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2009-10 UCLA Basketball Predictions

Written November 11, 2009 by Rock Henderson

One of the most storied college basketball programs in the nation will look to regain their swagger when the UCLA Bruins tip off the 2009-2010 season. Making three consecutive Final Fours from 2006-2008 was an amazing feat, but the Bruins were bounced in the second round by Villanova last season. Head coach Ben Howland will have to do one of his better coaching jobs this year if a young UCLA team is going to have success in the NCAA Tourney. Look for possibly three sophomores to crack the starting lineup for the Bruins. Looking the NCAA basketball betting lines, UCLA has been posted at +5000 to win the NCAA Tournament this season.

Early entry into the NBA Draft is something that UCLA has to deal with every year with so much talent in the program. G Jrue Holiday was the latest in a long line of underclassman to make the jump to the league after his freshman year. Three other starters from last year’s 26 win team, including G Darren Collison, departed to leave a huge void to fill for the returning players and incoming freshman. Five new Bruin recruits join this squad this season and should have an opportunity to make an immediate impact. F Tyler Honeycutt was the highest rated player in the class and is athletic enough to use his 6-8 frame to play out on the perimeter. Joining Honeycutt will be Mike Moser, Brendan Lane, Reeves Nelson and Anthony Stover. The Bruins went heavy on frontcourt recruits this time around as they expected Holiday to take over for Collison at the point after he graduated, but things didn’t go according to plan.

Although Howland would probably like to have a bit more experience returning, he has to be excited at the prospect of seeing some of his young players asserting themselves as legitimate D-1 players. C Nikola Dragovic is probably the Bruin’s most talented player and is the team’s leading returning scorer at just over 9 ppg. He causes issues on the offensive end as he is capable of hitting the three ball. Speaking of the three point shot, senior F Michael Roll is one of the best in the nation at dialing it in from long distance. He hit an amazing 51.5% from beyond the arc, but will not have one of the best point guards in the nation to penetrate and kick it to him. The biggest question mark on this team is if sophomore Jerime Anderson will be able to handle the point guard position. He did manage to gain some experience last season, but played just 9 mpg. F Drew Gordon has the biggest upside of the starting 5 and could become a dominant player if he puts the entire package together. Off guard Malcolm Lee will most likely round out the starting lineup and F James Keefe will provide his usual energy off the bench. Get a 20% deposit bonus that you can use for your NCAA basketball betting this season when you open a new account with Bookmaker and deposit $300 or more.

Transition years hardly ever come around in Bruin land as they simple reload, but if there ever was that type of year at UCLA this would be it. The Pac-10 doesn’t have a clear cut favorite so this team definitely has enough talent to take the conference crown. They need above average point guard play and someone to step up and become a offensive force as Howland coached teams always play tough defense. I don’t see them getting past the second round of the tournament, but this team should make the dance.

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