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UCLA basketball: Bruins want a higher cholesterol non-conference diet

UCLA forward Travis Wear and guard Norman Powell defend against Duke forward Jabari Parker during a non-conference game earlier this season.
(Jason DeCrow / Associated Press)
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There should be fewer creampuffs for UCLA’s basketball team to munch on in the future.

The Bruins’ non-conference schedule prepared them well for conference play. Of course, that’s provided that conference is the Big West or Big Sky, maybe even the American East … look out Stony Brook.

But Coach Steve Alford wants something meaty, something chewy when gearing up for the Pac-12 Conference.

“We want to play elite teams,” Alford said. “One of the reasons you come to UCLA is to play elite teams. It’s what our players want.”

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It helps when the postseason rolls around, not in whether the Bruins get in the NCAA tournament, but where they will be placed.

Still, there is more to it than klieg-light moments, Alford said.

“It’s not just building a resume, but, more importantly, it’s getting ready for league play,” he said.

UCLA had a 4-2 record against teams that had winning records in non-conference play. The four wins came against mid-majors that may or may not win their conferences: UC Santa Barbara (9-4), Morehead State (11-6), Drexel (8-5) and Chattanooga (9-8). The Bruins are 0-3 against power conference teams with winning records: Missouri (12-2) and Duke (9-4).

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The Bruins lost to top-ranked Arizona on Thursday, the first quality Pac-12 team they came across.

“When you have 15 tapes to scout [conference] teams, everyone knows each other,” said Alford, who pointed to Arizona’s schedule.

“They played two games in Madison Square Garden [against Duke and Drexel], a game at Michigan and a game at San Diego State,” Alford said. “They played a schedule that got them very, very prepared to compete in a great league.”

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UCLA’s only nonconference games scheduled for 2014-15 are in the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament. North Carolina, Florida, Georgetown, Wisconsin, Butler, Oklahoma and Alabama Birmingham are also in that tournament.

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