Patterson Remains on a Roll

It cuts against the grain of what any coach preaches, but the most effective UCLA player has been the one who has practiced the least.

Andre Patterson continued his stellar play since becoming eligible Dec. 13, blocking four shots, grabbing five rebounds and scoring eight points on three-for-five shooting in 23 minutes against Michigan.

The sophomore forward is shooting 72.2%. He has been a strong presence on defense as well, blocking seven shots in the 64 minutes he has logged in four games since returning.

“I’m just bringing energy,” he said.

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Forward Dijon Thompson did not play because of soreness in his left knee. He is expected to play Thursday in the Pacific 10 Conference opener at Washington.

Thompson, the team’s sixth man and the leading scorer with a 17.0 average, did not practice Thursday and went through light drills Friday.

He woke up Saturday with soreness and trainers decided to hold him out.

His absence was felt. Michigan was able to focus on stopping Jason Kapono, who was held to five points.

“Dijon is such a threat,” Coach Steve Lavin said. “With him out, the [Michigan] defense could tag Jason. We had one less threat on the floor.”

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Ray Young did not start for the second time this season. The first time, against Duke, he was held out because he was late to a meeting.

This time Lavin said he merely wanted to shake up the lineup.

“With Dijon hurt, I wanted a spark off the bench,” he said.

Point guards Cedric Bozeman and Ryan Walcott started and the Bruins were behind, 18-11, when Young came into the game. His leaner in the lane pulled UCLA within 25-23 with 7:42 left in the first half.

He finished with nine points, five rebounds and four assists in 17 minutes.

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Freshman center Ryan Hollins, who played only two minutes of garbage time against Kansas last Saturday, did not play against Michigan.

Michael Fey, the Bruins’ other freshman center, scored six points in 11 minutes.

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UP NEXT

Thursday at Washington, 7 p.m. -- The Bruins begin Pac-10 play against the Huskies, who are 5-4 in their first year under Coach Lorenzo Romar, a former UCLA assistant. The Bruins defeated Washington twice last season.