Ben Howland

“My first introduction to Russell Westbrook was as a leader. It was pretty impressive.”

“One of the very best things about being a coach or student-athlete at UCLA is if you need medical attention, you won't find any better place in the country than at the incomparable UCLA Medical Center.”

“You're only as good as your next game.”

“You're not going to see Bill Walton or Kareem coming in every three years. Those days are over. That's what makes the job so difficult. But it's the dream job for anyone who has spent a career in coaching and has a sense of what UCLA means.”

“You try to stay as even-keel as possible; obviously, it's always more difficult when you're going through a tough season.”

“I can't think of much higher praise to give a player than to say, 'This point guard reminds me of Jason Kidd.'”

“UCLA will always be involved with great players, and those players always draw scrutiny. That's just the way it is.”

“The number one thing in recruiting in terms of making it a great job is players in your own area.”

“What is the NCAA going to do a program if a kid leaves before two years. You can't control it. The NBA is the one that has to control it.”

“Putting your feet in ice cold water? That's not fun.”

“There's no question we made a couple mistakes there at UCLA at the very end.”

“This is UCLA. The expectations are higher here than anywhere. The amount of success both in terms of championships and wins as well as success off the floor has been second to none in college basketball. I knew that when I took this job. I know the expectation level, and no one has higher expectations than I do.”

“Typically, you'll see that zones work better in November than in February. As the season goes on, teams get better and better at attacking zones, and it becomes harder to become an effective zone defense as the season progresses. But early on, it can be can good at times.”

“You're always trying to learn from the past to plot a course in the future that will be better. You're always trying to learn.”

“It's hard to get a job. There are more lawyers within a five-mile radius of wherever you're sitting than there are Division I jobs.”

“It still comes down to attracting players, and UCLA can attract players as well as any place in the country.”

“I get to work with the best and the brightest at UCLA. We get to recruit great kids, and that makes coaching very fun for me.”

“Pittsburgh is a football town.”

“I have a strong belief in God.”

“There's no question that I've made mistakes along the way when you look at recruiting in terms of evaluations of players or character in an instance or two.”