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Junior center Michael Fey meets Michigan State's relentless defense on his way to the basket in t

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Senior Brian Morrison launches one of the Bruins' 17 failed 3-point attempts against the Spartans

EAST LANSING, Mich. — One-dimensional, hurried and totally predictable, UCLA had but one weapon with which to attack Michigan State on Tuesday night – the 3-point shot. Unable to generate any offense in the paint, the Bruins instead hoisted up a season-high 27 shots from behind the arc, making 10 of them, but exposing their lack of a consistent interior scoring threat in the process. "A couple of the threes were really good looks, but we still have to get the ball inside," UCLA coach Ben Howland said. "There's not a real high confidence level throwing the ball in the post. Someone's got to step up and be more aggressive in there." None of the Bruin big men were the aggressors against the Spartans – not Michael Fey, not Lorenzo Mata, and not Ryan Hollins. Fey, a junior, did score six points in the first half on a pair of three-point plays, but he played sparingly in the second half and did not take a shot. Neither Hollins nor Mata scored a point. "It's the guards' fault," freshman guard Arron Affalo said. "We have to give Mike Fey and Ryan Hollins a chance. And on their part, they need to demand the ball, do something with it, and make plays for others as well." The result was that the Bruins, who came into the game averaging 16 attempts from behind the arc per game, relied almost exclusively on the 3-point shot in their half-court offense. At one point late in the second half, UCLA had made 10 threes, but only converted eight two-pointers. Afflalo, Josh Shipp and Dijon Thompson combined to go 9-for-18 from 3-point range, but freshman point guard Jordan Farmar struggled, netting just one of his eight attempts. Though many of the looks were open, the UCLA guards frequently were guilty of settling for a 3-pointer instead of attempting to penetrate the Michigan State defense in hopes of creating a higher-percentage shot. "They're a good help defensive team," Afflalo said. "They had the paint packed in pretty tight and they were cutting our penetration off. We've got to get better at getting in the gaps or establishing a post game."

HELD IN CHECK: Matched up against 6-foot-6 Alan Anderson, another undersized power forward, Thompson was unable to duplicate the 29-point performance that he posted against Michigan on Saturday. The 6-foot-9 senior managed 15 points and 11 rebounds, but did not have a big edge in quickness against Anderson like he did against the brawnier Wolverine big men. "I saw what happened to Michigan, and that's what we tried to stay away from," Michigan State coach Tom Izzo said. "There are not a lot of big guys who can stay with him."

SHIPP SAILING: UCLA's most consistent offensive threat for much of the game was Shipp, who scored a career-high 18 points. Howland, however, was quick to point out that the freshman wing made a few errors – most notably shooting a contested 25-footer late in the first half that helped fuel a 14-1 Michigan State run. He also did not pull down a defensive rebound for the second consecutive game.

FEY SITS: Howland chose to start Mata at center in place of Fey after the 7-foot junior was late for the team bus on Sunday morning. Fey entered the game with 17:21 remaining in the first half after Mata picked up his second foul, but played a season-low 15 minutes.

DRIBBLERS: Thompson was named Pac-10 Player of the Week on Tuesday after his 29-point performance Saturday against Michigan … Los Angeles Lakers great and Lansing native Magic Johnson, a member of Michigan State's 1979 national championship team, was back in the area to spend the holidays with his family and attended the game.