UCLA / THE STARTERS

About UCLA: Iowa State’s Dedric Willoughby took off for 34 points against the Bruins--making eight three-point shots--so how will UCLA handle Bobby Jackson, who can make the three-point shot and also can fly to the basket off the dribble? Bruin guard Toby Bailey, driven to frustration by the Cyclones’ screens, says he hopes he guards Jackson most of the time. “He’s not like Willoughby, where he’s going to be constantly coming off screens--it’s hard to guard guys like that,” Bailey said. “Jackson likes to work with the dribble more, and to me, it’s easier to guard guys like that.” But point guard Cameron Dollar, who guarded Willoughby fairly successfully at the end of the game after tries by Charles O’Bannon, Bailey and Kris Johnson, may get to play against Jackson too, especially if Eric Harris does not play.

MINNESOTA / THE STARTERS

* About Minnesota: The Gophers’ 90-84 double-overtime victory over Clemson in their regional semifinal encapsulated everything good and bad about this attacking, defense-minded team. Minnesota’s full-court defense drove the Tigers crazy in the early going, and hot shooting of Jackson and Sam Jacobson gave the Gophers a jolting, double-digit lead. But Minnesota suddenly stopped making shots--or finding somebody other than Jackson or Jacobson to make them--and its shoving on defense resulted in quick foul trouble. Then, with point guard Harris sidelined because of a shoulder injury, Jackson took over the offense, while everybody else stood around, exhausted. Minnesota is the deepest team left in the tournament, has a lot of fouls to burn, and is committed to winning with defense and rebounding. The Gophers average five more rebounds a game than their opponents.

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* Keys to the game: UCLA center Jelani McCoy, who did not play for most of the last 20 minutes of the Iowa State game, probably won’t get the hook in this one. Against Minnesota’s constantly moving and pushing front line full of fresh bodies, McCoy and forward J.R. Henderson, who played all 45 minutes Thursday and had 12 rebounds, will have to keep their heads amid the rough-and-tumble play. Oh, and if UCLA is down by one with less than 15 seconds left, the Gophers probably ought to guard Dollar on the dribble drive.

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UCLA

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No. Player Pts. FG% FT% Reb. Ast. 13 O’Bannon 17.3 .536 .793 7.2 2.6 12 Bailey 14.0 .466 .650 5.4 4.7 52 Henderson 13.9 .550 .593 6.6 1.6 34 McCoy 11.1 .768 .417 6.7 1.7 54 Johnson 10.6 .444 .841 3.0 1.1 5 Dollar 7.7 .434 .740 2.8 4.3 20 Loyd 2.6 .344 .500 0.5 0.3 24 Myers 1.4 .667 .500 1.8 0.2 30 Farnham 1.1 .600 .333 1.1 0.0 23 McGautha 0.9 .375 .000 0.6 0.3 50 Parker 0.7 1.000 .750 0.6 0.0 3 Sylvester 0.6 .000 1.000 0.2 0.3 21 Harbour 0.3 .000 .500 0.2 0.2

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MINNESOTA

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No. Player Pts. FG% FT% Reb. Ast. 24 Jackson 14.9 .438 .783 6.0 2.2 5 Jacobson 13.8 .467 .641 4.7 1.8 33 Harris 11.5 .474 .792 2.2 3.9 12 J. Thomas 9.1 .571 .580 6.2 1.2 4 James 8.3 .598 .509 7.0 1.8 20 Lewis 8.0 .493 .603 2.6 1.5 34 C. Thomas 6.9 .466 .815 1.1 0.5 50 Winter 3.4 .500 .767 3.4 0.4 42 Tarver 1.8 .407 .526 2.7 0.5 3 Archambault 1.4 .324 .600 0.6 0.8

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