Tournament attendance

by **Turner** » March 16th, 2011, 9:11 am

Wondered how many each of the MVC hosts drew last night compared to normal. I think CU had about 3k last night, which isn't great.

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by **CaseyGarrisonforPrez** » March 16th, 2011, 9:43 am

I think if it isn't the NCAA Tournament or the NIT, the casual fan tends to move on to other things. Winning the CIT or CBI is pretty cool though, you get quite a bit of exposure. And I'd take making it to New York City for the NIT semis over a first round NCAA loss any day.

by **pafan** » March 16th, 2011, 10:04 am

UE's official attendance was only 1200, but we also played at a gym 1/5 the size of Roberts Stadium. Many Aces fans who were present suggest the 1200 number is very conservative, because the PAC was far more than half full.

by **WSUbballer** » March 16th, 2011, 10:17 am

[quote="CaseyGarrisonforPrez"]And I'd take making it to New York City for the NIT semis over a first round NCAA loss any day.[/quote]

You're kidding, right?

The UNC Asheville-Arkansas-Little Rock play-in game last night will get wayyyy more attention and exposure than any NIT game.

by **RoyalShock** » March 16th, 2011, 10:19 am

According to box scores, the official attendances were:

MSU - 5089
UE - 1284
CU - 3086
UNI - 3318

Obviously the interest in these tournaments are going to be lower among the fanbases than the regular season. That said, MSU's was about what I would expect. I'm a little disappointed in the others.

I would have thought UE fans would be a little more interested in a CBI birth and put closer to 2000 in the seats, given the gym they played in. CU dropping nearly 10k fans from the regular season? That just doesn't seem right. UNI isn't too bad, I guess, given the drop from NCAA last year to CIT this year.

My wild guess for what WSU's attendance will be tonight is around 8k, give or take 500.

by **MSUDuo** » March 16th, 2011, 10:25 am

RoyalShock wrote:According to box scores, the official attendances were:

MSU - 5089
UE - 1284
CU - 3086
UNI - 3318

Obviously the interest in these tournaments are going to be lower among the fanbases than the regular season. That said, MSU's was about what I would expect. I'm a little disappointed in the others.

I would have thought UE fans would be a little more interested in a CBI birth and put closer to 2000 in the seats, given the gym they played in. CU dropping nearly 10k fans from the regular season? That just doesn't seem right. UNI isn't too bad, I guess, given the drop from NCAA last year to CIT this year.

My wild guess for what WSU's attendance will be tonight is around 8k, give or take 500.

You guys drew 9100 for Nevada last year...I would hope Nebraska could get at least that many...

I was actually surprised by the 5000 considering it was against Murray State and hopefully we some how get another home game. If we do, I could see that number doubling since it would have to be against New Mexico and you know who...

by **RoyalShock** » March 16th, 2011, 10:27 am

If our fanbase wasn't thinking NCAA all year I might agree with you. Two years ago we were in the CBI and last year's NIT bid was sort of a natural progression. This year, not so much.

But on the other hand, 9000 wouldn't be a total surprise.

by **CaseyGarrisonforPrez** » March 16th, 2011, 10:34 am

WSUbballer wrote:
CaseyGarrisonforPrez wrote:And I'd take making it to New York City for the NIT semis over a first round NCAA loss any day.

You're kidding, right?

The UNC Asheville-Arkansas-Little Rock play-in game last night will get wayyyy more attention and exposure than any NIT game.

It's a one shot deal though. With the NIT, you could have several games on ESPN and at a time when there isn't other basketball going on. No one pays any attention to the opening round NCAAT. I only watched a bit of Clemson game and none of the traditional 16 game with UALR and the Carolina school. I'd rather have an NIT title, you get the trophy and New York City exposure. Take one of the NIT Final Four teams last year for example: North Carolina. Look at how they used that run to help them this year. It's a big deal wheras if you lose an opening rounder in the NCAAT, it's like you aren't even a part of the festivities.

by **pafan** » March 16th, 2011, 10:38 am

9,000,000? Where are they holding this game, Indianapolis Motor Speedway? :Beer:

by **AndShock** » March 16th, 2011, 10:55 am

NIT berth over NCAA?

We have more of a mid-major mindset than I thought.