Howland makes sure no noise gets to Bruins

If you like a coach who has an eye -- and, apparently, an ear -- for detail, Ben Howland is your man.

He took time during a news conference Friday to silence a couple of loud talkers just outside the curtain where UCLA’s coach and his starting five were trying to talk about today’s West Regional final between the second-seeded Bruins and top-seeded Kansas.

Howland didn’t go Bob Knight on the podium director, but he said, “I think, when you have a press conference it should be run to where there’s respect toward the players ... and respect so you’re able to get exactly what they’re saying, not have people talking in the background.”

Bruins point guard Darren Collison says this is why UCLA (29-5) is back in a regional final for the second straight year, why the Bruins own consecutive Pacific 10 titles, why they accept their coach’s voice in their ears hounding them to dress warmly, eat smartly and, more than anything, keep their feet moving and arms up on defense.

“Wins are in the details,” Collison said Friday. “If you have one missed help assignment on defense, that can lead to a missed turnover and that can be a missed basket and if you lose by two points you can go back in the film and find one detail that made the difference.”

UCLA has averaged 71.6 points a game, but over the last six -- including consecutive losses to Washington in its regular-season finale and California in the first round of the Pac-10 tournament -- the Bruins are scoring a bit more than 60 points per game.

While Howland is in firm control of everything, from the noise and hubbub surrounding his team to his foot-stomping, red-faced, arm-waving exhibitions of how he wants defense, sometimes it seems as if his firm belief in making all the offensive calls can be inhibiting.

“Sometimes you block out his voice and go on instinct,” sophomore Josh Shipp said.

Afflalo, who made five of 22 shots in his last two games, said he doesn’t feel harnessed by Howland’s close eye and play-calling certainty.

“I trust he knows what works best,” Afflalo said.

Collison said that it is not only Howland’s obsession with details that is important.

“Coach Howland explains things to us,” Collison said. “He has a reason for every little detail he expects. So he doesn’t just tell us something. He explains why.

“I guess not every player could come here and understand what Coach Howland expects, either. So it’s a little of both. But if guys see us and think offense isn’t important, that’s wrong. It’s just that we think defense is more important.”

The easy conclusion to make about today’s game is that if Kansas scores 80 points, the Jayhawks (33-4) will win. Collison, Afflalo and Shipp disagree. “I think we should run with Kansas,” Collison said.

Said Shipp: “Look at our Arizona games. What did we score then?” The answer: 81 and 73 points, and UCLA won twice.

Added Afflalo: “If people want to believe we can’t play offense, so be it. I believe we just play the way we need to play to win.”

Kansas guard Russell Robinson suggested UCLA would be making a mistake by trying to match the Jayhawks’ pace.

“I think that would be a bad idea,” Robinson said. “I think we’ve got enough guys to be able to play defense and still get out and run.”

Said Howland: “The great thing about our team is that we can play any style you want to play. You want to play knock-down, drag-it-out Washington State, go down to the last five seconds of each possession? Or we can go up and down with them like Arizona. Whatever you want to do, our guys can adjust.”

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Howland used to play at Weber State, and UCLA beat the Wildcats in the first round of the tournament. Howland used to coach at Pittsburgh, which was UCLA’s third NCAA victim.

Today, UCLA assistant Kerry Keating will see his father, Larry, as part of the Kansas contingent. Larry Keating is Kansas’ senior associate athletics director.

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diane.pucin@latimes.com

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West Regional matchups

A look at today’s West Regional championship game between UCLA and Kansas:

*--* STARTERS UCLA Ht. Wt. Stats Pos KANSAS Ht. Wt. Stats Josh Shipp 6-5 207 13.2 ppg F Brandon Rush 6-6 210 13.7 ppg L.R. Mbah a 6-7 224 7.5 rpg F Julian 6-8 225 7.9 rpg Moute Wright Lorenzo Mata 6-8 235 5.6 rpg C Sasha Kaun 6-11 245 6.0 ppg Arron Afflalo 6-5 210 16.7 ppg G Russell 6-1 200 44% 3pt. Robinson Darren 6-0 160 49% 3-pt. G Mario 6-1 195 12.5 ppg Collison Chalmers RESERVES Alfred Aboya 6-8 233 4.4 rpg C/F Darrell 6-9 230 10 ppg Arthur Michael Roll 6-5 205 5.0 ppg F Darnell 6-8 250 5.1 rpg Jackson Russell 6-3 187 3.3 ppg G Sherron 5-11 200 9.6 ppg Westbrook Collins

HOW THEY MATCH UP

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* INSIDE -- Kaun is a good shot-blocker -- he has four in the NCAA tournament -- and he has shot better than 60% in 17 games this season. But like Pittsburgh’s Aaron Gray, he is not the most mobile center the Bruins will face. Mata and Aboya can have defensive presence with the help of post double teams and quickness. A bigger matchup problem for the Bruins will be the powerful Wright, who is averaging 12.7 points and 7.3 rebounds in the tournament. Mbah a Moute is proud that he can shut down bigger, stronger forwards, but the Bruins hope he can provide more than the two points he had in the win against Pittsburgh.

* OUTSIDE -- Kansas Coach Bill Self said UCLA’s Collison is the fastest player he has seen this season. But the Jayhawks have three quick perimeter players in Collins, Chalmers and Robinson. And for strength outside the Jayhawks offer Rush, who took over the offense late in Kansas’ three-point win over Southern Illinois, demanding the ball and driving for the basket. That’s what the Bruins will need from their leader, Pacific 10 Conference player of the year Afflalo. Although he missed eight of 11 shots, Afflalo made 10 free throws, fought for seven rebounds and played tough defense. UCLA’s Shipp is unconcerned about popping three-pointers, and his athleticism matches that of Kansas’ forwards.

* COACHING -- Kansas’ Self has not been bothered by the criticism he heard after the Jayhawks were upset in the first round of the tournament the last two years, nor was he insulted when it was suggested he didn’t so much coach the Jayhawks during their late-game comeback over Southern Illinois as he just told Rush to play. Self gives his team the kind of court freedom that not every coach could accept. UCLA’s Ben Howland expects defensive perfection and that offense will naturally follow. Kansas has committed 102 more turnovers than UCLA in three more games. Howland couldn’t accept those mistakes; Self lives with them.

* KEYS -- For the Bruins, it will be in limiting the Jayhawks’ fastbreaks and alley-oop passes and forcing Robinson, Chalmers and Collins to play offense for 30 seconds after playing defense for the same amount of time. An ever-improving Mata and Mbah a Moute must keep the ball away from Kaun and keep Wright from freely running the baseline. The Bruins need Afflalo to be aggressive offensively, shaking off missed jump shots and moving to the basket.

* PREDICTION -- UCLA 70, Kansas 65.

--DIANE PUCIN