Injured Morrison May Miss 5 Games

Just when the Bruins finally reached full strength, an injury has again made depth a concern. Guard Brian Morrison is expected to miss up to five games because of a pulled hamstring.

Morrison was injured during the second half of UCLA’s 64-58 victory over Michigan State on Saturday. He came off the bench for the first time, bumped from the starting lineup because the return of forward T.J. Cummings triggered a domino effect that moved Trevor Ariza to small forward and Dijon Thompson to shooting guard.

But Morrison has been the top three-point threat, making 17 of 37 and averaging 11.8 points a game. He also has been one of the Bruins’ best defenders, rarely playing at less than full speed.

“It’s really unfortunate,” Coach Ben Howland said. “He’d been playing well.”

Howland said at first that Morrison would travel with the team for Saturday’s game at Michigan so he could get treatment from trainers. But instead Morrison will visit his parents in Redmond, Wash., and be treated by a member of the Seattle Seahawks’ staff.

Morrison is almost certain to be sidelined the first two Pacific 10 Conference games, Jan. 2 and Jan. 4 against Oregon State and Oregon, and probably will not play the next week at Washington State and Washington as well.

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Malik Hairston, the nation’s most highly regarded high school player who has not made a college commitment, will attend the UCLA-Michigan game.

Hairston, a 6-foot-5 guard from Detroit Renaissance High, has been pursued vigorously by Howland and has narrowed his choices to UCLA, Ohio State, Kansas and, yes, Michigan.

Hairston is ranked anywhere from seventh to 15th on national recruiting lists. He said last week that UCLA was gaining ground and that he believed that he could start for the Bruins as a freshman.

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Free throws have plagued point guard Cedric Bozeman his entire career.

He made 28.6% as a freshman, improved to a still-modest 51.4% last season and has made 45.2% this season, including a 1-of-9 performance against Michigan State.

Howland said Bozeman must make 100 free throws on Christmas Day.

“Then we will talk about it,” Howland said. “This is going to be an aberration. He’s been making them in practice.

“You’ve got to have your point guard making free throws in tight games. I’m confident he will.”

The rest of Bozeman’s game has been solid. He is perhaps the team’s best defender, is averaging 12.4 points and is strong on the boards, taking 5.5 rebounds a game.