Los Angeles ? Getting to the Final Four is on the mind of every UCLA player this week. So are other kinds of finals – sociology, history, communications.

In the ultimate case of awkward timing, the Bruins are juggling winter-quarter finals while preparing for Thursday’s NCAA Tournament regional semifinal against Gonzaga in Oakland.

“You know how hard it is during finals to get your mind right because you’re so exhausted from studying,” coach Ben Howland said. “At practice, I’m sure guys are going to have a little mental fatigue from staying up all night cramming.”

UCLA and several of the other Pac-10 schools are on the 10-week quarter system, while many of the nation’s other major conferences are semester schools.

Freshman Alfred Aboya, a Cameroon native, might be the happiest guy on the team. After slogging through writing research papers on studying abroad and comparative literature, he was done with his finals Tuesday.

“I won’t have any concern about anything but the game,” said Aboya, who wants to major in international relations with the idea of being a diplomat or president of his African country.

Freshman Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, also from Cameroon, prefers the solitary nature of taking finals on the road over the coughing, sneezing and buzzing cell phones in a classroom.

Being able to balance books and basketball is an ongoing challenge.

“It’s very hard because you’ve got to concentrate on the final and you got to study,” Mbah a Moute said. “At the same time, I need to clear my mind and think about the game.”

Riding herd on the Bruins’ classroom fortunes is academic coordinator Kenny Donaldson. His duties include making sure players go to class (he pays surprise visits), do homework, stay eligible and eventually graduate.

“What people don’t understand is they’re up usually from 7 or 8 in the morning, in order to go to class and study, until maybe 12 at night,” he said. “Their free time is so limited.”