Game Thread: Mason (8-1) vs. Jacksonville State (2-4), Tuesday, Dec. 3rd, 7:00 PM

[tblack33]

One thing I've been thinking about since Tuesday is I hope Kier's return doesn't herald the return of our handoff-based offense. I thought there were large stretches of games before he came back where the ball moved far better than it had at any time under DP because of how balanced our starting five was (and AJ's emergence under the basket) but there were times on Tuesday that looked as if they guys expected to just let Kier take the ball at the top of the key and do his thing and they weren't really moving.

I absolutely hated that handoff flex offense we used to run. Too many guys standing still on the weak side, guys looking like they didn't know what they were supposed to do, and we NEVER passed the ball to the screener/handoff man on the roll and other teams would start to cheat it. I don't really think it plays to Kier's strengths as it tended to clog the lane and cause drivers/slashers to have to shoot over 2 defenders.

 

[MasonSAE4]

Definitely agree with you, but that said I don't think anyone was doing anything right for the most part on either end of the ball. They would have 2-3 good possessions on defense or offense and then 3 bad ones.

They are going to have to be a lot more focused and ready to go Saturday, because American (I think) is better than their record. I know they have one guy who can really score. Hopefully they are practicing and focusing better going into Saturday.

Oh I'm not saying any part of our struggles on Tuesday we're correlated with the handoff/isolation thing. I'm just saying it was the first time we really saw it make a return and I hope to god we don't see it again.

 

[GMUgemini]

GK hit the nail on the head. The arena felt sleepy.

Idk what needs to change but live sporting events in general (not just mason) seem pretty lame to me.

Sports used to be innovative, they incorporated bands, cheerleaders, dancers, half time shows. But now it’s the same acts across all sports.

I saw on the broadcast there were students sitting there with their coats on their laps like they are the elderly sitting in front of the fire in the middle of the winter with a cup of Sleepytime tea in their hands.

GK's highlights: literally no one stands up when AJ has that monster slam after the steal. Like, how do you not stand up after a play like that?

Only 2400 in the stands, that doesn't help either.

 

[Mason32]

GK hit the nail on the head. The arena felt sleepy.

Tuesday night after Thanksgiving against Jacksonville Fing State, is this surprising?

 

[LOUDMOUTHS]

GK hit the nail on the head. The arena felt sleepy.

Idk what needs to change but live sporting events in general (not just mason) seem pretty lame to me.

Sports used to be innovative, they incorporated bands, cheerleaders, dancers, half time shows. But now it’s the same acts across all sports.

I was at the Xavier home game last night and it was sleepy as can be. They use a DJ over a band and the hype guy kept talking about how loud the arena is known to be. It was just as quiet as a couple thousand at Eagle Bank for the most part, and playing loud hip hop music doesn’t count as loudness.

 

[mkaufman1]

Oh I'm not saying any part of our struggles on Tuesday we're correlated with the handoff/isolation thing. I'm just saying it was the first time we really saw it make a return and I hope to god we don't see it again.

I get ya, I do think though we may see it since Kier can create off having isolation whether its a drive and pull up at the elbow or a drop a pass down to a big. I do prefer the motion and screening plays though.

 

[MasonSAE4]

GK hit the nail on the head. The arena felt sleepy.

Idk what needs to change but live sporting events in general (not just mason) seem pretty lame to me.

Sports used to be innovative, they incorporated bands, cheerleaders, dancers, half time shows. But now it’s the same acts across all sports.

Totally agree. Maybe it's just because I've been lucky enough to spend a large stretch of the past couple of years in Europe, but American sports atmospheres (particularly at the pro-level) feel totally inorganic and forced, more so than they have in a long time. Maybe I've just started noticing, idk.

Obviously Mason hasn't been successful enough recently to warrant a loud, packed arena but man did Tuesday feel quiet. Not entirely sure what can be done to fix it though. It's getting tired beating on the student section, but they're just so quiet. At least it looks like the amount of students showing up is very slowly creeping up.

 

[Patriotsince81]

Our fan base or lack thereof, for the most part, consists of:
1. Senior citizens who don't like noise or showing any emotion. It's hard to jump out of your seat with a "Hurricane" in hand.
2. Students with too many other options socially and a history of us not being relevant.
3. A few, and I mean very few, diehards who yell and scream and then get told to stuff it by the old farts and administration.

We are the "polite" fans who intimidate NO ONE. It's embarrassing to play vcu and others at home. They have as many fans as we do.

Winning consistently, by that I mean NCAA year in and year out, is the only way to energize a fan base. From the student standpoint I can see why they are apathetic. 2011 was our last NCAA appearance. Current freshman were 10 at the time and have never seen a real winning program. Current Seniors were 14 in 2011 and have not seen a winner either. Young Alums in their mid to late 20's had a team that did not win when they were in school. So, we've lost on all counts when it comes to attendance when it comes to the younger crowd. If DP gets us winning at home and appearing in the dance on a regular basis we'll see a gradual increase in younger alums buying in. It's not going to happen anytime soon. Homecoming beat downs like vcu last year certainly do not help spur any interest in the program.

 

[GMUgemini]

I don't like this take because you take a look at GCU's student section, for instance, and they bring it every game, and that program has never been "relevant."

The old DAC Pack in the CAA also brought it every game, and Drexel, while having some good teams, hasn't been to the tournament since 1996.

One: GCU's admin hypes up the student section before every game with a massive pre-game party outside of the arena, which is something our administration doesn't do -- the tailgates hopefully will help in the future, but they've got to grow.

Two: the DAC Pack, at least when we were in the CAA, had solid student leadership that passed from generation to generation, which is something we don't seem to do.

It's about building expectations and there seems to be no expectation that the students do anything but show up, and even that's only half true.

 

[Mason32]

I don't like this take because you take a look at GCU's student section, for instance, and they bring it every game, and that program has never been "relevant."

Winning is only a part of the equation. Mason lacks a tradition for just about anything. Everything is always changing from the buildings to the student body demographics

 

[Falco]

Tuesday night after Thanksgiving against Jacksonville Fing State, is this surprising?

that wasn’t the point of my post. Live sports are getting tired.

 

[GSII]

send some students down to Cameron Indoor. Learn their system of breaking in new students to participate as a "Cameron Crazy". It's a process. It's definitely not just show up and stand. Kids have to have a reason to stand and exert energy for the team to feed off. Could be a level of brainwashing but I'm pretty sure Duke is getting smarter kids to brain wash than Mason, so that aspect of the formula should be easy.

 

[GMUgemini]

Winning is only a part of the equation. Mason lacks a tradition for just about anything. Everything is always changing from the buildings to the student body demographics

Have you seen GCU’s Campus? 10 years ago they had like 500 students on it...

The point is, the administration made it a point to turn the men’s basketball games into an event and so that’s what they have become.

 

[Five Two]

I went to a Binghamton U basketball game last season. The demographic of their season ticket holders seemed to be similar to ours. The game was over winter break so there weren't any students at the arena. The visiting team's starters were announced. Then, prior to the BU's starters being announced, the PA guy said "get on your feet, stand up and greet...." and you'd be amazed at what happened- all the old people stood up and cheered simply because they were asked to do so. I would love for someone to re-write the intro script just to see what impact that would make. Whats the risk in trying? The current stuff isnt working.

 

[Falco]

send some students down to Cameron Indoor. Learn their system of breaking in new students to participate as a "Cameron Crazy". It's a process. It's definitely not just show up and stand. Kids have to have a reason to stand and exert energy for the team to feed off. Could be a level of brainwashing but I'm pretty sure Duke is getting smarter kids to brain wash than Mason, so that aspect of the formula should be easy.

Kids want to go to duke because of their basketball that’s the biggest difference. No one goes to mason because of their basketball program anymore.

 

[GMUgemini]

Kids want to go to duke because of their basketball that’s the biggest difference. No one goes to mason because of their basketball program anymore.

Lol, kids want to go to Duke because it is one of the best schools in the country. Someone who chooses Duke simply for their basketball program will probably not be invited into the freshman class (their acceptance rate is 10%). Come on now.

 

[Falco]

Lol, kids want to go to Duke because it is one of the best schools in the country. Someone who chooses Duke simply for their basketball program will probably not be invited into the freshman class (their acceptance rate is 10%). Come on now.

You’re debating for the sake of debating. Obviously Duke is one of the best schools in the country for more reasons than just basketball. But students who decide to go to Duke are well aware of the basketball program before they ever step foot on campus. It’s something they look forward to unlike mason athletics.

 

[GMUgemini]

You’re debating for the sake of debating. Obviously Duke is one of the best schools in the country for more reasons than just basketball. But students who decide to go to Duke are well aware of the basketball program before they ever step foot on campus. It’s something they look forward to unlike mason athletics.

Duke is not vcu. If Duke dropped to division 3, people would still be lining up to go there.

Forget about Duke. Look at Utah State, look at Grand Canyon; hell look at St. Bonaventure or URI or Dayton or any number of mid-major schools that aren’t basketball powerhouses but have strong traditions and fan bases that actually show up when they show up.

The DAC was one of the most fun places to go to an away game because of their student section and it’s not like Drexel was all that relevant in the CAA other than being not terrible most years.

 

[mkaufman1]

Duke is not vcu. If Duke dropped to division 3, people would still be lining up to go there.

Forget about Duke. Look at Utah State, look at Grand Canyon; hell look at St. Bonaventure or URI or Dayton or any number of mid-major schools that aren’t basketball powerhouses but have strong traditions and fan bases that actually show up when they show up.

The DAC was one of the most fun places to go to an away game because of their student section and it’s not like Drexel was all that relevant in the CAA other than being not terrible most years.

I'd be interested to see if Bonaventure or URI drew well 1) before Schmidt made his initial NCAA appearance (they were awful prior and before reloading), and 2) before Dan Hurley showed up at URI (20+ years without an NCAA appearance I believe?).

Drexel was definitely a thing back during Bruiser's hayday, not sure if they are still a big thing since they haven't been relevant in many years.

 

[By George.]

Winning is only a part of the equation. Mason lacks a tradition for just about anything. Everything is always changing from the buildings to the student body demographics

We can create new traditions.