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Senior center Ryan Hollins suffered a contusion just above his right kneecap during practice on F

INDIANAPOLIS -- In the first four rounds of the NCAA Tournament, senior Ryan Hollins has played the best basketball of his career. To continue that stretch in the Final Four, however, he'll have to play through pain. The UCLA center suffered a right knee contusion just above the kneecap during practice on Friday morning and did not fully participate in the open shoot-around at the RCA Dome later in the afternoon. Hollins said he fully expects to play Saturday against LSU, but was uncertain whether the injury would limit his effectiveness against the Tigers' heralded frontline. "It hurts pretty bad, and it swelled up a lot. You're always disappointed to get hurt. It lessens our chances of doing well," Hollins said. "But there's nothing that's going to hold me back. I still have a pulse. You'll see the same intensity and same fire from me. I won't even feel it. It's not going to be an issue or an excuse." The senior, who was named the Oakland Regional's Most Outstanding Player, banged knees in the beginning of practice with freshman Alfred Aboya, who coincidentally also had a hand in breaking sophomore Lorenzo Mata's nose on Wednesday. Hollins had his knee iced immediately after the injury and was scheduled to undergo treatment for the rest of the afternoon. During UCLA's open practice on Friday, Hollins did not dress but did practice free throws. Through the first four rounds of the NCAA Tournament, Hollins has averaged 12 points and 6.5 rebounds per game. UCLA coach Ben Howland expects his senior center to be ready and willing to play on Saturday. "Just assuming it's musculature, it will take a team of horses to hold him from being able to play," Howland said. "Anything's possible, though, especially this year."

MASKED MATA: The sophomore center suffered a broken nose during practice on Wednesday in one of the team's last drills of the day. Mata will wear a protective mask on Saturday, the same one he wore after he fractured his nose against Arizona State on Jan. 7. If he plays well against LSU, Mata said he might adopt Detroit Pistons' Richard Hamilton's fashion statement of wearing a mask permanently. "I played really well and practiced with it, so I'm going to be like Rip Hamilton," Mata said. "I'm going to keep it on all the time."

SHIPP SIDELINED: Last week in Oakland, sophomore Josh Shipp, who has missed all but four games this season with a hip injury, considered returning to the court and forsaking his redshirt status if UCLA advanced to the Final Four. The Bruins advanced to the Final Four, but Shipp will not see the court. He said he made the decision on his own after UCLA defeated Memphis in the regional final last Saturday. "I got caught up in the moment," Shipp said. "I was thinking Final Four, excitement, you'll never know if we'll ever get back here. In four years, it's not easy to get to the Final Four (twice). But this is all about UCLA right now."

ALL QUIET: LSU is the most entertaining. George Mason is the Cinderella. Florida is the odds-on favorite. So what is UCLA? "Shoot, UCLA is just UCLA," freshman point guard Darren Collison said. "We're quieter than they are. We just come to play games. We're not here to make the crowd laugh. We're not here to show everybody we're a Cinderella team. We're just here to play." All was quiet during UCLA's open practice as well, as the Bruins used most of their allotted 50 minutes practicing free throws.

SIGHTS AND SOUNDS: UCLA drew the fewest observes of any of the Final Four teams during open practice sessions on Friday. Florida drew the most. ... As they've done in each of their open practices, the Bruins shot half-court shots for the final five minutes. Freshman DeAndre Robinson, freshman Ryan Wright and Howland were the first three to make a half-court shot. ... George Mason spent the end of its shoot-around mingling with the team's cheerleaders and band members, while LSU's Glen "Big Baby" Davis and Tyrus Thomas spent the latter part of their practice signing autographs for Tigers fans.

NATIONAL AWARDS: Duke's J.J. Redick edged out Gonzaga's Adam Morrison for the Associated Press Player of the Year award, which was announced Friday. Redick, who averaged 27.2 points per game this season for the Blue Devils, became the sixth Duke player to claim the award, surpassing UCLA's once-leading total of five. "It's kind of a bittersweet moment for me to be here rather than with my teammates," Redick said. ... North Carolina's Roy Williams won the AP Coach of the Year award after guiding the freshman-dominated Tar Heels to a 27-8 record and a top-10 finish in the national polls after starting the season unranked. UCLA's Howland received only one vote for the award and finished in a three-way tie for seventh.

DRIBBLERS: UCLA is 7-0 all-time against LSU, the teams' last meeting coming in December 1994. ... On the first difference he noticed about the atmosphere of Indianapolis, Collison said, "The logo on the uniform." ... The Bruins attended the Indianapolis Pacers' game on Thursday night, during which UCLA's Reggie Miller had his number retired. Freshman Luc Richard Mbah a Moute said autograph-seekers at the game had a little trouble saying his name. "They have some work to do, but that's OK. They're not used to it yet," Mbah a Moute said. "Hopefully after the tournament, they will be."