Rajaratnam sat not with his lawyers but, rather, on a bench behind the defense table, the shiny wave of his hair almost touching his hunched shoulders.

NEWYORKER: A Dirty Business

Rafa studies everything on the table and directs the team from the bench like an orchestra conductor.

BBC: Rafael Benitez named as new coach of Inter Milan

He apologized and moved the rear of his overlarge pants to the spot designated for him, on a wooden bench on the other side of the garden table.

NEWYORKER: Heirs

After walking from one end of the court to the Miami bench, James sat disbelievingly on a press table and spent the final 56 seconds mumbling to the officials.

NPR: Pacers Get Even With Miami After 99-92 Victory

Told from here, from this hard bench that is both bed and chair, table and couch, inside walls and bars painted a dark gray like a grim parody of jail, the story has a different ring than it would if I could tell it from the desk in my office.

NPR: Excerpt: 'The Practice of Deceit'

Anthony had gone to the scorer's table to check back in with around 4 minutes left, but was called back to the bench after Raymond Felton's basket pushed the lead back to 12.

WSJ: Knicks beat Pacers and clinch No. 2 seed in East