The UCLA Bruins opened the season in their newly renovated arena with a win against Indiana State and will look to continue that streak at in Pauley Pavilion on Tuesday night.
The Bruins welcome the UC Irvine Anteaters, a team that UCLA has dominated in recent years, winning seven in a row. The team won easily 86-59 against Indiana State, even without top-recruit Shabazz Muhammad, who has been dealing with eligibility issues.
"He's handling it extremely well, the best he possibly could," said fellow newcomer Kyle Anderson to the Associated Press. "He's keeping his composure and working hard waiting for the day he can get back out there."
Coach Ben Howland has preached defense and teamwork to his players and has the team ranked ninth in the nation in rebounds per game.
"A real important win for us starting out here in new Pauley Pavilion," Howland said. "You could see our team was very hyped up at the beginning. We were playing very fast and missed some shots."
The Bruins have relied on freshman Jordan Adams, who had 21 points against Indiana State, and twins Travis and David Wear, who both registered double-doubles in the win.
"It was exciting to play my first game," Adams said. "Let the fans who really haven't seen me play get a taste of my game."
UCLA has high expectations this season, especially after a $100 million renovation to their home arena.
"It's exciting to be back here at home," David Wear said. "It fired us up, the lights, the smoke. None of us were expecting all that."
The team is coming off a spell of disappointing seasons, especially last year. UCLA was only 19-14 and dropped the first two games of the year against mid-majors Loyola Marymount and Middle Tennessee State.
UCLA was one of the best teams in the nation a few years ago, making the Final Four from 2006 through 2008, but have trailed off in recent years after losing players like Russell Westbrook and Darren Collison to the NBA draft.
The team is dealing with recruiting issues for two players and also had to answer questions about a Sports Illustrated article that detailed dysfunction in the program and the dismissal of star player Reeves Nelson from the team in December.
The Bruins have gotten off to a good start and will look to continue that against UC Irvine.
The Anteaters have lost seven straight games to the Bruins, but are coming off of a win against Nevada 78-64 on Saturday.
"We have a team that is focused on our preparation and plays with intensity," coach Russell Turner told the school's official athletics website. "This was an outstanding effort by the entire team tonight in meeting the challenge against a quality team."
According to the Associated Press, "Since upsetting then-No. 13 Stanford on Nov. 19, 2005, UC Irvine has been outscored by an average of 24.3 points during a six-game losing streak against ranked foes."
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