KEYS TO THE GAME

Style of play: Youthful Missouri Coach Quin Snyder likes basketball as a rock concert--stepping up the tempo, cranking up the volume and enjoying the frenzy. UCLA Coach Steve Lavin prefers improvisation, deciding whether to make wholesale substitutions or stick with his veteran starters based on the flow of the game and gut instinct. If great shooters/poor defenders Jason Kapono and Billy Knight aren’t getting open shots and are getting beat down the floor, expect Lavin to get athletic freshmen Dijon Thompson and Andre Patterson into the game early.

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Matchup to watch: Missouri’s three-point shooters vs. UCLA’s three-point shooters. Kareem Rush and Clarence Gilbert of Missouri have launched a stunning 551 shots from the arc, making 218. Ricky Paulding has made another 45. The long-range attempts of Kapono and Knight pale in comparison (147 of 338). Matt Barnes has made another 49. The team that chases the other team’s bombers most effectively should win.

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Intangibles: The media is making a huge revenge motive out of Tyus Edney’s length-of-the-court miracle drive that enabled UCLA to beat Missouri in the second round of the 1995 tournament. Everyone but the Tigers, who claim they haven’t given it 4.8 seconds thought. “We understand what it means to Missouri fans,” Paulding said. “But we’ve got to look at it as this Missouri team trying to beat this UCLA team. [1995] is not motivation for us.”

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Magic numbers: Missouri is the lowest seeded team alive in the tournament and can become the first No. 12 to advance to the Elite Eight. UCLA has lost in the Sweet 16 the last two seasons and has advanced to the Elite Eight once in Lavin’s six seasons, in 1997. Both teams were more highly regarded early in the season. Missouri was ranked No. 2 in December and UCLA was No. 3 in November.

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Final analysis: This is a game between the nation’s most unpredictable teams. It’s bound to be entertaining and full of surprises. But picking a winner is a coin flip.