Holding tournament in Richmond gives VCU unfair advantage
By: Brett Fischer
Issue date: 3/9/07 Section: Sports
Originally published: 3/9/07 at 7:11 AM EST
Last update: 3/9/07 at 7:10 AM EST
Originally published: 3/9/07 at 7:11 AM EST
Last update: 3/9/07 at 7:10 AM EST
I don't disagree with the idea of having the tournament in Virginia, because it is a pretty central location. Just do not make it a mile off of the campus of a CAA team. I thought that one of the purposes of having these conference tournaments was to make sure that no universities were favored heading into the tourney.
I'm not going to say that the only reason why the Rams beat Drexel was because of their home court advantage. However, I think that was a big reason why Drexel lost. Someone could make the argument that VCU came to the Daskalakis Athletic Center and won, therefore proving that home court advantage does not mean anything when it comes to CAA conference play. Then again, Drexel lost at home without its leading scorer, Frank Elegar.
If you watched the CAA Championship, for about 37 minutes, the George Mason Patriots outplayed and outhustled the Rams. They played like a team that wanted to make the NCAA Tournament. Meanwhile, VCU just dilly-dallied along. Only one player on that Rams team really wanted that CAA title. If it weren't for Eric Maynor's two incredible steals and nine straight points in the closing minutes of the game, the Patriots would have headed to the Big Dance.
Other than Maynor's exceptional play, it was the crowd that kept VCU in the game. Every timeout, every basket and every stoppage of play, the fans pumped up their VCU team. In the end, George Mason could not overcome the impact of the audience. If the championship game were on a real neutral site, there's no question that the Patriots would have won that game.
I'm not just looking out for Drexel; I'm looking out for the CAA as well. There needs to be some type of balance for the tournament. I understand that Richmond is a traditional place to hold CAA postseason conference games, but let's think about the other 11 teams in the conference.
Until a new location is chosen, Virginia Commonwealth will always have home court advantage, despite playing in a "neutral" site. A new tradition needs to start, and it needs to start now.
Brett Fischer is a pre-junior majoring in communication and is the sports editor. He can be reached at brett.fischer@thetriangle.org.
I'm not going to say that the only reason why the Rams beat Drexel was because of their home court advantage. However, I think that was a big reason why Drexel lost. Someone could make the argument that VCU came to the Daskalakis Athletic Center and won, therefore proving that home court advantage does not mean anything when it comes to CAA conference play. Then again, Drexel lost at home without its leading scorer, Frank Elegar.
If you watched the CAA Championship, for about 37 minutes, the George Mason Patriots outplayed and outhustled the Rams. They played like a team that wanted to make the NCAA Tournament. Meanwhile, VCU just dilly-dallied along. Only one player on that Rams team really wanted that CAA title. If it weren't for Eric Maynor's two incredible steals and nine straight points in the closing minutes of the game, the Patriots would have headed to the Big Dance.
Other than Maynor's exceptional play, it was the crowd that kept VCU in the game. Every timeout, every basket and every stoppage of play, the fans pumped up their VCU team. In the end, George Mason could not overcome the impact of the audience. If the championship game were on a real neutral site, there's no question that the Patriots would have won that game.
I'm not just looking out for Drexel; I'm looking out for the CAA as well. There needs to be some type of balance for the tournament. I understand that Richmond is a traditional place to hold CAA postseason conference games, but let's think about the other 11 teams in the conference.
Until a new location is chosen, Virginia Commonwealth will always have home court advantage, despite playing in a "neutral" site. A new tradition needs to start, and it needs to start now.
Brett Fischer is a pre-junior majoring in communication and is the sports editor. He can be reached at brett.fischer@thetriangle.org.
John
posted 3/11/07 @ 3:28 PM EST
It's really sad to see how hard it is for some people to accept the fact that their team lost. How about offering any alternatives for a "neutral" place to play somewhere else in Virginia? Oh, wait, there really aren't any. (Continued…)