#PSBSportsChop: A Day in L.A. – February 24, 2016
By: Brandon Clay @PSBPopCulture
I get out to Los Angeles a couple of times a year. With the weather, it has become one of my favorite stops especially during the winter months. I took a day trip earlier in the month to visit UCLA and take in their game against Washington State.
Here are some of my takeaways in an Eastern Standard Time(line):
5:25 am: This Rick Ross “Bel Air” alarm is perfect way to get the trip started.
7:00 am: Atlanta Airport is always packed on a Friday morning. Today is no different.
8:05 am: We’re taking off in the Boeing 757…
1:30 pm: We just touched down at LAX. It’s 75 degrees here on a Friday in February. This is outstanding.
2:20 pm: Hertz doesn’t have the small convertible that I rented available. So I wait…
2:35 pm: Celebrate success (DJ Khaled voice). Hertz just let me take a Porsche Cayman off of the lot for the day.
2:52 pm: NEW MUSIC ALERT – It’s only right to listen to Tory Lanez “L.A. Confidential” as I take the back way from LAX to UCLA.
3:45 pm: Westwood Village is the spot for lunch. It’s easy to tell that people here are used to this weather though. No one seems overly excited about the day. The whole city of Atlanta would be out if it were 75 degrees back home.
4:30 pm: I LOVE UCLA’s campus. It’s one of the nicest I’ve had a chance to visit. The renovation to Pauley Pavilion is golden.
5:15 pm: I’m watching in the gym Redshirt Junior Nicole Kornet workout with coach Jenny Huth. Kornet is a big forward who can really shoot the ball. She’s sitting out this year after transferring from Oklahoma.
5:27 pm: Huth’s skill workout is crisp. Kornet is posting to score, reading screens to get shots and using the pick and roll to create.
5:58 pm: Director of Operations, Pam Walker, has to be amongst the best in the business. She’s organizing the Play4Kay initiative tonight and let me take a picture of in my grandmother’s memory.
7:30 pm: Head coach Cori Close has her team focused. From the shoot around to the film room, Close demands excellence. It’s been cool to see her progression since the first time we sat in her office after getting hired in 2011.
8:47 pm: Just spent an hour with assistant coach Tony Newnan. The conversation ranged from the girls game at the high school level all the way to former Bruins, Zach LaVine and Kevon Looney, now in the NBA.
8:58 pm: No surprise at all that Redshirt Junior guard Kari Korver is the first one on the floor for the Bruins. She’s out here going through a shooting workout before the team hits the hardwood. There is a reason she is shooting 40% from beyond the 3-point line during Pac 12 play.
10:00 pm: It’s game time in Westwood. Naismith Midseason 30 Team member Jordin Canada is on my radar tonight. She’s had a fantastic season so far averaging 16 points, six assists per contest.
Today's Home: Day Trip en route to Los Angeles & UCLA.
So. G Jordin Canada is on the Midseason 30. pic.twitter.com/ksTSKCUd6m
— Brandon Clay (@BrandonClayPSB) February 12, 2016
10:42 pm: I still remember watching Senior guard Nirra Fields play for Oak Hill during her high school days. Fields has put together a terrific career and currently leads the Bruins at 16.3 points per contest. She’s on track to represent Canada in the 2016 Olympic Games.
11:35 pm: UCLA is going to win this one. Keep an eye on Sophomore Monique Billings. Her activity and energy on both ends of the floor was crucial to the victory.
12:15 am: Spent time at Chick-Fil-A with assistant coach Shannon Perry. Without question, she’s in the mix on the PSBPopCulture Best Dressed “Watch List.” Keep an eye out for that segment during the NCAA Tournament thanks to Taylor Johnson.
2:00 am: Back at LAX ready to head home. Until next time, L.A.
Brandon Clay serves as the publisher of PSBPopCulture.com. A self-professed entertainment, music and sports junkie, Clay has been on his game since picking up his first Nintendo and Sony Walkman in the early 90’s. Adding in a SLAM (Basketball) Magazine subscription in the late-90’s had him setup up for lifelong success. Clay is also a founding member of the “Luxury Boys Club” designed to stay on top of whatever is next in the world of PopCulture. You can follow him on Twitter @psbpopculture.