Are they going to take bait?

Way to go, Bill Plaschke, trying to make the Florida Gators the bad guys [March 27]. Attempting to portray them as disrespectful thugs (“untied shoes,” “white T-shirts,” “Wooden who?”) is not going to work.

Move along, people, there’s nothing to see here. The Gators represent everything that is great about college basketball these days (teamwork, unselfishness, friendship). It appears that Plaschke is doing nothing more than trying to drum up some good old-fashioned L.A. team spirit in a town that has little these days. Find another target, Bill.

BILLY PATTEN

Van Nuys

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It’s a cheap tactic to build a column around riling up the hometown fans. You could see where Plaschke was headed about six words into the story, but by the time I was finished with it, I wanted to beat Florida so bad my knuckles were white.

I hate being so easily manipulated. Damn you, Plaschke! Go Bruins!

BRETT ELLIOTT

New York

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While watching USC basketball this year, I was reminded of one of my favorite boyhood TV programs where Clark Kent turned into Superman.

I was just wondering, has anyone ever seen Tim Floyd and Pete Carroll at the same time?

JOHN MARK

Newport Beach

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It was a disgrace to witness Tim Floyd’s temper tantrum that resulted in a technical foul and contributed to USC’s heartbreaking loss in the NCAA tournament. The USC players deserve an adult who can provide them with a better example.

It is now clear why O.J. Mayo decided to attend USC. He and Tim Floyd both have shown disrespect for basketball officials and deserve each other.

DAVID PICK

Solvang

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Watching USC take a 16-point lead was great. As North Carolina was coming back, I kept waiting for Tim Floyd to call time out.

Maybe Tim was waiting for Mayo to suit up and enter the game?

DANNY LEE

Diamond Bar

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I just finished watching O.J. Mayo’s alley-oop pass that he threw to himself in the final few minutes of a 40-point win. He then received a technical foul when he proceeded to celebrate the dunk by throwing the basketball 100 feet into the stands because there was still time remaining.

I still can’t decide if USC or UCLA fans should be more excited about his arrival.

ANDREW UNGVARI

Los Angeles

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This continued barrage of news clippings about O.J. Mayo has me wondering.

Do the people at USC even remember the Maurice Clarett debacle at Ohio State, or is bringing in a one-year mercenary for a possible national championship run just too tantalizing to pass up?

If you don’t want to end up with egg on your face, you might want to pass on the Mayo.

BOB ARRANAGA

Los Angeles

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I would like to commend and thank J.A. Adande for his columns during USC’s run in the NCAA tournament.

I’m sure when the assignment editor sentenced him to a trip to Spokane and then to East Rutherford, he wondered what he’d done wrong. But he rose above it to capture my feelings exactly, from predicting the victory over Texas to his analysis of the collapse against North Carolina.

At least he was fortunate to be at the Meadowlands arena, where he was spared listening to Jim Nantz call the Trojans’ final game. But that’s a topic for another letter.

KENT HOLLENBACK

Ventura