Sat Apr 5 10:22:50 2008

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UCLA and Memphis battle for right to play for national title

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San Antonio, TX (Sports Network) - The first game of the 2008 Final Four pits top seeds UCLA and Memphis against each other, with the winner moving on to Monday's championship game to face either Kansas or North Carolina. UCLA is tied with Kentucky for the most wins in NCAA Tournament history with 98, and the Bruins have appeared in 18 Final Fours and won 11 national titles. UCLA, which claimed its most recent championship in 1995, is a stellar 35-3 this season and has reached this point in the tourney by knocking off Mississippi Valley State (70-29), Texas A&M (51-49), Western Kentucky (88-78) and Xavier (76-57). The 35 wins marks a new school record for the Bruins, and this is the third straight year in which they have reached the Final Four. UCLA is led by Ben Howland, who has a 17-6 record in the NCAA Tournament, which includes a 13-3 mark with the Bruins.

Howland knows his Bruins will have their work cut out for them with Memphis, saying "It's gonna be a tough game for us. We know that. When I look at their lineup, they're just loaded with so many guys who can score in different ways. They have a great perimeter game. They have a good inside game. They really push the ball. They create a lot of havoc with their defense and a lot of offense from forcing turnovers and blocking shots."

Memphis has reeled off 37 wins in 38 chances, with its lone loss coming against Tennessee (66-62) back on February 23rd. The Tigers, who are 29-20 all-time in the NCAA Tournament and are making their third Final Four appearance, took care of Texas-Arlington (87-63), Mississippi State (77-74), Michigan State (92-74) and Texas (85-67) to their trip to San Antonio. Memphis has won 103 games over the last three years, which is the second-most wins over a three-year period in Division I history. UCLA has won 97 games during that same stretch. Memphis head coach John Calipari owns a .773 winning percentage in his eight years at the school, going 218-64. He has led the Tigers to eight straight 20-win campaigns and Memphis has reached the postseason each year.

Despite their unprecedented success this year, the Tigers haven't let it go to their heads. In fact, Calipari has his team relaxed and focused. "We haven't changed all year how we prepare for a basketball game, when we show them tape, how much we do in practice on the other team, how much we do for us. So we're treating this like the next game. We came down a day earlier than we normally would, but we're just trying to be real consistent in what we do."

UCLA has doubled up Memphis in the all-time series, 4-2, and the two teams last met in the 2006 NCAA Tournament with the Bruins prevailing in a 50-45 final. The two teams also matched wits in the 1973 National Championship Game with the Bruins running away with an 87-66 victory.

Led by freshman sensation Kevin Love, UCLA is enjoying one its finest seasons on record, and that's saying something considering the success the Bruins have enjoyed over the years. Love, a finalist for the Wooden Award, is one of the top three or four players in the country and will be a sure-fire lottery pick in the upcoming NBA Draft if he chooses to leave school early. One of only a handful of players nationally to be averaging a double-double this year, Love (17.6 ppg, 10.7 rpg) has been a man possessed in leading the Bruins to the lofty heights they have achieved in 2007-08.

Coach Howland has said, "You've got to have good players. No one understands that more than me.", and Love is clearly the type of player around which to build a team. Love isn't the only guy on which Howland can rely, however, as double-digit scorers Darren Collison (14.8 ppg, 3.8 apg), Russell Westbrook (12.5 ppg, 4.3 apg) and Josh Shipp (12.3 ppg) have all done their part to help the Bruins succeed. While scoring points hasn't been a problem for UCLA this season, the team's strength lies in its ability to play shutdown defense as evidenced by the fact that opponents are scoring just 58.5 ppg on 41.8 percent shooting from the field. The Bruins take full advantage of the 14.4 turnovers per game they force and of the +8.6 edge in rebounding. As a team, UCLA is hitting 47.9 percent of its field goal attempts, with 35.1 percent of its three-point tries finding the bottom of the net.

Coach Calipari has his team prepared for the challenges ahead, although he knows that beating UCLA is about the toughest thing his Tigers will have had to do during this memorable season. "The greatest thing for this team was they were on a mission and they still are. I like their focus. I like their concentration and intensity level. People that have watched us play, especially last weekend were stunned at how hard they played and how unselfish they played and with so much intelligence they played. They have done it all year."

Outstanding guard play has propelled the Tigers to the enviable position they are in now, with guys like Chris Douglas-Roberts and Derrick Rose leading the way at both ends of the floor. Douglas-Roberts is the team's top scorer at 17.7 ppg, while Rose has exploded on to the scene in this his freshman campaign by averaging 14.6 points and 4.7 assists per game. Add Antonio Anderson (8.4 ppg, 3.5 apg) into the mix and you have one of the top backcourts in all of college basketball. Up front, guys like Robert Dozier (9.2 ppg, 6.8 rpg) and Joey Dorsey (7.1 ppg, 9.6 rpg) complement the efforts of the guards, but the team as a whole is going to have to hit its free throws better than it has all season (.607) in order to advance.

Memphis is netting 80.3 ppg and owns a +18.7 scoring differential over its opponents. The Tigers also own favorable margins in both rebounding (+6.6) and turnovers (+4.2). Foes are shooting just 38.8 percent from the field against the lightning-quick Tigers, including 30.3 percent from three-point range. Conversely, Memphis is hitting its shots at a 46.9 percent clip and is knocking down 35.1 percent from beyond the arc. The Tigers made the trip to San Antonio without reserve guard Andre Allen, as the senior was suspended for a violation of team rules. Prior to his suspension, Allen ranked third on the team in assists with 76.