At a glance: UCLA vs. Washington

UCLA (16-12, 8-7) vs. Washington (15-11, 4-10)
Wednesday, Feb. 25, 8 p.m., Pauley Pavilion
TV: ESPN2 (Dave Pasch, BIll Walton)
Radio: AM 570 (Chris Roberts, Tracy Murray)

Scouting report: A once-promising start to the season for Washington has fallen apart over the last month, with the Huskies stumbling into a seven-game losing streak — the longest of Lorenzo Romar’s 13-yard tenure.

Six of those losses came after the dismissal of big man Robert Upshaw. The 7-foot redshirt sophomore had averaged 10.9 points, 8.2 rebounds and 4.4 blocks before violating team rules. No one in college basketball is averaging more than 3.74 blocks per game, and only six are even averaging more than 3.0. And even though he hasn’t played since Jan. 28, Upshaw is still fifth in the country and first in the Pac-12 with 85 total blocks; next-best in the conference is Oregon’s Jordan Bell, who is seven blocks behind despite playing eight more games.

The effect of Upshaw’s absence is easy to gauge. In the seven conference games he played in, he recorded 29 blocks and helped Washington hold opponents to 41 percent shooting from the field. In seven games without him, the Huskies are giving up 53.6 percent.

This means it’s as good a matchup as any for Tony Parker to find his groove again. The target of increased double teams, Parker has fouled out in two straight games for UCLA, totaling just four points and two rebounds along the way. Had he even just stayed on the floor through the end of the game, he could have certainly made a difference both the two-point loss at Arizona State last Wednesday and the 10-point loss at No. 7 Arizona three nights later.

Parker has become an X-factor in the course of UCLA’s turbulent season, and his teammates are confident he will rebound. With the Huskies looking so soft on the interior, he’ll be a good bet to play up to peak form.

Opposing player to watch: Junior guard and All-Name-Team member Andrew Andrews has been on a roll recently, averaging 19.5 points and 5.3 rebounds in his last six games. While point guard Nigel Williams-Goss is the one who makes the offense go, Andrews is the streaky shooter who can disrupt a game if he gets hot.

Andrews is second on the team in 3-point percentage (36.4), and his 129 attempts accounts for nearly a third of UW’s total from beyond the arc.

Key stat: While Arizona and Arizona State were both among the best defensive-rebounding teams in college basketball, Washington is currently the second-worst in the conference. That’s welcome news for the Bruins, who had averaged 13.2 offensive rebounds per game in conference play before totaling nine against Arizona State and Arizona.

Odds: UCLA opened as a 9.5-point favorite in Vegas, a spread which has since spread to 10.5. kenpom.com gives the Bruins an 81 percent chance of winning.

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