After the one liners, Ben Howland is the anchorman

This article was originally on a blog post platform and may be missing photos, graphics or links. See About archive blog posts.

We’ve had several blog posts (here, here, here and here) from the Southern California Basketball Tip-Off Luncheon at the Los Angeles Athletic Club on Wednesday.

Here’s another one. Many of the 13 head or assistant coaches came prepared to throw out one-liners or tell (semi) raunchy stories.

There was mention of UC Santa Barbara Coach Bob Williams, who is single, and his way with Central Coast women (and the rest of the story isn’t necessarily for the entire family).

There was USC assistant coach Phil Johnson (substituting for Tim Floyd who was out of town) saying how Cal State Fullerton Coach Bob Burton was all excited about a potential recruit. ‘Burton said the kid needed to pass a math test, a one-question test. The kid spent several weeks preparing and then Bob said, ‘Are you ready for the test? Come on, you gotta get ready. What’s two plus two? The player said four. Burton jumped up and said, ‘Oh, no, give him another chance.’ ‘

UCLA’s Ben Howland, the day’s final speaker, chose to keep it serious. When he started talking about the Bruins’ injuries a week before practice even begins, it was no laughing matter.

Read more about the luncheon in tomorrow’s Los Angeles Times.

-- Diane Pucin