Pitino says he prefers neutral site single games over 3-game single location tourn

[BleedGopher]

per STrib:

In Pitino’s first season, the Gophers traveled to Hawaii for the Maui Invitational, and participated in New York’s NIT Season Tip-Off at Madison Square Garden last year. This season, Minnesota lost two of three in San Juan at the Puerto Rico Tip-Off. That venue felt similar to that of a middle school basketball game, with sporadic music, no public announcer and mostly lethargic atmosphere.

Pitino didn’t schedule any of those three tournaments – they were arranged years in advance by former coach Tubby Smith and the rest of the previous basketball staff.

“I don’t like those tournaments,” Pitino said. “The Puerto Rico one I didn’t like. Who knows, maybe if we’d won three I would have loved it. But I just don’t like being in a big gym and there’s nobody in there. Certainly we had some fans that came and we appreciate it. But to me, Maui and the Bahamas tournament [Battle 4 Atlantis] are great because they play in a smaller venue. They’re not in big arenas."

http://www.startribune.com/pitino-o...ls-sanford-pentagon-it-was-awesome/362405331/

Go Gophers!!

 

[SelectionSunday]

Any wild guesses on how many of those "more home games" will be decent home-and-homes? I'll put the over-under at .5.

 

[dannygopher9100]

Maybe next year we can play a game in Fargo. Unless they are losing money on these tournies I think they should continue to play the tournaments and not neutral site games.