T J Cummings

UCLA senior guard Earl Watson insists there is no crisis of confidence among the Bruins, no wondering whether a 2-3 start that includes sloppy losses to Cal State Northridge and Georgia Tech heralds the start of an ugly season. "Our confidence is already back," Watson said. "We took care of that in practice this week. Whatever happened has been flushed." That may be, but tonight's game is not so much a must-win game as as a must-win-big game.

Evan Burns, a McDonald's All-American basketball player from Fairfax High, was released from his letter of intent by UCLA on Tuesday after the NCAA determined that he did not meet initial eligibility requirements. Burns will attempt to enroll at San Diego State as a partial qualifier, sources said, which would make him ineligible for one year.

Uncertainty will give way to stability, potential to seniority. Fifth-year senior Rico Hines is expected to replace injured freshman Cedric Bozeman in the UCLA starting lineup tonight against UC Riverside. Hines is a mature leader and strong defender, but his offense has been nonexistent--he is scoreless in 60 minutes, missing seven shots and two free throws. He also is not a point guard.

Can hobbled Bruin center Dan Gadzuric regain some measure of effectiveness? Can T.J. Cummings resume the lights-out shooting and tenacious rebounding he displayed last week at the Maui Invitational, making Gadzuric's absence irrelevant? Can freshman Cedric Bozeman begin to resemble a point guard? Answers to these and other burning questions should be forthcoming over four games that precede UCLA's Pacific 10 Conference opener at Washington on Dec. 20.

If Coach Steve Lavin is concerned about his job security, he isn't showing it. With the Bruins stumbling to a 2-3 start that includes sloppy losses to Cal State Northridge and Georgia Tech, the critics are howling, but the cries represent little more than an annual ritual to Lavin. "For the UCLA basketball coach to be on the hot seat is not exactly an original theme," Lavin said.

UCLA players might have a place to sit along the sideline, but there was little statistical evidence from Thursday's game to suggest the Bruins have a bench. Three reserves played in the 61-48 victory over Hofstra--Ryan Bailey, Ray Young and T.J. Cummings--and each went scoreless. Bailey made the only contribution of note, collecting one rebound, one assist and two steals. "We really need the bench," guard Billy Knight said.

Brad Holland's return to Pauley Pavilion was made memorable when his San Diego Toreros upset UCLA on Nov. 26. Tonight, Portland Coach Michael Holton will try to become the next former Bruin to bring in an underdog and tweak tradition. Holton was a freshman guard in 1980 when UCLA reached the NCAA title game, then after completing his NBA career, returned to his alma mater as an assistant coach under Jim Harrick.

It was like elementary school recess, playful and invigorating. So much fun, in fact, Coach Steve Lavin plans to repeat it. For more than five minutes against Oregon on Saturday, he employed a lineup consisting of four freshmen and sophomore T.J. Cummings. The score didn't change much while the group was on the floor, but the high level of intensity and tempo exhibited by the youngsters was a noticeable change from the more plodding senior-dominated starting lineup.

Only two days earlier, Cedric Bozeman's coach proclaimed he wouldn't trade him for any point guard in the nation. Yet there Bozeman sat, banished to the bench in crunch time against Oregon on Saturday. The Bruins would play out their hand with Ryan Walcott at the point. Walcott delivered a solid performance in 16-second-half minutes, playing excellent defense against Oregon's Luke Ridnour and knocking down a three-point shot that gave UCLA its only lead of the second half.

After scoring 24 points Thursday in his UCLA debut, forward T.J. Cummings struggled a bit Friday in the Bruins' 97-92 victory over Kentucky. Cummings was one for eight from the floor in regulation before making both of his shots in overtime and two of six free throws in the Bruins' 97-92 victory. He finished with eight points in 28 minutes, with four rebounds and one steal. "T.J. put in a good effort for a freshman," Coach Steve Lavin said.