LOS ANGELES, California – With a new college basketball season quickly approaching, 15 local Division I coaches, including Pepperdine's Lorenzo Romar, gathered at the Los Angeles Athletic Club on Tuesday for the annual Southern California Basketball Coaches Tip-Off Luncheon.
 
Each coach gave a brief speech about their program. Some of the highlights:

• The Los Angeles Athletic Club is associated with the annual presentation of the John Wooden Award and the Wooden Award Legends of Coaching. Each coach reflected on what John Wooden meant to them, and Romar said: "There are so many awards and events that have taken John Wooden's name to be a part of what they're doing. We all know how great a coach John Wooden was. Either we all know or have heard or have experienced how great a man he was. You'd learn just as much about life as you would if you were talking about basketball. His humility was unbelievable."
• On the Waves, he said: "We had three players on the All-Freshman team last year. That meant they played a lot and gained a lot of experience. We did not have a great season last year, but we are hopeful that our guys can build on the experience they got last year. We need to learn how to win games. It's hard to win games. We need to learn how to win the close games. I think our guys are all up for it, we can do that, and we can be a lot more successful."
• To the other coaches in the room, Romar said: "Either coaching against you guys or watching you play, there are some special coaches in this room. I mean, some great coaches."

Additionally on Tuesday, the West Coast Conference announced its national TV schedule. Pepperdine's home game against Saint Mary's on January 9 will air on one of the ESPN stations at 8 p.m. The home game against BYU on February 9 will air on CBS Sports Network at 8 p.m. The WCC will have further information about regional telecasts and more in the coming weeks.
 
The first event of the 2022-23 season is Blue & Orange Madness, which is coming up on Friday, October 14, at 8 p.m. in Firestone Fieldhouse. This is annually the first public introduction of the Pepperdine men's and women's basketball teams. It will be streamed online via the WCC Network. Pepperdine's first game is Monday, November 7, against Rice in Firestone Fieldhouse at 7 p.m.