Force of freshmen may power Bruins past Long Beach State

  MANDY WHITING Freshman Krystle Johnson
pushes past a Washington State defender Sunday. The Bruins head to
Long Beach State for a game tonight.

By Jackie Abellada
Daily Bruin Contributor

It is already being called a transition year, a season to
prepare for the next, a time to look forward and prepare for the
future when expectations will undoubtedly be higher.

With still six games left before the Pac-10 Tournament, it is
what the UCLA women’s basketball team (6-15, 3-10 Pac-10) is
calling this unpredictable season of theirs.

In a season characterized by exodus and arrivals, the Bruins
have amazingly been able to adjust, though slowly, to all the
twists and turns that fate has thrown in their paths.

But the biggest surprise of them all is the way their freshmen
trio ““ Krystle Johnson, Sissy Pickett and Brianna Winn
““ has played in the last couple of games.

According to head coach Kathy Olivier, the freshmen have
provided a “little bit of a spark for us.”

The new twin towers of Johnson (6-foot-4) and Pickett (6-foot-7)
have given the once small Bruin team some added height and size in
the post. In the last two games, both centers worked like a
tag-team to disrupt Washington State and Washington down under the
basket, preventing them from driving down the lane and getting that
easy basket.

Offensively, the duo has become somewhat unstoppable in the
paint as they tower over their seemingly minuscule
opponents. In an effort to stop them, opponents have resorted
to fouling the two the second the ball grazes their hands. In
Friday’s victory over Washington State, Pickett had a
career-high 13 points. To match, Johnson had 15 points, nine of
which came from the free-throw line, on Sunday against
Washington.

“I haven’t had a lot of playing time just because I
knew I wasn’t ready,” Pickett said. “I started
doing a little extra things I knew I still needed to work on and it
gave me a plus against Washington State.

“Krystle wants the basketball and that changes our
opponent’s defense and it opens things up for our
perimeter.”

Brianna Winn, a backup guard, has also come into her own in the
last couple of games, hitting some key shots down the
line. This was the same Winn who not too long ago would take
shots from anywhere in the floor only to watch it bounce off of the
rim. Now, she has learned to take her time and be patient
““ a lesson that every freshman must learn to go to that next
level.

The quick maturity that all three freshmen have shown has
surprised not only the Bruin coaching staff but also their
opponents.

“We talked after the game up in Seattle and said,
“˜When we come down to Los Angeles, the Bruins are going to be
a whole different ball club,” Washington head coach June
Daugherty said. “Their freshmen kids as well as the rest of
the UCLA team has certainly improved.”

In order for the Bruins to get a victory against Long Beach
State tonight, the three freshmen must find a way to make their
presence felt in the court and play like they have been
playing.

And, coming straight from Olivier, “With these Bruins, you
just never know.”