Pushing Ben’s buttons
Has Ben Howland become the “Washout of Westwood?†While we can all appreciate commitment to defense, intense practices, fighting for playing time, and the challenge of winning on the road, Howland has been demonstrating an inability to coach offense, poor time management by wasting timeouts, inflexibility to just once use a zone defense to control or change the tempo of a game (which would have worked against Arizona State), and occasionally using a press (other than at the end of the game to foul). The ghost of Karl Dorrell seems to be sitting in the bleachers of Pauley Pavilion.
Jeff Black, Beverly Hills
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When a team scores 55 points and beats you, there must be something wrong with the offense. When a team full of blue-chip players comes down court with the intention of running down the clock, something must be wrong with the offense. When your point guard is left to create his shot in an over-the-garage-door style, while taking hot shooters out of their rhythm, something is wrong with the offense.
Ben, you are taking a team full of thoroughbreds and hooking them up to plows. Let’s get those young inside guys in and let them run. Quite frankly, over the past three or four games I’ve been wondering if Steve Lavin was hired as offensive coordinator.
J.J. Volpe
Long Beach
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When watching UCLA play I empathize with R.P. McMurphy in “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.â€
“Just put the ball in the basket, Chief!â€
Roger Moshgat
San Diego
Go beyond the scoreboard
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