Sorting Through the Bruins Becoming a Rite of Spring?

OK, all those lining up for sainthood, please follow Cardinal Plaschke to the Vatican. And for all of those soft-belly, couch-reclining, Lavin-bashing coaches out there, whose only claim to fame is reaching the second round of the 8-year-old mighty-mite playoffs, stay seated. Someone will take your beverage order in a minute.

Yes, Kentucky stomped the Bruins. Yes, Lavin should have played more guys during the rest of the year. But here’s some important information that doesn’t seem to make it into this post-Mike Downey fish wrap: Against overwhelming odds, UCLA showed up to play Kentucky. No center, no first-string point guard, no starters playing their true positions . . . and no crying.

In a tumultuous four-year run, Lavin, Bailey, Henderson and Johnson grew up. Lavin, with barely two years’ head coaching experience under his sweaty young belt, is batting over .700. And best of all, that gym rat with the Jiffy-Lube hairdo, is still learning his craft.

TONY SOLOMON

Los Angeles

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Things you can’t say about the UCLA basketball program:

* The center didn’t resign. He quit. Players quit. CEOs resign.

* The point guard hurt his knee hot-dogging after a dunk.

* Nobody cuts his finger like that with a butter knife.

* The forward used at center does not like to mix it up.

* The senior swingman is as inconsistent as he is talented.

* The last two coaches have not taught fundamentals.

* The current coach needs to worry more about what his players are doing on and off the court and less about where the cameras and mikes are.

BERG BERGEN

La Canada

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Even thicker than the recent Bruin basketball soap opera is the ocean of misconceptions dished out by Bill Plaschke and Tim Kawakami on a single day.

* The “now we’ll see if this guy can coach” syndrome. Steve Lavin was given a generous contract to head one of the five major basketball programs in the country and he couldn’t handle a few hard-headed 20-year-olds? The real problem will continue to be Lavin’s Stuart Smalley, Daily Affirmation approach to coaching, not any past or future knuckleheads.

* Lavin is too young and doesn’t “deserve” the job. He’s past 30 and the qualification for any job, including sportswriter, is talent and energy, not age.

* His won-lost record is “impressive.” Well, 74% at Stanford or Washington might be impressive, but not in Westwood. And because Lavin doesn’t realize this, I fear for him (shades of Larry Farmer).

* Pete Dalis “put UCLA in this situation by firing Harrick and hiring Lavin under duress, then acceding to Lavin’s renegotiating demands.” No, actually it was Jim Harrick who put UCLA in this situation. Dalis simply faced up to a tough decision, at the same time unloading one more generic failure in a long line of them. As for “acceding to Lavin,” what was Dalis supposed to do? I mean, he was dealing with “Mr. Smith goes to Washington,” right, Plaschke?

CHARLES CHICCOA

Reseda

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Why must Tim Kawakami and Bill Plaschke fall over themselves to trash the UCLA men’s basketball program? Kawakami gives his status report and every player is given a negative comment. Plaschke questions Lavin’s coaching ability in a manner such that an unknowing reader might expect that he had a losing record, rather than a 48-17 record. Excuse me, but this team finished 24-9 and in the Sweet 16; they cannot be that bad.

This team survived Blazergate, questionable disqualification of recruits, suspensions of two starters, one of whom left the team, and a season-ending injury to its starting point guard. UCLA had a season that most teams would envy, despite all of this turmoil. Lavin has done as much as could be expected realistically and the team has a great future with their recent recruiting success.

I would hope The Times can show what a team can accomplish in the face of adversity and support them. Goodness knows, the East Coast disrespects us enough without the locals also running down the program.

ANDREW OSHRIN

Long Beach

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So Earl Jones [Viewpoint, March 21] thinks Kentucky has far less talent than UCLA? I watched the game and saw a Kentucky team with players who were bigger, stronger, faster, and shot and handled the ball better than their UCLA counterparts . . . and the Wildcats had a lot more of them. Maybe Mr. Jones can write back next week and tell us what his definition of talent is . . . unless he’s too busy with his job as a scout for the Denver Nuggets.

BEN BROWDY

Los Angeles