LOS ANGELES – With Pac-12 title contention on the line and a chance to sweep what many consider to be the conference’s best team, the bright lights of college basketball have descended upon Westwood and the UCLA Bruins.

And on Friday, just one day before UCLA’s highly anticipated rematch with Arizona, the excitement in the air was undeniable. ESPN trucks flooded campus, preparing for Saturday morning’s College Gameday broadcast. Tents weaved around Pauley Pavilion on Friday afternoon – a full-blown campout, complete with a swimming pool.

“I think it creates more excitement,” UCLA coach Ben Howland said on his Friday teleconference. “Any time you have College Gameday on your campus, it’s a big deal. … This is why kids come to UCLA: to have College Gameday on your campus against Arizona.”

The bright lights are certainly what brought the Bruins’ talented freshmen class to California, and in their last game, the team’s trio of Shabazz Muhammad, Kyle Anderson, and Jordan Adams certainly looked the part of Hollywood’s finest. They combined to score 64 of UCLA’s 79 points in a 79-74, overtime victory over Arizona State.

But Saturday’s game offers a chance for an even larger stage. Aside from winning the Pac-12 Tournament – or at least reaching the final game – the Bruins and their talented freshmen won’t have many other chances to notably improve their NCAA Tournament stock.

UCLA is widely considered to be somewhere between a sixth and an eighth seed at the moment, and with the Pac-12’s lack of respect beyond its top four or five teams, a second nationally-televised victory over a team like Arizona – which boasts victories over top teams like Florida and Miami (Fla.) – could make a massive difference.

And according to Howland, his players have fully grasped that importance.

“We control our own destiny,” Howland said. “Worst case scenario, if we won our last three games, we could have a part of the Pac-12 championship. We know we control what happens to us.”

Motivation certainly wasn’t a question mark when UCLA faced the Wildcats in Tucson, as the Bruins jumped out to a 16-point lead in the game’s first eight minutes and held Arizona off from there in its biggest victory of the season.

This time, it’s the Wildcats who definitely won’t be short on motivation, especially after letting USC walk all over them for 89 points on Wednesday night.

“Any time a good team is coming off a loss it gives you an edge,” Howland said of Arizona. “‘I don’t want to feel this pain again.’ … So we have to understand and know that going in.”

That edge could very likely come from Arizona point guard Mark Lyons, who struggled the last time the two teams met. He shot 6 of 17 from the floor and turned the ball over five times – to no assists – in that matchup. Against USC in Arizona’s last game, Lyons shot just 1 of 9 from the field. But in complimenting his competitiveness, Howland doesn’t think Lyons will have another game like that against the Bruins this time.

“I do not expect that he’s going to act like that again in a game for the rest of his career,” Howland said. “I just thought that it was an aberration.”

INJURY UPDATE

Forward Travis Wear, who missed Wednesday’s game due to a sprained ligament in his foot, took part in the Bruins’ walkthrough on Friday and is expected to play against the Wildcats. UCLA coach Ben Howland officially labeled Wear as “probable.” … Bruins star freshman Shabazz Muhammad also had been nursing an injury after twisting his ankle on Wednesday night. And despite walking gingerly on the ankle at UCLA’s Friday practice, Muhammad is expected to play.

Wear, who left the Bruins’ last game with Arizona due to a concussion, is averaging 11.6 points and 5.4 rebounds per game this season.

Contact the writer: rkartje@ocregister.com