Bruins seek to leave their mark

At 21, UCLA guard Arron Afflalo can’t imagine being 40 years old, let alone celebrating the 40th anniversary of anything.

But the reunion Saturday of the Bruins’ 1967 NCAA championship team at Pauley Pavilion gave him a sense of the bonds that are forged when a team becomes more than a group of people thrown together by chance, a link the current Bruins can create in the next five weeks.

Ben Howland’s team completed a perfect home season Saturday and clinched at least a share of the Pacific 10 Conference regular-season title by pulling away from Stanford for a 75-61 victory. It was far from perfect -- the Cardinal shot 52.4% from the field in the second half and 51.1% for the game -- but the Bruins’ solid rebounding and balanced scoring offered hints of why they’re ranked fourth and can anticipate a long run in the NCAA tournament.

Long enough to win a title and someday return to take a collective bow, as the 1967 Bruins did on Saturday?

The possibility amused Afflalo, who led the Bruins on Saturday with 20 points and reached double figures for the 27th straight game. He considered the notion for a second, then laughed.

“That would be nice,” he said. “Forty years from now, I don’t know where we’ll be.

“Any time you get a group of special guys like that, that did something special for the university, it’s always good. It uplifts the spirits of our fans and the players, and it gives you a reason to keep competing for something greater than yourself.”

The program’s tradition is the Bruins’ everyday companion. Players need only look at the 11 NCAA championship banners that hang from Pauley Pavilion’s ceiling or glance courtside at 96-year-old John Wooden, responsible for 10 of those titles.

Wooden, of course, got the loudest in a succession of roars Saturday when he was introduced at halftime on the court that has been named for him and his late wife, Nell. He reminded the crowd that his players were very young in that championship season and that he had four sophomores and a junior in the starting lineup; the current Bruins have no seniors.

“I’m so proud of the 1967 team,” he said. “It’s so wonderful to see this place filled again. Let’s keep it up in years to come.

“Although this is the last home game, it’s far from being our last game this year.”

Lynn Shackelford, a starting forward on the 1967 team, said he sees Final Four potential for this season’s Bruins “because of their great defense.

“I think some people criticize them because they have a few slow spots, but I think they’re a really class team and I don’t think they’ll lose,” said Shackelford, who lives in Moorpark. “I think somebody will have to outplay them and beat them for them to lose in the tournament.”

Mike Warren, who was a smooth, playmaking guard on that triumphant team and went on to become an actor of some repute, has similarly high expectations for the current Bruins.

“I think Coach Howland has really turned the program around. He’s brought a new spirit, a whole different attitude and defensive scheme that has not been seen since Jim Harrick,” said Warren, slender and dapper and not far from his playing shape at a few weeks short of his 61st birthday.

“The fans are now coming out and they know what to expect. They know they’re going to have a hard-fought game. The team is not going to give up.

“I think at this time they’re on the crest of something great.”

The festive atmosphere Saturday might have made him giddy, but these Bruins have the potential to be, at least, very good. Their greatest vulnerability has been the lack of an inside presence, but Lorenzo Mata and Luc Richard Mbah a Moute have stepped up enough in recent weeks to suggest that what was once a weakness might turn into a strength.

Mbah a Moute had 11 points and seven rebounds Saturday, the eighth straight game in which he has pulled down seven rebounds or more. He played 23 minutes and would have played more if he hadn’t gotten into foul trouble.

Mata, perhaps regaining his timing and conditioning after knee surgery in October and a recent hip injury, had eight points, four rebounds and three blocks in a career-high 33 minutes.

“I thought Lorenzo again played really strong for us,” Howland said. “He did a good job battling those big guys down there.”

For Mata, his improvement is easily explained. “It’s just a matter of confidence,” he said. “The more shots I take, the more confident I get. I’m getting more comfortable down low.”

Although the Bruins were happy to get through their home schedule unscathed, the presence of the 1967 team reminded them they haven’t done much yet.

“We’re striving for more,” Afflalo said. “This is just part of the journey.”

Five weeks or so will tell whether it will be an especially memorable journey.

helene.elliott@latimes.com