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LOS ANGELES -- Led by talented freshmen Lonzo Ball and T.J. Leaf, No. 2 UCLA is back in college basketballs upper echelon for the first time under coach Steve Alford.The Bruins (9-0) are off to their best start since 2006-07 after upsetting then-No. 1 Kentucky at Rupp Arena last week , boosting them to their highest ranking since November 2007.Ball has made an instant impact in what is expected to be his lone season in Westwood. Hes averaging 14.6 points, 5.0 rebounds and his 9.3 assists leads the nation. Hes also shooting 55 percent from the floor and 43 percent from 3-point range.The confident newcomer even put his finger to his lips in a shushing motion to Kentuckys fans.I really dont like the attention like that, he said Thursday. It was a good win, but we still have a long journey to go.While Ball has grabbed most of the attention, Leaf asserted himself against the Wildcats with 17 points and 13 rebounds. Hes averaging 17.2 points and 9.4 rebounds while shooting 67 percent from the floor.Leaf and Ball have just been exceptional, said Michigan coach John Beilein, who scouted Leaf three times while recruiting him in high school.Ball and Leaf are among six UCLA players who average double figures in scoring, led by Isaac Hamilton with 18.1 points. The Bruins high-octane offense averages 97.0 points, second in the country.No one really cares what their numbers are like, Leaf said. We just want to win.Thanks to the arrival of Ball and Leaf, which invigorated veterans Bryce Alford, Hamilton and Thomas Welsh, things have changed quickly for the Bruins.In March, fans were irate after a 15-17 finish and no postseason invite. The programs fourth losing season since John Wooden was hired in 1948 prompted Alford to return a one-year contract extension he signed after his first season. He also wrote an apology letter to the fans.From about Christmas on, I mishandled the team and we did a lot of changing around and we should have just stayed focused on getting better, Alford said. Weve done a lot better job of that this year and the talent is back up this year.Not a popular hire among the schools older fan base in 2013, Alford guided the team to consecutive Sweet Sixteen appearances in his first two seasons. Now, the players and fans are thinking much bigger at a school that owns a record 11 national championships.Weve been talking about trying to get to Phoenix, the younger Alford said, mentioning the site of the Final Four. Weve really been confident in ourselves and really starting to trust each other.The Kentucky win injected UCLA into the national conversation and is already having an effect on campus. Saturdays home game against Michigan is nearly sold out, something that has been rare at Pauley Pavilion in recent years. The Bruins are averaging 7,481 through five games in the 13,800-seat arena.People have been congratulating us as we walked to class, the younger Alford said.In Michigan (7-2), the Bruins will find a team that plays at a glacial pace compared to how UCLA likes to run and gun. The Wolverines are allowing 58.2 points a game and holding opponents to 42 percent field-goal shooting. Their top scorer Zak Irvin averages 13.6 points.We have a bigger target on our back than ever. Were ready for it, Leaf said. Were going to try to establish our pace and get out and run.The Bruins are wrapping up finals on Friday and havent played since beating Kentucky last weekend. They had plenty of time to savor the victory, including on the charter flight home. Instead of sleeping, the players hit up Twitter and watched replays of their favorite moments.But once they got back to practice, the younger Alford was quick to invoke his senior leadership.Its finding that balance of enjoying what youve done so far but realizing at end of day it doesnt mean much, he said. If you dont continue to progress and move forward, it all goes to waste.The younger Alford has benefited the most from Balls arrival. The freshman has taken over ball-handling duties, allowing Alford to revert to his more natural position of coming off screens while playing slightly fewer minutes. Alford is in his final season playing for his father, who won the 1987 national championship at Indiana under coach Bob Knight.This team has a high, high ceiling, Steve Alford said. They know they havent come anywhere near what their peak is. Edmonton Oilers Gear . Laudrup revealed Thursday he was notified of his dismissal in "the briefest of letters which gave no reasons why such hasty and final action was deemed necessary. Wholesale Oilers Jerseys . Andreas Johnson had a goal and two assists while Jacob de la Rose also scored for Sweden (2-0-0). Esa Lindell and Rasmus Ristolainen replied for Finland (1-1-0) Lindell opened the scoring for Finland just 41 seconds into the game, but the hosts quickly regained their composure and tied the score less than four minutes later on Wennbergs first of the game. https://www.cheapoilers.com/ . Michell Burger, a woman who lives on an estate next to Pistorius gated community, said she and her husband were awoken by the screams in the pre-dawn hours of Feb. 14 last year, when Pistorius killed Reeva Steenkamp by shooting four times through a door in his bathroom. Oilers Jerseys 2020 . "I wrote 36 on my sheet at the beginning of the game," the Cincinnati coach said, referring the yard line the ball would need to be snapped from. Edmonton Oilers Pro Shop . The Canadian squad, skipped by Jennifer Jones of Winnipeg, got on the board first with two in the second end, and followed that with two more apiece in the fourth and sixth ends.PIESTANY, Slovakia -- Goaltender Julio Billia made 21 saves Saturday and Canada blanked the United States 4-0 in the final of the Ivan Hlinka Memorial mens under-18 hockey tournament. Its Canadas sixth straight gold medal at the summer event, co-hosted by the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Canada looked dominant in a rematch of last years under-18 world championship final, which Canada won 3-2. "When you put the Canadian sweater on, theres a lot of pride," Canada coach Dale Hunter said. "These kids here had a lot of pride at thats what theyre going to bring when the (under-18) world championships come next year." Michael Dal Colle opened the scoring at 3:58 of the first period. Canada took a slashing penalty 30 seconds later, but prevented the United States from capitalizing to get back in the game. From there Canada kept the pressure on the U.S., while Billia took care of what chances the Americans managed too get.dddddddddddd "Youre going to get some shots against, and when they were there he was solid," Hunter said of Billia. "He was really good on rebounds and didnt give them a second shot." Jayce Hawryluk made it 2-0 with a second-period goal, then Aaron Ekblad and Brendan Lemieux scored in the third to put the game away. Spencer Watson added three assists to give him a tournament-high 10 points (four goals, six assists). Hunter had praise for Canadas penalty-killing unit, which kept the U.S. scoreless in three opportunities. "There werent a lot of penalties, but they were at key moments of the game," Hunter said. "When you kill them off it gives the rest of the team momentum." Alex Nedeljkovic made 26 saves but took the loss in goal for the United States. In the bronze-medal game, Lukas Vopelka scored with 1:25 left in regulation as the Czech Republic beat Russia 3-2. ' ' '