UCLA to Meet Texas Tech in Tip-Off of Harrick Era

Hoping to take the first step toward repairing its tarnished basketball image, UCLA will open the Jim Harrick era tonight against Texas Tech at Pauley Pavilion.

Harrick’s is the sixth coaching era in Westwood since 1975, when the legendary John Wooden retired after winning his 10th National Collegiate Athletic Assn. championship, and a lot of people are counting on it at least to be better than the last.

The Bruins were only 16-14 last season--the second time in 3 seasons that they barely finished above .500--but season-ticket sales are up more than 10% since last April, when Walt Hazzard was fired after 4 seasons and Harrick, who had coached at Pepperdine, was hired to replace him.

The players are excited, too.

Pooh Richardson, the Bruins’ all-time assist leader, said last season’s team was disorganized and lacking in direction. “Pathetic,” he called it.

Harrick, he said, has brought discipline and leadership.

“Guys on the team respect him a great deal,” said Richardson, implying that they didn’t care much for Harrick’s predecessor.

What was UCLA’s image to those on the outside?

“That’s a tough question,” Harrick said. “Can you answer that question without criticizing people? I don’t think you can.”

Obviously, it wasn’t good. Harrick goes to work on improving it against a team that, conveniently enough, was 9-19 last season. The Red Raiders, who lost 10 of their last 11 games, were especially red-faced on the road, where they were 0-14.

In fact, Texas Tech has lost 17 consecutive road games since it beat Rice, 79-63, on Feb. 4, 1987.

Lubbock, which is home to Texas Tech, also was home to the late and legendary rocker Buddy Holly and country singers Waylon Jennings and Tanya Tucker.

“We’ve got a lot of singers out here in West Texas, but no basketball players,” said Coach Gerald Myers, who nevertheless has won 300 games and 2 Southwest Conference championships in 18 seasons at Texas Tech.

Los Angeles, of course, has plenty of basketball players. But at UCLA, the music has died down in recent years. Harrick hopes to turn up the volume.

Bruin Notes

UCLA’s starting lineup, as announced Friday by Coach Jim Harrick: forwards Trevor Wilson and Don MacLean; center Kevin Walker, and guards Pooh Richardson and Kevin Williams. . . . Harrick on the surprisingly good play of Williams in practice: “He gives us another player that, quite frankly, we didn’t count on.”

Texas Tech has four starters back from last season, including 6-foot 3-inch guard Sean Gay, the Red Raiders’ leading scorer last season and a two-time member of the Southwest Conference all-defensive team. “We’re going to be a better team than we were last year, but that’s not saying a lot, because last year we weren’t very good,” said Coach Gerald Myers.

UCLA has lost only 1 of its last 35 home openers. Brigham Young beat the Bruins in 1981, ending a string of 28 victories. . . . In exhibition games this month, Texas Tech beat Athletes in Action, 87-79, and UCLA beat AIA, 94-91.