuesday night at Pauley Pavilion. "This is a young team," Howland said, "but I'm encouraged. " The injury-plagued Bruins made the most of their eight available scholarship players, with sophomore Tyler Honeycutt getting 15 points and 15 rebounds and freshman guard Tyler Lamb adding a game-high 17 points off the bench.

UCLA is traveling hundreds of miles this season to play home games. It's 20 feet 4 inches that worries the Bruins' opponents. That's the combined height of the Pacific 12 Conference's most imposing starting frontcourt, a 775-pound blend of brawn and finesse that features 6-10 and 6-8 forwards who put up three-point shots and a 6-10, 305-pound center who gobbles points and rebounds, among other things. "To me, it's the difference between them and everybody else," Arizona Coach Sean Miller said.

A checklist for UCLA's first basketball scrimmage could go something like this: See where sophomore center Josh Smith is in his conditioning. Evaluate the battles for the starting spots at shooting guard and small forward. Make sure the Bruins' 11 NCAA championship banners are hung straight inside the Sports Arena. UCLA gets the first taste of its new "home" at 4 p.m. Thursday when it plays host to Cal State Fullerton in a closed scrimmage. The Bruins will play 14 of their 18 home games this season at the Sports Arena while Pauley Pavilion undergoes renovations; their other home games will be played at Honda Center.