I just returned to the office from a week in southern California, including (I would be tempted to say highlighted but the relatives I visited may take exception) the 76 Classic.
I'm sure the basketball has been dealt with ad nauseum, so I will limit comments to firsthand experiences.
My first impression was that it was almost surreal being in a 7,000 seat arena for a game (Clemson and A&M) with about 400 people in attendance. Anyone who wanted could sit in the front row. It seemed like no environment for big time basketball and I was silently cursing the "made for TV" tournament. After a day, and growing to enjoy seats I could never get in any real environment, I thought it was pretty cool. The refs could hear you insult them. We could hear the players talking and the coaches getting on the refs and the players. It was pretty cool. The price was right, too. $20 a session for decent teams, and by and larege pretty good games.
Fans from other places were fun to be around, and I think the Gophers had the largest contigent, although WVA and Butler would be close. For those who grouse about the old folks, it seemed like that was the largest percentage of our base that was there.
For autograph seekers, it would have been heaven, as all the players and most of the coaches were pretty available for that sort of thing.
The most bizarre encounter I had was my last night when I stayed at the Sheraton right next to the arena (to be close to the Orange County airport). I was walking through the lobby and saw three referees from the tournament yukking it up in the lounge. They clearly have no friends other than each other. When I heard the guy who blew the last non-call in the A&M game chatting in a Texas twang, I almost lost it. They looked at me in my gold M shirt, and turned away. I showed more restraint than I thought I could by not getting into their faces. I walked away, growling inside only. I will now be welcomed back to college basketball arenas througout the country.
I met the Erbans from Creative Charters. Very kind, welcoming and gracious, even though I was not with their trip. I am strongly considering them for Maui if all works well in two years.
Colt Iverson's dad sat behind me on the way out on the plane. Really nice guy, but he was miserable sitting in a compact Airbus coach class. We were on the same flight on the way home and they at least got him in an exit row.
For those of us who complain about BT officiating, let's just be thankful we don't endure the west coast guys very often. Sitting near a UCLA fan, we all observed several phantom fouls called, and he just looked at us and said, "Welcome to our world. The refs out here are terrrible." By the way, the same guy said UCLA is the worst he has seen since 1976, and a talent level that does not appear to be improving much. He was hopeful that they guy from Central Michigan will get canned and be hired by Howland and bring his kid with him.
The separation between success and failure is thin. While I see the event as a basketball failure by the Gophers in losing two of three, there was no way they were going to beat WVA, so two of three wins would have been the best. Average shooting nights in either of the losses would have brought success.
My up close and personal view of the games leads me to believe the Gophers lack not just a "go to" scorer, which we have known was a problem, but also an emotional leader on the team. It is not a slam, but the guys they have are just a little laid back, and they seem to lack the guy that will light a fire under them when things are going bad. Maybe Paul Carter can fill that role, but right now I am not seeing it. They could have used that a couple of times in both losses when they pulled close and had chances, but it jsut wasn't there.
I also hate to say it, but the presence of either of our suspended players would have made the difference in the losses. We got pushed around and gave up way too many offensive rebounds against A&M, and got almost no second chance points against Portland. While I still believe we have a good team, we are missing important links in a very good team.
All in all, it was a nice event. It is still November basketball, though. It will be more entertaining in March, but there are no front row seats for $20 in March. If you have the time and disposable income, and some relatives, go for it sometime.
I'm sure the basketball has been dealt with ad nauseum, so I will limit comments to firsthand experiences.
My first impression was that it was almost surreal being in a 7,000 seat arena for a game (Clemson and A&M) with about 400 people in attendance. Anyone who wanted could sit in the front row. It seemed like no environment for big time basketball and I was silently cursing the "made for TV" tournament. After a day, and growing to enjoy seats I could never get in any real environment, I thought it was pretty cool. The refs could hear you insult them. We could hear the players talking and the coaches getting on the refs and the players. It was pretty cool. The price was right, too. $20 a session for decent teams, and by and larege pretty good games.
Fans from other places were fun to be around, and I think the Gophers had the largest contigent, although WVA and Butler would be close. For those who grouse about the old folks, it seemed like that was the largest percentage of our base that was there.
For autograph seekers, it would have been heaven, as all the players and most of the coaches were pretty available for that sort of thing.
The most bizarre encounter I had was my last night when I stayed at the Sheraton right next to the arena (to be close to the Orange County airport). I was walking through the lobby and saw three referees from the tournament yukking it up in the lounge. They clearly have no friends other than each other. When I heard the guy who blew the last non-call in the A&M game chatting in a Texas twang, I almost lost it. They looked at me in my gold M shirt, and turned away. I showed more restraint than I thought I could by not getting into their faces. I walked away, growling inside only. I will now be welcomed back to college basketball arenas througout the country.
I met the Erbans from Creative Charters. Very kind, welcoming and gracious, even though I was not with their trip. I am strongly considering them for Maui if all works well in two years.
Colt Iverson's dad sat behind me on the way out on the plane. Really nice guy, but he was miserable sitting in a compact Airbus coach class. We were on the same flight on the way home and they at least got him in an exit row.
For those of us who complain about BT officiating, let's just be thankful we don't endure the west coast guys very often. Sitting near a UCLA fan, we all observed several phantom fouls called, and he just looked at us and said, "Welcome to our world. The refs out here are terrrible." By the way, the same guy said UCLA is the worst he has seen since 1976, and a talent level that does not appear to be improving much. He was hopeful that they guy from Central Michigan will get canned and be hired by Howland and bring his kid with him.
The separation between success and failure is thin. While I see the event as a basketball failure by the Gophers in losing two of three, there was no way they were going to beat WVA, so two of three wins would have been the best. Average shooting nights in either of the losses would have brought success.
My up close and personal view of the games leads me to believe the Gophers lack not just a "go to" scorer, which we have known was a problem, but also an emotional leader on the team. It is not a slam, but the guys they have are just a little laid back, and they seem to lack the guy that will light a fire under them when things are going bad. Maybe Paul Carter can fill that role, but right now I am not seeing it. They could have used that a couple of times in both losses when they pulled close and had chances, but it jsut wasn't there.
I also hate to say it, but the presence of either of our suspended players would have made the difference in the losses. We got pushed around and gave up way too many offensive rebounds against A&M, and got almost no second chance points against Portland. While I still believe we have a good team, we are missing important links in a very good team.
All in all, it was a nice event. It is still November basketball, though. It will be more entertaining in March, but there are no front row seats for $20 in March. If you have the time and disposable income, and some relatives, go for it sometime.
