- The Bench
The Bench is the student rooting section for the
University of California men's basketball team. Located insideHaas Pavilion , The Bench holds up to 900 students who rowdily cheer on theirCalifornia Golden Bears at home basketball games. Students who sit on The Bench receive an annual Bench t-shirt each year and continue to makeHaas Pavilion one of the loudest basketball arenas in thePacific Ten Conference [http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/sioncampus/02/02/arena.eval.cal/index.html] . The Bench prides itself on standing the entire game and ensuring that the arena is a hostile place for any opposing team to play [http://calbears.cstv.com/trads/the-bench.html] .History
Although exact dates are not known, the tradition of The Bench was drastically changed in October 2000 when renovations on
Haas Pavilion were completed and put a row of portable chairs between the student section and the court. University officials called the move necessary for the protection of referees and players, but students were angry at the move because it further removed them from the action [http://www.dailycal.org/sharticle.php?id=3483] .Heckling tactics
*The Victoria Prank - On March 4, 2006, The Bench undertook one of the most elaborate and successful basketball pranks in all of
NCAA history. Weeks before the game between USC and Cal game began, a number of members of The Bench and theUC Rally Committee beganinstant message conversations USC's starGabe Pruitt [http://daily.stanford.edu/article/2006/3/8/victoriapunksPruitt] . The Cal students posed as aUCLA coed named "Victoria" and convinced Pruitt to send pictures, phone numbers, and make a date after the game. During the game, The Bench began chanting "VIC-TOR-IA, VIC-TOR-IA" and completely destroyed Gabe Pruitt's game [http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/sioncampus/02/02/arena.eval.cal/index.html] . He ended up shooting a dismal 3 for 13 from the field [http://www.dailytrojan.com/media/paper679/news/2006/03/08/Sports/Cals-Aim.Stunt.That.Duped.Pruitt.Shouldnt.Surprise.Any.Of.Us-1658964.shtml?norewrite200603161013&sourcedomain=www.dailytrojan.com&page=] .*The Bench has become infamous for its "(Un)official Guide to Heckling," which is a student produced profile of the opposing team. The Guide highlights interests, facts, or other things that can easily be used to heckle the opposing team.
References
* [http://www.dailycal.org/sharticle.php?id=3483 The Daily Cal]
* [http://calbears.cstv.com/trads/the-bench.html Cal Athletics]
* [http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/sioncampus/02/02/arena.eval.cal/index.html Sports Illustrated]
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