Men’s basketball looks to the bench, relying on second-unit skill in rotation

The Bruins’ bench is proving their worth two games into the season.

Following No. 20 UCLA men’s basketball’s (2-0) win Friday night, coach Steve Alford praised the second unit’s tenacity and said its play ignited the rest of the team.

“Our second unit came in in the second half and really gave us energy, because we got stops,” Alford said. “And we’d been talking about that from a defensive standpoint. And I thought that group did a tremendous job with stops.”

This is not the first time Alford has relied on his bench for big minutes while playing with a short rotation.

Former Bruin guard Aaron Holiday averaged 26.4 minutes per game off the bench in 2016-2017, and eventually earned a spot in the starting lineup the following year. Sophomore guard Jaylen Hands – who led the team in bench minutes per game last season with 23.4 – has also made the move into the starting five this season.

In each of Alford’s first five seasons as the UCLA head coach, exactly eight players averaged double-digit minutes. But this year, Alford has more weapons at his disposal.

The Bruins’ rotation is already eight men deep, with freshmen guards David Singleton and Jules Bernard, as well as sophomore guard Chris Smith, each averaging over 15 minutes per game off the bench.

With redshirt junior forward Alex Olesinski and redshirt freshman forward Cody Riley, Alford will have to wait to utilize his team’s improved depth.

In the meantime, Smith said the bench is focused on making sure the lineup on the floor does not miss a step whenever substitutions are made.

“We always have guys on the bench, no matter what group is in, that’s ready to pick up the intensity or whatever we need on the court,” Smith said.

Singleton said that the second unit also tries to provide energy whether it is on the court or not.

“When we’re on the bench, we pick up our squad,” Singleton said. “With the starters, we’re trying to motivate them. When we get in, we just play hard. Me and (Smith), we’re always together in practice, communicating, talking to each other. So we come out and we’re just telling each other, ‘Let’s play hard.'”

Closing troubles

With just over five minutes to go in Friday night’s game, UCLA led Long Beach State by 17 points at 81-64. The 49ers then put on their full-court press, forcing six Bruin turnovers in a 3:10 span and cutting the deficit to just five.

Alford said he believes a heavier emphasis on the press break in practice will alleviate some of the issues seen last week.

“They came at us hard, and we didn’t handle it very well – we didn’t look up the floor,” Alford said. “And I think through film and some practice stuff, we’ll be better next time that hits.”

Singleton – one of three true freshmen in the rotation – said the team is still gelling and trying to understand how to close out games.

“This game is about runs,” Singleton said. “So we have to learn how to close games once we’re ahead.”