Leading the Pac

First place in the Pac 10.  Yeah, its a 4 way tie.  Yeah, we've got Cal next and 5 nasty away games left (3 home games).  And yeah, we're only at .500 (11-11).  But you know what?  If I told you after that ridiculous loss to Portland in the 76 tourney that we'd be atop the Pac10 standings just halfway through, you'd be ecstatic.  So enjoy it while it lasts.

The most impressive stat from last night's game was the fact that we only had FIVE TURNOVERS.  Look at our Pac 10 games and how many TOs we had: OSU - 20, OU - 11, WSU - 13, UW - 16, sc -12, Stan - 22, Cal - 17, UA - 15, ASU - 13.  That's an average of 15.5 TOs a game.  We did a great job of minimizing our mistakes.

The 2nd most impressive stat from last night was our FT shooting in the 2nd half.  After an atrocious 0-4 first half, we shot 18-22 in the 2nd including a heart-pounding 6-6 in the last 24 crucial seconds by Malcolm, Drago and Roll.  Yeah, Keefe, Nelson and Honeycutt need more FT practice...

But speaking of Nelson and Honeycutt, its a good feeling when 2 freshmen are making the most eye-popping plays on the court.  Nelson continues to be the bully inside shooting 7-10 for 18 points while Honeycutt's athleticism gives Bruins fans hope for next year.  Check out his line: 12 points, 11 boards (6 offensive), 8 assists, 3 blocks and 2 steals.  That's a good night for a NBA bound senior.

The only downside is the fact that Malcolm may be discontent with the offense as indicated by his latest twitter posting - something about being a "caged pitbull" for 2 years.  The rumor is that he wants to go pro after this year.  I honestly cannot understand what the heck this kid is thinking.

Howland has put more players in the NBA than any coach over the same time period (especially guards).  Farmar, Afflalo, Westbrook, Moute, Collison (Love and Holiday are not included here because of their 1 and done attitude).  Wake up, kid.  Learn from Holiday's mistake - if you learn to play bball Howland's way, you will be better prepared for success in the pros.  Just shut up and work harder.  That vaunted class of a year ago is turning out to be a joke.  (Holiday jumped ship, Gordon got kicked out, Bobo is terrible, Jerime is not living up to the hype and now Malcolm).