My NIT experience....

[cheeseheadgophfan]

Took my boys (ages 10 and 4) to see the game yesterday. Sat about 10 rows up from midcourt and had an absolute blast. Granted, this is not the NCAA's and the game was ugly, but that had nothing to do with lack of effort. Andre is in an absolute funk, injury related or not, but he continues to play hard. This team also appears to like each other and enjoy playing together.

After the game, my boys went over and gave "high 5's" to the players as they went down the stairs. They waited for them to come up. My little guy just wanted "Big Mo's" autograph. My oldest has an Andre jersey and was hoping for a picture. The players came up one by one and could not have been more gracious. They signed autographs and made small talk with all the kids. Big Mo signed a program for my youngest and Andre was incredibly patient in taking pictures. Austin, Mav, Buggs, etc....they were all very cool about the whole thing. There hasn't been one peep about off the court issues with these guys and that's something to be proud of. I love to win more than anything, and seeing Bucky in the Sweet 16 makes me want to vomit, but these are good kids playing hard and doing it the right way.

 

[Tucker32]

That's awesome. Had a great experience with my son at the first round game as well. Wish we were in the NCAA's, but fun can still be had. And, there's always next year

 

[97alumni]

Great picture! This is a great team that will only get better. I, for one, can't wait for the ride.

 

[station19]

Took my boys (ages 10 and 4) to see the game yesterday. Sat about 10 rows up from midcourt and had an absolute blast. Granted, this is not the NCAA's and the game was ugly, but that had nothing to do with lack of effort. Andre is in an absolute funk, injury related or not, but he continues to play hard. This team also appears to like each other and enjoy playing together.

After the game, my boys went over and gave "high 5's" to the players as they went down the stairs. They waited for them to come up. My little guy just wanted "Big Mo's" autograph. My oldest has an Andre jersey and was hoping for a picture. The players came up one by one and could not have been more gracious. They signed autographs and made small talk with all the kids. Big Mo signed a program for my youngest and Andre was incredibly patient in taking pictures. Austin, Mav, Buggs, etc....they were all very cool about the whole thing. There hasn't been one peep about off the court issues with these guys and that's something to be proud of. I love to win more than anything, and seeing Bucky in the Sweet 16 makes me want to vomit, but these are good kids playing hard and doing it the right way.View attachment 2563

Good photo and good story.

That's one thing good thing about the NIT that is not mentioned. Many people(other than STH) have the opportunity to attend a game and sit in the good seats. Also a chance to bring the kids without spending the monthly entertainment budget.

 

[Bad Gopher]

Andre's such a good dude. He will be a success no matter what he does.

 

[Tommy Flanagan]

Took my boys (ages 10 and 4) to see the game yesterday. Sat about 10 rows up from midcourt and had an absolute blast. Granted, this is not the NCAA's and the game was ugly, but that had nothing to do with lack of effort. Andre is in an absolute funk, injury related or not, but he continues to play hard. This team also appears to like each other and enjoy playing together.

After the game, my boys went over and gave "high 5's" to the players as they went down the stairs. They waited for them to come up. My little guy just wanted "Big Mo's" autograph. My oldest has an Andre jersey and was hoping for a picture. The players came up one by one and could not have been more gracious. They signed autographs and made small talk with all the kids. Big Mo signed a program for my youngest and Andre was incredibly patient in taking pictures. Austin, Mav, Buggs, etc....they were all very cool about the whole thing. There hasn't been one peep about off the court issues with these guys and that's something to be proud of. I love to win more than anything, and seeing Bucky in the Sweet 16 makes me want to vomit, but these are good kids playing hard and doing it the right way.View attachment 2563

That is awesome. My son had a blast at the game as well. I was, however, disappointed with the student section. Free tickets for 500 and there were about 200. My son wanted to go down there, (I am sure for the girls, which I was not oppossed to), but the atmosphere, and the team reaction was awesome. Especially when we first scored! It was like, we know it too! It was rough!

 

[House 2]

My wife and kids and I also had a great time at the game yesterday. We had fantastic seats and everyone around us was into the game. As others have said, I would rather the Gophers make the NCAA tourney but the NIT game was fun. I hope more fans and students can make it for tomorrow night's game.

 

[jaymil]

Great picture and story. Makes it easy to root for this team even when they struggle.