Bruins’ Jerime Anderson uncertain for game against Stanford

The season has brought no shortage of challenges for UCLA point guard Jerime Anderson.

The sophomore has endured a stubborn groin injury, uneven play and, this week, getting benched. On Friday, Coach Ben Howland said, Anderson missed practice because of symptoms suggesting he has a case of strep throat.

So the Bruins go into this afternoon’s game at Stanford uncertain about whether they’ll have Anderson -- who is taking antibiotics -- as a reserve off the bench.

“Hopefully he’ll be feeling up for [playing],” Howland said.

The coach had already decided on a repeat of Wednesday’s lineup, with off-guard Malcolm Lee shifting to the point and freshman Tyler Honeycutt inserted at forward.

Honeycutt responded with 10 rebounds in an upset victory over California, though Anderson ended up playing 29 minutes, recording 11 points and four rebounds.

Drink up

Lee also has health concerns after struggling with cramps against Cal and needing two bags of intravenous fluids after the game.

It has been a problem for him since he was young. Howland said Lee loses as many as five pounds in sweat during a single practice.

The sophomore participated in a shoot-around Friday and is expected to play.

“Hopefully we’ll do a better job of forcing him to drink Gatorade,” Howland said.

Cardinal rule

With Stanford scoring an unexpected win over USC on Wednesday, the Bruins figure to be in for a tough game this afternoon.

The Cardinal features senior forward Landry Fields, averaging 22.5 points and nine rebounds. Fields is strong enough to take small forwards inside and quick enough to pop outside for jump shots against power forwards.

“He’s so versatile,” Howland said. “He’s a matchup nightmare.”

UCLA must also guard against a letdown after the big victory in Berkeley, though guard Michael Roll said there wasn’t much chance of that.

“Winning at Cal wouldn’t be as good a feeling if we lose to Stanford,” Roll said.

david.wharton@latimes.com

twitter.com/LATimesWharton