Bruins Happy With Traveling Call : College basketball: Harrick says two-week trip through Italy paid big dividends.

UCLA’s young basketball team did more than sample pasta, explore Roman ruins and sip cappuccino during a two-week tour of Italy that ended last week.

“I think the thing we gained more than anything was confidence in our ability to play as individuals and as a team,” Coach Jim Harrick said. “Our team grew greatly. We got a chance to play nine quality teams and we improved each time out.”

UCLA won five of nine exhibitions against professional clubs from Italy, Greece and Turkey that included some American players.

Sophomore forward Ed O’Bannon was the Bruins’ top scorer, averaging 20 points.

Junior guard Shon Tarver averaged 18.6 points. Mitchell Butler, a senior swingman who was named this season’s captain before the trip started on Aug. 23, averaged 16.5 points and sophomore guard Tyus Edney averaged 14.6.

Although complete statistics were not kept during the early part of the trip, sophomore center Jiri Zidek averaged about seven rebounds in the last five games to lead the Bruins. Junior center Rodney Zimmerman averaged seven points and about six rebounds.

“It gave us a little jump-start on the season,” Harrick said of the tour, which was preceded by 1 1/2 weeks of practice. “It gave the kids an opportunity to play together over a period of two to three weeks, where they got to know each other.

“It’s a new lineup, and the longer they get to play together, the more they get to know each other--how they’re going to play and what their strengths and weaknesses are. It helped us to get a little bit ahead on those kinds of things.”

If UCLA hadn’t made the trip, NCAA rules would have prohibited Harrick and his staff from working with the players until the start of practice on Nov. 1.

Harrick seemed especially pleased with the performance of O’Bannon, who is expected to play a key role in the absence of high-scoring forwards Tracy Murray and Don MacLean, who have moved on to the NBA.

“Ed was very good,” Harrick said. “He has a ways to go, as everybody does, but I saw him improve during the two weeks, and I thought that was important.”

Harrick said that O’Bannon, who suffered a major knee injury that almost ended his career 23 months ago, is closer to being the dominant player he was in high school than he was last season, when he averaged 12 minutes, 3.6 points and 3.0 rebounds in 23 games.

Zidek, a 7-footer from Prague, Czechoslovakia, who played only 66 minutes last season, also showed marked improvement, Harrick said.

“He’s going to be a pivotal part of this program,” Harrick said.

Harrick’s starters included Edney and Tarver in the backcourt, Zimmerman at center and Butler and O’Bannon at forward.

All but Zimmerman are expected to start when UCLA opens the regular season against St. Louis on Nov. 18 at Pauley Pavilion in the opening round of the Big Apple National Invitation Tournament.

Richard Petruska, a 6-foot-10 transfer from Loyola Marymount who is expected to be the Bruins’ starting center, was not eligible to make the trip because he did not play for the Bruins last season.