Lavin Will Stick with Six

Coach Steve Lavin said he does not regret sticking with a six-man rotation--a decision that basically has rendered promising freshmen Travis Reed and Billy Knight unusable for significant action in major games such as Saturday’s loss at Stanford.

In six conference games, with Kris Johnson and Jelani McCoy back from suspension, Knight and Reed have played a combined 27 minutes, leaving the Bruins especially vulnerable to foul trouble, injury or any other developments that could sideline one of their top six players.

“It’s really a ‘Catch-22’ situation,” Lavin said. “The reason Jelani’s playing so well is because we’ve been giving him quality minutes. The same thing with Kris.”

Stanford, which had 10 players play 10 minutes or more, outscored UCLA, 23-12, down the stretch in Saturday’s game after the Bruins staged an emotional rally.

“We don’t play that many players,” said J.R. Henderson, who played all 33 minutes before fouling out. “That’s Coach’s decision. But Stanford was bringing in a lot of big bodies, trying to wear us down.”

Said Cardinal Coach Mike Montgomery of his team: “I think they feel they can play harder because they know they’re going to get a rest. I think it would be foolish of me not to use our depth.”