UCLA Gets Punked As USC Takes Down Their Nine Game Winning Streak With 72-63 Loss

We're always down with college basketball because it's the one sport where young brothers are showing they got game and some level of academic proficiency. And since 3 Bros is LA based, we've got to give the latest on this historic crosstown rivalry.

Davon Jefferson scored 25 points and O.J. Mayo added 16 points for the Trojans, who upset the fourth-ranked Bruins, 72-63, this afternoon at Pauley Pavilion, ending UCLA's nine-game winning streak.

Josh Shipp led the Bruins with 21 points and freshman Kevin Love had 18 points and 12 rebounds, his ninth double-double in 18 games.

Mayo tossed the ball toward the ceiling and jumped on teammate Daniel Hackett at the buzzer. He and Love briefly embraced after the first of two meetings this season between two of the country's best freshmen.

UCLA (16-2, 4-1 Pac-10) trailed early in the second half, went on a 20-7 to take a 57-51 lead, then got outscored 21-6 over the final 6:18. Want all the game highlights? Done.

Black UCLA Football Coach Karl Dorrell Gets Kicked Off The Gridiron After USC Loss

African Americans Now Have One Less Prominent Coach On The Field

Karl Dorrell was officially sidelined today as the football coach for the UCLA Bruins and we're none to happy about it. Dorrell was given the choice of staying on as coach of the Bruins through the team's bowl game at Las Vegas against Brigham Young on Dec. 22. If the brotha decides against it, defensive coordinator DeWayne Walker will take over in the interim.

Dorrell had a 35-27 record and his teams went to a bowl game in each of his five seasons. Yet he never established a strong foothold, and even in his best year, when UCLA went 10-2 in 2005, the Bruins lost two of their last three, including a 66-19 by crosstown rival USC.

Among permanent candidates to succeed Dorrell is Boise State Coach Chris Petersen, with Texas Tech Coach Mike Leach and former NFL coach Steve Mariucci also considered strong possibilities.

Dorrell's contract ran through the 2011 season but included a buyout clause that would pay him $2.05-million over a two-year period. Dorrell had never been a head coach when he was hired in 2002. He inherited a program that had high-profile problems off the field, which led to the firing of coach Bob Toledo. Under Dorrell, the Bruins improved in the classroom, and the number of off-the-field embarrassments decreased significantly.

"We've improved our standard in school, we've done very, very well there," Dorrell said recently when asked about the high points that have been achieved off the field. "We've improved our standard in off-the-field incidents. That has been a big, big issue before. And I think we do a lot in the community, where we reach out and try. All those things have fallen into place very well for us."

A source familiar with the program said the academic record and general good citizenship of the Bruins' players were big factors, but the lack of success on the field could not be ignored.

Dorrell's teams regularly collapsed in the second half of the season. The Bruins had a 13-19 record after the sixth game of the season during his career. They were unable to achieve consistency, following up a monumental upset of USC in 2006 with a flop in Emerald Bowl against Florida State.

Dorrell's staff also lacked stability. UCLA has had to replace 10 assistant coaches in the last two seasons.

This season, UCLA returned 20 starters from a team that finished 7-6 and was ranked among the top 20 in every preseason poll. The Bruins climbed as high as 11th in the Associated Press poll before being routed, 44-6, by an injury-depleted Utah team on Sept. 15.

It was a steady decline from there. A loss to a then-winless Notre Dame team brought concern from high-end donors and, after injuries depleted the roster, the Bruins lost three consecutive Pacific 10 Conference games.

IS BLACK UCLA ASSISTANT COACH ERIC SCOTT MORE THAN JUST A RECRUITER?

USC TROJAN FANS ARE LOVING THIS STORY!

UCLA assistant football coach Eric Scott and his cousin, Timothy Williams, 23, and Jesus DeAlba, 23, a former West Los Angeles College and New Mexico Highlands offensive lineman, were out on bail Wednesday after being arrested on suspicion of residential burglary.

Police arrested the 32 year-old receivers coach for the Bruins along with his alleged accomplices when they received a call that a burglary was in process.

The brother just got the promotion from being an intern in the football office in March to become the receivers coach after spending seven years as an assistant at Crenshaw High School in Los Angeles.

UPDATE! The investigation into alleged crimes by UCLA football assistant Eric Scott and two others has been expanded because a discarded gun was found at the home and "a large quantity of narcotics" was discovered in the area, said Sgt. Leonard Rivas of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. As a result, Scott has been put on paid administrative leave by UCLA.

During his brief stint as an intern for the team, he showed head coach Karl Dorrell his potential by also assisting with breaking down video tapes of the Bruins’ opponents.

"Eric is an up and coming talent in this profession," said Dorrell. "He has a great sense of evaluating talent and developing skill players to reach their potential."

With this bright future and strong potential fueling his imminent success, one has to wonder what pushed this Black man to allegedly throw his career away in such a reckless manner. Nothing has been reported about any past criminal record for Scott, so pressure seems to have been applied by his cohorts Jesus DeAlba and Timothy Williams.

There must be some other, more logical answers. Maybe UCLA pays their interns better than they do their assistant coaches and he had to do what he had to do in order to put some food on his table. Perhaps there is an initiation for all new coaches on the roster for the Bruins and after their coaches meeting Eric pulled the old, “Midnight Burglary” challenge.

Whatever the case, the UCLA athletic department is still standing by their man, kinda, for now. "The athletic department is currently gathering information on the situation, and until we have all the facts, it is premature for us to comment," said Marc Dellins, UCLA sports information director.

One thing is for sure, if Scott is convicted and subsequently his fetus of a career is suddenly taken away from him, he has found a new way for successful Black men to squander a chance at ultimate achievement.

Keep talking, it’s the only way they’ll ever hear you.--JJJ