Memory lane - UC vs. Tulane

Last week, after I wrote about LaZelle Durden's heroics at Wyoming, the response was so overwhelming that I was inundated with requests for more strolls down memory lane. Actually, there was one such request, but since I like telling old stories about covering UC, I'm going to tell another one anyway.

This one occurred in 1996 if my media guide research is correct. UC was playing Tulane in Fogelman Arena, that little bandbox arena on campus in New Orleans. The Bearcats were struggling and Bob Huggins got ejected from the game in the first half. I worked at The Post at the time and this was a Saturday game. Since The Post had no Sunday paper, I was always looking for a different angle for Monday.

I waited until UC came out of the locker room to start the second half and found Huggins. I asked him where he was going to watch the rest of the game. He said he was going into the TV truck. I asked if he minded if I accompanied him. He said it was OK with him.

So I went to collect my stuff from inside the gym and hustled outside. I banged on the door of the TV truck only to be yelled at by the producer for disturbing their producation. "What do you want?" he said. I told him who I was and that Huggins said it was OK with him if I sat in there and watched the game with them. He reluctantly let me stay.

As the game wore on, the TV people were tapping into Huggins' knowledge to feed information to their announcers so they would as if they knew what they were talking about. Finally, it came down to one last possession for UC. They were either down one or tied. I don't remember.

UC called timeout. The TV guys asked Huggs what the Bearcats would run. He described a play in which Darnell Burton would end up free in the corner for a jump shot. The play was relayed to the announcers.

UC inbounded the ball and the play went off exactly as Huggins said it would. Burton got the ball in the corner and launched a shot that went in to win the game for UC.

And I had a pretty good Monday story.