Rubin Thrives in New Role

Bruin guard Janou Rubin has gone from unused to indispensable in three days.

The remarkable transformation began against Oregon State on Friday when the reserve guard scored 13 points in 18 second-half minutes to trigger UCLA’s comeback victory.

Coach Ben Howland said after the game Rubin would be the first player off the bench Sunday against Oregon, and he was true to his word. Rubin came through again, scoring another 13 points, including 12 in the first half when UCLA went ahead by 14 points.

“I sat in my room [Saturday] and told myself I hadn’t put two good games together since I’ve been here,” Rubin said. “It was time to do that.”

Knowing he would play was a new experience for Rubin, who logged a grand total of 56 minutes his first two seasons and 63 in the first seven games this season before getting 42 over the weekend.

“It does help knowing you are going to play, but it also puts pressure on you,” he said. “If I’m going to do anything in life, in business or whatever, I have to rise up to the pressure.”

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Guard Brian Morrison, out because of a hamstring injury since Dec. 20, told Howland that he felt well enough to play. However, he is questionable for the next two games, at Washington State and Washington -- which would be a homecoming for the Redmond, Wash., product.

“We are not going to hurry him,” Howland said. “We don’t want a situation where it recurs.”

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Oregon point guard Aaron Brooks suffered a hand injury six minutes into the game and did not return.