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By Sam, February 15, 2010 1:05 pm

There is a certain code to live by that makes being a sports fan a meaningful experience. It can be a difficult code to follow in hard times because it involves making an emotional attachment to a program, and linking your fortunes with theirs. It is because of that attachment and because there is the potential to suffer with your team that makes the enjoyment of winning so much more intense when you are lucky enough to experience it. You have to suffer with something to truly be a fan of it. You have to be tested, and you have to remain loyal when the temptation of being one of the throngs who regardless of geography or alma mater flock to the most successful blue blood program  or worse to Kobe or Lebron. If you are ever to earn the right to celebrate a teams accomplishments with pride then you must experience more than just a championship run. You have to be there on cold February days when conference road games take their toll. You might have to sit through an NIT or even CBI game, you have to watch players leave the court in March in tears knowing that they gave you 4 great seasons and you will never get to watch them again. You have to experience all of the highs and the lows to earn a meaningful affiliation.

It occurred to me yesterday when I was sitting in the Convocation Center watching my two mid major alma maters battle it out in a game that would determine 3rd place in the MAC West that this game had more meaning to me than the previous weeks Duke/North Carolina game could have had to most of the chattering, blue clad masses in the Dean Smith Center or watching on ESPN, because I am vested. I spent three years of my life in Kalamazoo and watched the Broncos 10+ times a season since the day I set foot on that campus, I’ve spent the last 4 years in Ypsilanti going to every EMU home game I can. The highlights of rooting for middle of the road to bad mid major teams are not plentiful, but they are far more memorable than any Final Four could be for the team I might have arbitrarily chosen to root for.

This might strike some as a bitter rant. I certainly don’t mean for it to. I root for Eastern Michigan, Western Michigan, Georgetown and Michigan State. I have degrees from Eastern and Western, and followed Michigan State since an early age. I do not mean to imply that you must attend a school to root for the basketball team. I think it should be your first loyalty and I absolutely resent the notion that you should cast aside your personal affiliation just because the athletic program isn’t as high a profile as the larger state school. I do recognize that some people make an attachment early in life and it stays with them regardless of where they went to school. I absolutely get that and for the most part can respect it. The so called fans that I can’t abide by are the guys that root for the top team, top player, or top tradition and want to revel in that success. These are the parasites that latch on to the biggest thing they can find to try and share in their success.

Classic example is this clown who sat near us at last years championship game:

This guy was the most vocal person in our section. He was more animated in his support of the North Carolina Tarheel’s than Tyler Hansborough’s parents (I know this because as the game got more and more out of hand I kept an eye on both just to have something to take my mind off things). He didn’t even care enough about the team to ever buy a t-shirt. He did care enough to put on his best Carolina Blue Rocawear jacket and matching Carolina Blue Old English D hat, and try to taunt Spartan fans in our section. He liked to declare things over and jump out of his seat for dunks. I liked to yell “Go Rocawear” every time he did, because I have zero respect for guys like this. If he had an equally unaffiliated friend who was wearing green and white Fubu and had a green and white yankee hat it would be different. But this tool was trying to banter with real fans who were watching their team play for the highest stakes out there. It was completely inappropriate, and no matter how much he tried to pretend to celebrate afterwords it was clearly unauthentic and meaningless. He was out there watching a TV show, I was watching a team/program that I had been following since I was in 3rd grade, other people were watching a team/program that represented the school where they spent years of their lives, a place where they had chosen a career path, met a spouse, etc… it just wasn’t balanced.

My philosophy is simple and fair. There is nothing wrong with liking a team. You can like a team without being a true fan. I like Georgetown. I root for Georgetown, watch them when I can, know who their players and coaches are, and read about them. I like their tradition, I like that they win at an elite level without taking dirty BCS football money, and I just plain enjoy watching them play. I am a true fan of Western Michigan. This is because I can’t walk away when the program is down, or when we have a tough loss. If Georgetown starts a long slide it won’t bother me that much, I’ll just root for Seton Hall or something. If Western Michigan starts/continues to slide I’ll get pissed, want the coach fired, call Ball State cheaters, want to build a new arena, drink more, etc… I can’t walk away from “my team”. If you don’t have a team you can’t just pick one up overnight . You have to earn the right to call a team yours through time and energy expelled watching, hoping, and sometimes being disappointed. Until such time as you become a true fan of a team you should be respectful of true fans and never try to equate your loss affiliations with their real passions. If some tool at BW3s who grew up in the same town as I did, went to community college, grew up rooting for the Fab-5 and then Michigan State when Izzo became dominate, and has never lived outside of Metro Detroit, sits next to me to watch Kentucky play WMU in the tournament this March (I can dream), he better not pump his fist and try to talk shit to me if Kentucky is beating up on Western Michigan just because he really likes Wall, and Bledsoe. He doesn’t matter, his thoughts don’t matter, and his happiness is just a meaningless front, because to him, sports don’t matter. I’d rather watch a game with some crusty old Kentucky fan from the hill country who has a picture of Adolph Rupp in his rec room if he is a true fan of his team. Because at least that guy gets it.

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By Sam, February 6, 2010 9:01 am

The MAC West looks like its going to CMU. The Chips have a 3 game lead as WMU and NIU have faded during cross divisional play. Eastern Michigan will probably have a sub .500 conference record as they continue to drop winnable home games, and I am quickly becoming frustrated with the prospects of the conference to crown a champion capable of winning an NCAA tournament game.

Michigan State played a terrible game and was thoroughly out classed by Wisconsin. Kalin Lucas rolls his ankle and might be out for the seasons most pivotal stretch (@Illinois, and Purdue). If they don’t win the Big Ten regular season after starting 9-0 then they should make Paul Davis an honorary captain during the Big Ten tournament, and probably shouldn’t be expecting a deep run in March. The notion that everything will be all right in March is an over estimate in East Lansing. State really hasn’t been playing good basketball for the last month, and I don’t believe Tom Izzo can just have them flip a switch. I really hope they don’t fade down the stretch because this is a likable collection of players, but after the debacle in Madison I have my concerns.

Rhett assures me that Lon Kruger will step up today and stop the Mormons from running away with the Mountain West. Let’s see if Jimmer can carry his sprite drinking, polygamist practicing, Orrin Hatch voting, door to door bothering, 25 year olds to victory in a hostile and sin filled environment.

I need wins by UNLV, Western Michigan, Eastern Michigan, and Michigan State today to feel good about the direction of this season. I’ll take 3-1 but anything less than that and my worries will continue. I’ll be at the Convo in a few hours cheering on EMU against Ohio U. Hope its worth it.

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By Sam, January 21, 2010 6:52 pm

#1 John Calipari

College basketball needs a great renegade to come along every so often to scare the shit out the blue bloods and cause a stir. John Thompson did that in the 80’s leading a Jesuit school with no football program or tradition to speak of, with a roster of scary good and fearless black players in a new conference to the very height of the national scene. In the later part of that decade and into the early 90’s Jerry Tarkanian took UNLV out of obscurity and into the national spotlight with Frank Sinatra and Bill Cosby sitting court side some nights. It was fun, it was unique, it was limited. During the 00’s John Calapari started a semi renegade empire in Memphis utilizing the most dangerous new tool available to him, the one and done. Cal used his connections to seedy middle men to get a steady flow of hot shot high school stars that never intended to stay long in the college game. His Memphis teams won big, beat big programs, and had NCAA tournament success. Cal built something at Memphis from the ground up that threatened the bigger, more established and likely just as dirty programs that he was routinely beating. He had become a hated and feared man by the big AQ program fans.

You knew that once Patrick Ewing left Georgetown that Hoya Paranoia would fade. You knew that the NCAA would eventually catch up to Tark and end his empire in the dessert, and we all knew that eventually somebody would drop a dime on one of Memphis’ one and dones. What nobody expected was that before Calapari could meet his apocalyptic downfall in Memphis he would jump ship and lead the bluest of blue blood programs who cheat more on accident than he ever did on purpose. Now instead of being a rouge anomaly at neat program in a non AQ conference, Calipari is a giant hypocritical horse’s ass at the biggest, brashest, fuck headyest program in all the world. His act slickster act was more palatable before he became the front man at college basketballs winningest program. It is the equivalent of John Dillinger becoming President of the United States. If you are going to be an outlaw be an outlaw, if you are going to run one of college basketballs blue blood programs you have to be an insufferable, phony, christian huckster like Bill Self, Roy Williams, or Ben Howland. Calipari blurred the lines and instead of being a martyr for gangster when the law came to Memphis he cashed out and took his once fresh act to a place where it is not by any means cute.

The Lowlights:

• His introductory press conference and midnight madness address to Kentucky fans are the most obnoxious moments in the history of spoken word.
• Sometime this year he will lock John Wall in an embrace and pretend he coached him
• There is much more to come. Stay tuned if you can stand it.

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By Sam, January 17, 2010 4:56 pm

#2 Alex Legion

Alex Legion managed to shoot way up this list with his most recent antics, and since he announced his 5th change of heart in where he will continue his amateur career this decade he makes it all the way up to #2 for embodying the entitlement and profound selfishness that represent his type of player. Alex Legion is basically a sixth man at best now  but don’t tell that to Momma Legion. This Mother of the Year has called into talk radio shows to trash coaches that her son was playing for, taken him out of schools, and basically shopped him around as if he were a used car. For his part Legion has been whinny, soft, and underwhelming at every stop. His refusal to accept coaching and play a role less than star on any team he has played for has stunted his growth as a player. He was at one time a very sought after recruit but has now fallen all the way to a sideshow in the Sun Belt conference because of his own bad choices.

The Lowlights:

• A native of Inkster, MI Legion spurned the Inkster public schools to play at the elite private school Birmingham Country Day for his first three years of high school. Before his senior year Legion’s mother moved him to the seedy basketball factory Oakhill Academy so that he would recieve the proper exposure and not have to “settle,” for the University of Michigan where he had verbally committed prior to his senior season but withdrew that commitment before leaving Country Day. It should be noted that Alex never started for Oakhill.
• Alex gave another verbal commitment and signed a letter of intent to UofM as his senior year was winding down only to once again pull back, this time after Michigan and coach Tommy Amaker parted ways.
• Legion finally committed to the University of Kentucky after his mother claimed on a Detroit sports talk radio program that she had repeated direct conversations with God and Jesus about her son and knew that he was destined for great things but that Michigan was not in his plan. Among her other claims were that this was not a one time conversation but that she was in fact a “prophet of God,” and said that God had told her that Alex would come back to Michigan to play in the Final Four in 2009.
• Despite his mother’s crazy prophecy mumbo jumbo Alex decided to transfer from Kentucky after half of his freshman season when he determined that Billy Gillespie was being mean to him and treating him “like a freshman.” Annette Legion claimed that Gillespie was a drunk and a fornicator who had his way with some of the players girlfriends. This claim was never substantiated.
• After playing the second semester at Illinois in 2009 (and not making the final four) and most of the first semester this year (33 games total) Legion decided to transfer from Illinois to play for Isiah Thomas at FIU. There is no word on if god told him or his mother to make this move.
• Alex Legion has played for 3 different high schools and left 3 different college programs. He and/or his mother has publicly trashed 1 high school and 2 college coaches, and they will still be a part of college hoops (unfortunately) for a least another year.

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By Sam, January 17, 2010 4:32 pm

The Buffalo Bulls look like the early favorites in the MAC East

Mid American Conference basketball is fighting to stay relevant on its own campuses, in its own region, and in the greater college basketball world with scarce resources and a fast diminishing profile. The presence of FBS football has caused all of the 12 all sport member institutions to place an emphasis on fielding viable D1 football programs which is a very expensive undertaking. As a result of this conference wide emphasis on prioritizing football MAC basketball has slipped considerably over the last decade while conferences that were once considered peers have excelled. Fans of the CAA, WAC, MVC, or Horizon would be insulted if they were considered peers of the now lowly MAC.

In 1999 Miami reached the Sweet 16 behind the efforts of future NBA player Wally Szczerbiak, in 2002 Kent State made it to the elite 8 with players like Trevor Huffman and Antonio Gates, the MAC was arguably the class of the mid majors during its peak in the 90’s. In 1995, 1998, and 1999 the MAC had multiple NCAA bids. During that decade the conference had a very respectable 9 NCAA tournament wins. Guys were leaving the MAC and having decent careers in the NBA. Guys like Grant Long, Gary Trent, Wally Szczerbiak, and Bonzi Wells.

After Indiana ended Kent State’s magical run in 2002, Central Michigan came along with a NCAA tournament win in 2003 lead by another future pro Chris Kamen. Since then however the MAC has not had a player taken in the NBA draft, won an NCAA tournament game or even sniffed a 2nd bid. The MAC is now a one bid league with a falling seed line, dwindling fan support, and no resources available to commit to the problem. In 2007 a 26 win Akron team that won the MAC regular season title, and only failed to win the tournament title after Miami hit a 30 ft bank shot as time expired in the championship game failed to even get a bid to the NIT.

I mention the downturn in MAC basketball for two reasons: 1.) It shows that this is a real underdog league 2.) To illustrate that this is a common problem that is being suffered through by every MAC program. There us no powerhouse basketball school in the MAC who can carry the conference. In fact this conference has more parody than any in college basketball. While Kent State and Akron have had the most recent success, neither has the resources to put any distance between themselves and the field and both have to start from scratch every season to fight their way through the pack and try to emerge as the MAC’s lone NCAA representative. This is the most wide open race in college hoops this year, and because of the tough spot that these schools are in one of the most worthwhile and I am going to try to keep everyone in touch with what is going on as best I can.

To start with every team has played 3 games, and all we know so far is that: Toledo is really terrible, playing on one’s home court is the biggest determining factor in being successful in the MAC, non conference play was a meaningless indicator, and everybody still has a chance to be dancing in March (except Toledo). The way the MAC operates is pretty slick. There are two divisions East and West with 6 teams in each. Each team plays the other 5 teams in their division, then plays 6 cross divisional games before finishing the season playing the 5 inter divisional teams again. Last year the East was so much stronger than the West that no team from the West had a record better than 2-4 against the East, and three teams failed to beat a team from the East at all. This year there looks to be more parity between the two but that really won’t be determined for another two weeks when the teams start facing one another.

So far Northern Illinois has jumped out on top of the West with a 3-0 record despite having only won 4 games in the non conference. Western Michigan and Central Michigan are right behind at 2-1. NIU has the only non Toledo road win of any team in the West winning at Ball State. That so far is the difference in division. It looks like a race between those 3 teams although Eastern Michigan now has legitimate low post monster Justin Dobbins back from injury and should improve gradually as the season progresses as long as they stay healthy. I had the opportunity to watch Dobbins first game back against Toledo last week where he went off with 18 and 4 against the Rockets. They were a different team than the one I saw in Kalamazoo four days earlier when they only managed to score 47 against the Broncos.

Over in the East Buffalo has jumped out to a 3-0 start with wins over BG, Miami, and Akron. Last years champ Akron is right behind at 2-1 along with a 5-11 overall Miami club that always seems to improve as the year goes on under the coaching of possible vampire Charlie Coles. Kent State at 1-2 and Ohio at 0-3 are in the cellar right now but both could bounce back and be right back near the top once they start plowing through the weaker West. The east race is usually more fickle and harder to handicap this early in the year.

So thats where we are right now. I’m going to try and get out to the Eastern Michigan/Ball State game this weekend and regularly post about the MAC race as the year goes on.

The games of the week that promise to have the biggest impact on the standings are:

East

Kent State @ Buffalo 1/20

If the Bulls are able to win and get a 3 game cushion between themselves and perineal contender Kent State then they are in the drivers seat for at least the next month. If Kent State is able to win then they can muddy the waters and turn the East into a week by week struggle for supremacy.

West

Northern Illinois @ Central Michigan 1/23

After dispatching of Toledo mid week NIU is likely to roll into Mt. Pleasent at 4-0 in conference. If CMU wants to contend for the division then they are going to have take care of business at home. Otherwise NIU stands poised to sweep through their first round of games with the West.

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By Sam, December 22, 2009 8:45 pm

# 3 OJ Mayo

I like to keep the college game in perspective. These are kids anywhere from 17-22 years old (unless we are talking about BYU where the players are something like 24-26 years old and married with children) It is not really appropriate to denigrate kids this young who play the game for free tuition. However there is a rare instance when a player is anything but innocent, and by no means playing the game for a scholarship. Some of these gangsters deserve to be criticized like adults since they just can’t wait to get paid like an adult. OJ Mayo was prima donna thug in high school with a degenerate hood mentality. He was physically abusive, pompous, and looking to whore himself out to the highest bidder as a teenager. He went from West Virginia out to Southern California because that is where he got the sweetest deal, and then he left after one year of less than armature competition with a huge mess behind him for USC to try and cover up. He used the college game selfishly and without remorse as if he were entitled to anything he could get no matter what the rules were just because of his ability.

The Lowlights:

• Arrested for misdemeanor marijuana possession in Huntington, West Virginia. Mayo was one of four guys found in a suspicious vehicle by a Cabell County Sheriff’s drug task force unit assigned to serve a search warrant at a house nearby.  The charges against Mayo were later dismissed by a magistrate judge, after the driver of the vehicle pleaded guilty to the charge (though Mayo’s father subsequently had his own difficulties).
• In January of his senior season in high school he was suspended for two games after receiving two technical fouls in a game in which he shoved an official. The suspension was lengthened to three games for unspecified reasons but it was widely reported that it was a disciplinary action related to his altercation with a female student at his school.
• Committed to USC and in his introductory press conference (which he called) sited the media exposure of Los Angles as the primary reason for his decision, as well as his intention to play just one season, and when asked about the celebrity phone numbers programed in his cell phone bragged that his number was so sought after that his coach Tim Floyd didn’t even have it.
• Daniel Hackett was out for six weeks after suffering multiple fractures of his jaw when he was struck by the “elbow” of teammate O.J. Mayo during a pickup game.  Shortly thereafter, it was reported, based upon several sources, including a member of the basketball team, that Mayo punched Hackett during the game.  The player was quoted as saying “Yeah, he punched him,” “They changed the story for the media.”  Despite later denials by Floyd and others, this version of the events was confirmed on multiple occasions.
• During his whirlwind Freshman season at USC he was suspended briefly for violating NCAA rules and accepting courtside seats for a Nuggets Lakers game at the Staples Center from Carmelo Anthony. He was eventually required to pay back the value of the tickets. I wonder where he got the money?
• In 2008 well after he had came and left SC ESPN aired an episode of Outside the Lines that contained extensive, well-documented allegations that Mayo received improper benefits from a sports agent and a runner (Rodney Guillory) both before and during his one season at USC.  It was alleged that Guillory received benefits in excess of $200,000, while Mayo received $30,000 in benefits, including cash, clothes, cell phone service, and a flat screen television for his dorm room.

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By Sam, December 22, 2009 8:01 pm

I have been a fan of college basketball for as long as I can remember. From an early age I have loved this sport and have made an effort to get to any game I could. So on a recent vacation to Nevada and Arizona I made it a point to check out the local hoops scene (okay it was actually the point of the trip but don’t tell my lady friend she thinks we were visiting friends and family). I would encourage any sports fan to travel outside of their region and watch some random teams at least once in their lifetime. It can be an eye opening experience. For a guy who has lived in the midwest his entire life to see an Arizona State fan fly into a rage at jump ball call in a non conference game it’ll make me think twice about doging Pac 10 fans for being flighty, and disinterested.

My first stop was in Las Vegas to check out UNLV v. Kansas State at the Orleans Arena. The Orleans Arena is like Rhett’s personal venue since he was watched so many WCC, and exempt tourney games there since becoming westie, and he assured me that it was a different environment at the Thomas and Mack where UNLV usually plays its home games. I was a little apprehensive about the fan base when I saw a rebel fan in the parking lot with a sideways visor freestyle rapping next to a bunch of trucks and RVs but those concerns were quickly put to rest as the game began. Vegas is an entertainment town. There is tons to see and do, and if you are going to compete for the entertainment dollars in that town you have to put on a show. Even though they were not at their home arena the UNLV people did everything they could to make the game a spectacle. They had a pyrotechnics display and a celebrity video to fire up the crowd (it was Carrot Top though). The crowd was enthusiastic, knowledgeable, and very very intense. I thought the guy behind me was going to start challenging the Kansas State fans to meet him in the parking lot for either a fight or a rap battle. But the enthusiasm died down as the game wore on and K State started draining 3 pointers. That K State team is really good by the way. So I guess it isn’t fair to judge a fan base based on 1 game at a pseudo home arena when they are getting beat by double digits but I think they are passionate and in a certain sense demanding because there are so many other ways for them to be entertained if they choose. The passion can turn to frustration pretty quickly. But it looks like it is fun to root for UNLV when times are good.

The arena was literally in a casino, which was strange and you could get a beer which I did but didn’t really feel good about it. The program was tiny and free, and there were alot of people wearing vintage UNLV gear that they probably purchased when Anderson Hunt was a freshman. You could sense that most of the people who filled up this place were the diehards, and there was a pretty impressive contingent of Kansas State fans as well as a few cowboys. Not juiced in local cowboys, but actual cowboys in town with the rodeo. I won’t go into the specifics of the game because Rhett already did that but I will say once again K State is good and very impressive in person. It was a different environment than I was used to and I would like to go  back for a big conference game at the Thomas and Mack sometime.

With Arizona State I think I got the gist of what they are and what they can be with one trip and probably don’t need to go back. First off I think they used the same architect to build the Wells Fargo as they did to build Crisler Arena. It is a round, bland building with a few trophy cases and not much ambiance. It lacked the impressive collection of NIT banners that can be found at Crisler but you could build your own burrito at the concession stand so I guess that part is a wash.

I was there for the game against San Diego State and my old buddy Steve Fischer who has recreated his patented brand of undisciplined gangster ball on the west coast to finish out his tainted abortion of a career. They had 23 turnovers on the game and ended up on the losing end despite dominating on the glass 39-21. It was a sloppy 55-53 Arizona State victory that will probably be significant in March as both of these teams will  be someplace on the tournament bubble.

What I took away from this game and this fan base was a sense that Herb Sendeck is a very good coach who is building a program and the fans at ASU are lucky to have him since they aren’t exactly Kentucky. For a game against a good SDSU squad they had an announced attendance of 10,055. There is no way there were that many people there even though in all fairness most of the students were away for Christmas break and its a pro sports town full of transplants and good weather outside. The people that did show up were loud and enthusiastic even though it wasn’t always at the appropriate time, and seem hungry for a winner. I think they are a rising power in the Pac 10 and will supplant Arizona as the dominate team in that state very soon if they haven’t already. They are just an impact player away from making a real statement on the national scene as well.

So that is my feelings on the random places I visited to watch hoops on my vacation. I recommend strongly going to any random game when you are in a new town. Not only is it kind of fun and interesting but it makes you appreciate your home teams that much more. I know I can’t wait to get to the Convocation Center tonight in Ypsilanti to watch Samford take on Eastern Michigan. There is no place like home.

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By Sam, December 16, 2009 2:15 pm

#4 Tim Floyd

There was a time when I liked Tim Floyd. He seemed like a hard working coach. He won at Idaho, he won at New Orleans, he won at Iowa State. How can a guy win at places like that? Well probably the same way he won at USC by paying guys to play for him, or by paying handlers of guys to get their guys to play for him. It might seem like a real reach to assume that just because a guy was dirty in one place he was dirty every place but if he had to pay OJ Mayo to get him to So Cal, what do you think he had to do to get Marcus Fizer to Ames, Iowa? Besides being one of the few coaches to have ever been accused of physically handing money over to street agent directly Floyd is a real indignant SOB who probably yells at waiters and mistreats animals. Don’t be fooled by this wrong any longer he is dirty, arrogant, and undeserving of a coaching job in the NCAA.

The Lowlights:

• When he left to coach the Chicago Bulls he left the Iowa State program in the hands of another wrong…Larry Eustachy. If he had stayed at Iowa State that wrong never would have been allowed to go out partying with Co-eds and drinking Nati Lites in Columiba, Missouri on a week night.
• Compiled a 93-225 record in the NBA over five seasons and was by his own admission “not very good at it”.”
• Told a room full of boosters last season that: “Kansas has two players who would have been NBA lottery picks, Cole Aldrich and Sherron Collins, and they are returning to school. Good for them. Our guys get an offer from Islamabad and they’re gone.” He said this two weeks before resigning himself.
• Paid $1000 cash to a handler of then recruit OJ Mayo as a means of gaining access to recruit him. Leaving one to wonder how long and how much of that kind of stuff had he been doing through the years? And why doesn’t he use a middle man? Even Kentucky in their hay day didn’t have coaches directly handing out cash.