Welcome back. For those who spent spring break hiking through
Australia’s outback without so much as access to a pay phone,
there’s only one thing you need to know about tonight.

Shortly after watching UCLA play with the intensity of a
sunbather on Sunday evening, I wandered over to USC’s press
conference, where Nick Young sat beaming about his biggest win as a
Trojan.

That UCLA’s club tennis team stepped forward to receive
the champion’s award Sunday afternoon was not particularly
surprising. That droplets of sweat and sighs of relief accompanied
it to center court at the Los Angeles Tennis Center was somewhat
unfamiliar.

The Bruins returned to Westwood the other night, which from a
fan’s perspective, is pretty unsettling. Just think about
them facing the Arizona schools later this week in Pauley Pavilion.

Nothing has come easily for UCLA this season, and maybe
that’s why the Bruins were so reluctant to take the simple
route in explaining Saturday’s loss to Washington.

One of these years, UCLA will enjoy a blissful off-season.
Some January, the Bruins won’t have to answer questions
about embarrassing bowl losses, drunk-driving allegations, or their
star running back’s decision to leave school a year early
just to become a likely third-round draft pick.

It’s been about 10 years since I visited El Paso, Texas, and
though I don’t remember much about the city, I’m pretty sure
there’s more fun to be had in Los Angeles on New Year’s Eve.

ANAHEIM “”mdash; Needing a healthy dose of inspiration heading
into finals week, I spent Saturday afternoon at the Arrowhead Pond
watching UCLA basketball. While the Bruins’ win over Nevada
distracted some students from their studies, it simply reaffirmed
the importance of intelligence and preparation in my mind.

Freshman year, I took a cluster course that focused on the
evolution of cosmos. I learned about the distances that separate
planets, solar systems, and galaxies.

Drew Olson is officially listed at 6-foot-3, and with the season
he’s had, he could just as well be 7-foot-8.
Nevertheless, I always thought it strange that during my brief
chats with the UCLA quarterback, I never had to lift my chin to
make eye contact.