UCLA more willing to bare its teeth than just flash a smile this season

UCLA probably would stage the Big Dance in a ballroom if it could. This team is all about etiquette.

Isaac Hamilton checks into hotel rooms and immediately refolds the towels. Thomas Welsh thanks coaches at the end of practices, asking how he can get better. Bryce Alford is so engaging and gracious with the media that no one seems to mind when interviews run over their allotted time.

There have been moments when it seemed as if the Bruins might have been too nice.

“At times last year, that’s what we were,� Alford said, referring to a season in which the Bruins compiled a losing record for only the fourth time in the last seven decades. “We were too nice of a team and we weren’t playing with a chip on our shoulder.�

Contrast that with the scene late in UCLA’s 32-point romp over USC on Saturday. There was Alford, snarling as he high-fived courtside fans after getting bumped on a layup that became a three-point play. There was Lonzo Ball, hovering under the basket to marinate in the moment after dunking an alley-oop pass. There was TJ Leaf, flapping a towel from the bench as the Bruins extended their already comfortable lead.

It’s not that there are no more Mr. Nice Guys, it’s just that they’re more willing to reveal their other side.

“When we get hit in the mouth, we’re not nice anymore and I think that’s something this group has done a great job of,� Alford said. “We’ve also started to realize that we don’t have to wait until we get hit in the mouth and we’ve started to take our anger out on teams, take different things out on teams right away and not be so nice on the court.�

That puts Arizona State next in line to face UCLA’s wrath Thursday night when the No. 5 Bruins (24-3 overall, 11-3 Pac-12 Conference) face the Sun Devils (13-15, 6-9) at Wells Fargo Arena.

UCLA Coach Steve Alford has openly sought some passion from his team since earlyin the season. It can be a struggle among players whom Alford refers to as “high-character guys� so often it’s as if he gets a bonus every time he repeats the phrase.

The primary indicator of progress, according to the coach, has been a rise in volume on the court.

“I just want a little bit more fire and I’m seeing that and we’re talking more,� he said. “It’s subtle, but they are starting to talk more at the defensive end and that’s going to be huge for us going forward.�

Bryce Alford has firmly established himself as the team’s emotional leader, facilitating a players-only meeting after a loss to USC and becoming the most demonstrative player on the court. Ball is more restrained by nature, though what fans see isn’t always what the Bruins get when it comes to the star freshman point guard.

“Off the court, in the locker room, the guys that are the quietest out here are the loudest ones in there and vice-versa,� Bryce Alford said. “Obviously, we respond a ton whenever ’Zo does anything, so he’s kind of got that vibe around him that if he shows emotion, we kind of rally around that.�

That happened last summer during UCLA’s exhibition tour in Australia. With his team on the verge of a second consecutive loss, Ball flexed and made what fellow freshmen Leaf and Ike Anigbogu described as “Hulk� noises. The Bruins came back and won.

UCLA doesn’t want to get too fiery. Part of the team’s chemistry sprouts from so many easygoing players whose egos are outsized by their talent. Steve Alford said one of the Bruins’ mantras is “be humble, stay hungry.�

“This is probably the closest team I’ve been on chemistry-wise,� Bryce Alford said. “We all have different personalities, but I think they mesh very well.�

Welsh said more emotion on the court could further bond the team and trigger runs. The Bruins finished their game against the Trojans on a 31-9 surge amid more fervor than they had displayed during some weeks earlier in the season. A glimpse at the calendar could spark more of the same.

“Coming into March, it’s the best time of the year,� Welsh said, “and it’s time to really get that going.�

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UP NEXT

AT ARIZONA STATE

When: 6 p.m. PST, Thursday.

Where: Wells Fargo Arena, Tempe, Ariz.

On the air: TV: ESPN2; Radio: 1150.

Update: UCLA has avoided a letdown loss all season, the Bruins’ defeats all coming against teams with an RPI of 31 or better. Arizona State’s RPI is 133, but the Sun Devils have won two of their last three games. “They’re better than what their record speaks,� Bryce Alford said of a team that features three of the Pac-12’a top-10 scorers in Torian Graham (18.5 points a game), Tra Holder (17.2) and Shannon Evans II (15.8). The problem for the Sun Devils has been defense; they give up 81.6 points a game, worst in the conference.

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