Farmar Appears to Be Ready to Play

At the end of a public practice Wednesday at the Arena, UCLA point guard Jordan Farmar joined his teammates in firing shots from midcourt and beyond. He even took a few playful shots while seated courtside.

His exuberant demonstration backed up his contention that the injuries he suffered Saturday in a second-round NCAA tournament game against Alabama will not hinder him tonight when the Bruins face the Gonzaga Bulldogs in an Oakland Regional semifinal game.

Farmar had slight swelling in his left wrist and right thumb after taking a fall against Alabama. An MRI exam and two X-rays on the left wrist were negative.

Tuesday, Farmar had said he planned to wear a brace on the left wrist in tonight’s game. By Wednesday’s practice, he had shed the brace and was just relying on tape.

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Asked at a Wednesday news conference why Gonzaga and UCLA don’t play each other more often -- Gonzaga won their only previous meeting, 59-43, at Pauley Pavilion in 1999 -- Bulldog Coach Mark Few placed the blame on his UCLA counterpart, Ben Howland.

“One just needs to look at his schedules at Pittsburgh and Northern Arizona,” Howland’s previous head coaching jobs, Few said, “and you’ll find he’s the greatest scheduler in the history of mankind. Thank goodness for Dan [Guerrero, UCLA’s athletic director] or else they’d be playing Alabama AT&T; and four non-Division I schools. If Ben ever gets the schedule away from Dan, look out.”

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How good is the Bruin defense? UCLA is surrendering an average of 58.7 points a game, the lowest amount since the 1949-50 team gave up 53.5. And that, of course, was before the advent of the shot clock.

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Gonzaga’s offensive leader, Adam Morrison, and teammate Erroll Knight had flu last weekend, but both insisted it won’t affect them in tonight’s game.

“I feel a lot better energy-wise,” Morrison said Wednesday. “It shouldn’t be an issue. This is the biggest game of our careers.”

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How UCLA and Gonzaga match up

*--* STARTERS UCLA Ht Wt Stats P GONZAGA Ht Wt Stats Ryan 7-0 225 4.4 rpg C J.P. Batista 6-9 269 19.3 ppg Hollins L.R. Mbah 6-7 215 8.1 rpg F Sean Mallon 6-9 218 51.3 FG% a Moute Cedric 6-6 207 8.0 ppg G/F Adam Morrison 6-8 205 28.2 ppg Bozeman Jordan 6-2 180 13.6 ppg G Derek Raivio 6-3 175 11.0 ppg Farmar Arron 6-5 210 16.3 ppg G P.M. 6-0 181 2.7 apg Afflalo Altidor-Cesp edes RESERVES Darren 6-0 155 5.7 ppg Erroll 6-7 211 2.3 rpg Collison, Knight, G G Michael 6-5 205 3.7 ppg David 6-6 218 4.0 rpg Roll, G Pendergraft, G Alfred 6-8 242 2.5 rpg Jeremy 6-2 215 2.0 apg Aboya, F Pargo, G

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*--* HOW THEY MATCH UP

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* Offense -- The Bulldogs present a unique challenge with two major scoring threats. Morrison leads Gonzaga with a 28.2 scoring average, has scored more than 40 points five times and is able to roam all over the court because of the variety of his shots. Batista doesn’t have to roam. He’s content to operate primarily inside, rubbing his hands in anticipation when defenses concentrate on Morrison. Batista has averaged 19.3 points and 9.4 rebounds. The UCLA offense starts but doesn’t end with guards Afflalo and Farmar. Edge: Gonzaga

* Defense -- This is UCLA’s most effective weapon. The Bruins are holding opponents to 58.7 points a game. The question is whether they can hold down Morrison, who is averaging nearly half of that. The other question is how effective Morrison and his teammates can be when the ball is in the other team’s hands. Gonzaga gives up an average of 72.8 points. Edge: UCLA.

* Coaching -- The first coaching job of UCLA’s Ben Howland was as a graduate assistant at Gonzaga. There’ll be no sentimentality tonight, however, as Howland, a master defensive architect, tries to draw up a plan that can stop Morrison and Batista. For Gonzaga’s Mark Few, it’s a chance to prove his powerful offense will work even against one of the best defenses in the country and a chance to win this battle for supremacy in the West. Edge: UCLA.

* Key to the game -- Gonzaga’s defense. The Bulldogs, averaging 80.4 points, can’t expect to score that many tonight, but they should be able to become the first team in 10 games to total more than 60 points against the Bruins. Will that be enough to win? Only if the Bulldogs can adjust to the pace of UCLA’s half-court game and shut down Afflalo and Farmar.

* Prediction: UCLA 74, Gonzaga 69.

--STEVE SPRINGER