Hoopy Holidays

There was a time not so long ago that anything that even resembled a legitimate sporting event in town was circled in red on my calendar. I would anticipate it for days, exhort people to attend even get a little frustrated or angry if they had no interest. I wanted so badly to live in an engaged, legitimate sports city.
I guess I’ve surrendered or something. I got a late-afternoon text message from a co-worker asking, “Hey, isn’t the the LSU basketball game tonight?” I answered, “Um, is it? Maybe. Yeah.” It turns out the rare North Louisiana LSU appearance was just a couple of hours away. I had to talk myself and, somewhat more challenging, my wife into driving across the river to go to the game. I suppose everything you need to know about it can be summed up by this: We bought tickets about five minutes before tip-off and scored these seats.



Ultimately, I said to her, “If I don’t go to that game, I will feel like a huge hypocrite.” So, to the arena we went and we really had a good time. The game was entertaining. LSU’s opponent, Wichita State, hit a big three-pointer with seven seconds left to win by a point.



The crowd, though somewhat small, was enthusiastic. We won a $50.00 gift certificate from LSU’s on-line sports shop, so if you add up the cost of tickets, concessions and gasoline we just about broke even on the evening.
We are well acquainted with a number of current LSU students, all of whom are home for the holidays and none of whom attended the game. That confuses and slightly saddens me. But since I had to convince myself to go, I guess it’s best if I keep my mouth shut about that. Nobody like a holiday hypocrite.

Sphere: Related Content

Random Sights From the Regional

(Greensboro, NC)- At a sporting event of this magnitude, you expect to see sports celebrities. Since it was a basketball tournament, there were instantly recognizable faces from the hoops world; but I was caught a little by surprise when University of Texas football coach Mack Brown walked right past me.
It was impossible not to notice the LSU entourage. In a sea of two shades of blue, Purple and Gold stood out in the crowd. The typical Tiger flair certainly helped.

There was some hilarity during the LSU-North Carolina game. The Tiger crowd was small but vocal. They were helped remarkably by the assembled Duke faithful who were sitting on the opposite side of the arena. Duke people hate Carolina so passionately, they became Tiger fans for a couple of hours. They even participated in LSU cheers. The Purple and Gold People would yell "geaux!" and Duke people would responded with "Tigers!" The best part, though, was the response of the Carolina fans, who got fed up and just yelled "Shut up!"
The last word went to the people in the lighter shade of blue, because their Tar Heels won. Duke got even a little later when the Blue Devils beat Texas. So the state of North Carolina is happy.
I must say that in my travels through the years, I have not encountered a group of arena workers, police and assorted officals who were more friendly, helpful and reasonable. The fine people of Greensboro have hospitality figured out. Despite losses by the two teams we were here to see, the stay has been pleasant with a lot of legitimate fun thrown in as a bonus.
So long, Greensboro. Glad to know you.

Sphere: Related Content

No Games, Little Action

(Greensboro, NC) - Now, this is harsh. A media member this morning described this city as "the butt crack of the universe." That's just not nice, but it says a little bit about the mood around the Greensboro Coliseum on the day between games.
Players and coaches from LSU, North Carolina, Texas and Duke are meeting the media. Our focus, of course, is on the Tigers and their next opponent. The LSU players are in an upbeat mood. Some might say it's because they have nothing to lose. Maybe it's because they're confident as they prepare to play the #1 seeded Tar Heels. Conversely, the Carolina players seem businesslike while their coach runs a comedy riff from the podium.
I have to say I've been impressed with My Main Man Tim, who has proven to be a soundbite generating machine. His questions to LSU plyers in advance of their game against Butler elicited responses about "getting mojo back," and several broadcasters and writers hooked their stories on those quotes.
This morning, he asked the LSU players about their center, 6-10, 205 pound Chris Johnson matching up against All-America Tar Heel center Tyler Hansbrough. The question had to do with what they've said to Johnson about slowing Hansbrough down. LSU's Marcus Thornton said, "I don't think we should tell Chris anything. If he can't get up for this game, he doesn't need to be playing basketball period. Tyler Hansbrough is one of the greatest players in the conference today. If Chris can't step up to the plate like he needs to, he doesnt' need to be playing." Now, that's a quote to build a story around.
There's more elbow room in the media compound today because four teams have lost and the reporters following them have left. But remember, we're in North Carolina, so the local and statewide media is camped out in force to cover the Tar Heels and the Blue Devils. They're competing with one another, so we visitors from the west are kind of sitting back watching them throw elbows among themselves.
All of the real work for the day should be wrapped up by early evening, which means a free Friday night in Greensboro. I think I'll be grateful for the flat screen TV in my hotel room. After all, here in the anatomically disadvataged region of this state, it's all about the basketball.

Sphere: Related Content

We're Sticking Around

(Greensboro, NC) - The LSU Tigers beat Butler in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, and this means we get to hang around Beautiful Downtown Greensboro until Sunday morning.
LSU played well, but their next opponent is North Carolina, widely considered to be the best team in this region and one of the top four teams in the nation. So, we will enjoy the LSU season while it lasts.
As teams lose, the media following them start to clear out. So, there's a little more elbow room around here, even now. This is good, because close quarters and a lack of food were a sticky combination. A media person from Indianapolis got into a sarcasm match with a guy from New Orleans, which was simultaneously unsettling and amusing.
The cultural contrasts are worth noting. Midwest values versus South Louisiana sensibilities made for some interesting comparisions. The schools' cheer squads were remarkably different. Butler's girls were in traditional shirts and skirts, bascially in black and white. LSU's women were quintessentially golden, complete with skin-tight pants, bare midriffs and sparkle. There's nothing to complain about here. We were sitting on the front row at center court, and you can't beat that. Now, the question is: can anybody beat the Tar Heels?
One more "small world" moment: we were sitting there in our center court seats and we noticed a guy nearby who looked really familiar. We quickly realized it's Rick Hall, who used to be the head coach of the Continental Basketball Association team in Shreveport. He lived in our town in 1995-96. Now, he's an assistant coach at Radford, the team that lost to North Carolina. We got to spend time time with him catching up on his career. You never know who you'll run into on the road.

Sphere: Related Content

Feeling Two Shades of Blue and a Little Purple

(Greensboro, NC)-Madness, indeed. How else would you describe driving fifteen hours overnight non-stop to watch basketball? That's exactly what my friend Tim and I have done, and so far it seems worth the trouble. The LSU basketball team is here for the NCAA Tournament. So are the North Carolina Tar Heels, the Duke Blue Devils, the Texas Longhorns, and the Minnesota Golden Gophers. Three other schoools you probably never heard of are represtented here, too. I mean, everbody needs an opponent. All eight teams were in one building today, which means legendary coaches were prowling around.We're here primarily for the Tigers, of course; but LSU is completely overshoawed by Duke and Carolina. Each of those teams attracted more than 5000 fans to the Greensboro Coliseum today for shoot-arounds. A shoot-around isn't really a practice; it's more of an exhibition. The players take to the court wearing shorts and practice jerseys in team colors and basically, well, shoot around.
Duke fans and Carolina fans hate each other's teams, so their appearences were well-spaced, with a Texas or a Radford or a Butler thrown somewhere in between. The players barely broke a sweat, but the cheers of their assembled faithful were ear-splitting nonetheless. The most piercing screams were for the Tar Heels' tough-as-nails senior Tyler Hansbrough, who seems to enjoy celebrity status on a level with certain rock stars. To his credit, after the event he mixed in with the students and fans and signed autographs for an impressively long time.
Things get serious on Thursday with four games in one day in this building. LSU goes first, but we certainly plan to stick around to watch everyone. If the Tigers win, they will likely play North Carolina next. That game would be on Saturday. If LSU loses to Butler, we will turn around and drive home Friday morning. Frankly, I hope LSU wins because I'm not looking forward to another fifteen hours on the road. At least pushing it back a couple of days would give us a chance to rest. Geaux Tigers.
-------------------
Tim and I ran into our old friend Dave, who is a sportcaster in Minneapolis these days. He's here to cover the Minnesota Golden Gophers, who play Texas. Hopefully, we'll get a chance to spend down time together. For that to happen, LSU and Minnesota would both need to win. Geaux Geauphers.

Sphere: Related Content

Welcome to Louisiana, Coach Johnson

LSU has its new basketball coach, and all early impressions are they got this one right. Trent Johnson comes from Stanford, where as head coach he led his team to three NCAA Tournament appearances and another in the NIT in four years at the helm.
This demonstrates that he can have success in a big-time conference.
Before that, he steadily built a program at Nevada, a member of the same conference as Louisiana Tech. He used a 25-9 season and a 2004 Wolfpack run into the NCAA's Sweet 16 to catapult himself into the PAC-10. He has credentials.
It also helps that he is African-American. This should give him an advantage in Mama's living room that his predecessor John Brady could not enjoy.
I just wonder what led him to Baton Rouge. He was poised to get a big raise at Stanford, but chose to make a move into the Southeastern Conference instead.
Except for a stint as an assistant coach at Rice, Johnson hasn't lived or worked anywhere near the Deep South. As well all know, South Louisiana is its own unique subset of that, to boot. Throw is well-seasoned LSU fans, and I suspect Coach Johnson is in for quite a culture shock.
His transition will be easy if he can redirect the program which made it to the Final Four just three seasons ago. He said there's an excellent chance to turn things around quickly, adding in classic coachspeak "The opportunity to recruit the best student-athletes across the country and have the opportunity to compete for championship year in and year out: that is the goal."
If he achieves it, this will be a landmark hire for LSU. Maybe the basketball program will be fun again.

Sphere: Related Content