[paradox]

Let's face it, the crowd gets taken out of the game when you get blown out at home. That stands true for any sport on any level.

[LUconn]

The crowd was out of the game when it was 3-2.

[thepostman]

the crowd was out of it from the start...what else is new that is how its been all year...i hope people aren't trying to use the crowd as an excuse for not playing hard...

i understand that they feed off the crowd...but we got killed and the guys from the start did not look like they wanted this game

I am sorry if that upsets some people...

now is the season ruined because of this one game?? of course not...but i am so sick of people trying to blame the crowd for losing...its a lame excuse

play with some heart then the crowd comes to life

and 90% of the schools out there if their teams were playing like ours did last night the place would be dead...yes there are those rare exceptions...but you're fooling yourself if you really believe that most schools would get up and cheer after the butt kicking we got last night...

I just want to forget about this game...this is the last time i am even going to look at this thread

[SuperJon]

I don't know, I think that's fairly typical of the "adults" in most fan bases. They like to sit and clap, and get annoyed when people in front of them stand. It's been that way at every arena I've been at. I sit with the big kids and I definitely feel like I'm in somebody's way when I get excited and stand. But in the first half, when we were still in the game, it was dead silent at times. That's a joke on every type of fan's part. You're never gonna get the Baptist side to be loud. But that's what students are for. Maybe you could convince the whole student section to spread around the bottom instead of just on one side. The fogies can't yell at all of them. Although that would require students showing up before tipoff to secure the seats.

The worst stuff we heard were from students we tried to get involved. We sent guys to the corners to try to get them doing something. I got a text from a guy we sent out that said, "This is the biggest group of a--holes I've ever seen in my life." And that was from a guy that NEVER cusses. After last night, I can understand why fans of other schools say our students are the most rude of any school they go to.

[flamesfan30]

i was at the game with some of my friends and we were standing for most of the game. we were sitting towards the back, and while it was still quite close i had a person behind me ask if we (my friends and I) could sit down because he couldn't see. i was a little shocked. i then had fun with him and stayed standing during a timeout.

[paradox]

SJ, man, I mean God love ya and all, but this is turning into a case study for reality vs perception. Let it go. The players lost the game not the crowd. Tommorrow's another day. And VMI may have gained some much needed momentum heading into the tourney, but it may turn out to be at their own expense when it's all said and done. LU is now the team that VMI hopes not to see again. We'll have to see how it all plays out.

[rogers3]

No Mckay was first hollering at Duggar. Like Duggar should call the dogs off. That is embarrassing. McKay needs to take his spankings like a man.

Excuse me? Take his spankings like a man? First off he was getting ticked at Jason for celebrating. And second Even if it was at Dugger The man was up 40 with 5 to play letting Keith Gabriel and Austin Kenon shoot from where ever the heck they wanted to. If you ask me thats a classless act. we gave it to Dugger after the game. If you seriously were running the double team on Seth while you are up 40 something is wrong. I've kept quiet all night but this is over the line. When you can get out and coach a DI mid major to 20 wins give me a call.[/quote

Wow it is a classlass act to bring in a team on a three game losing streak and beat an opponent by 37? We have 20 wins but our RPI strength of schedule is 305. Four non's on the schedule and two provisional games. We have one win against a D1 with a winning D1 record outside the BS. The Big South is as weak as it has been top to bottom.

I hope we beat Radford and win the BS tourney, but less be realistic about the schedule and not just drink the kool aid.

I'm not sure what game you watched, but if we challenged them with any defense in the last 10 min. of the game, there wouldn't have been a blow-out. Basketball isn't like football, where you can slow a game down and run the ball 3 or 4 yards a possession. If VMI slowed the game down, we'd go after them on D; then when they ran their offense, we couldn't keep up. There were numerous times when the shooter was out, totally uncontested, and actually could think about his shot before he took it. The defense came out on him after the ball was half way to the basket. Don't blame the other team or coaches for running up the score when we basically gave them open shots, and often gave them rebounds after we had our hands on the ball.

I'm guessing that RMK's emotions were heightened by the frustration he had with his teams futile efforts on the court. I'm not down on our team or the coach, at all. Stranger things have happened, even to teams like Duke or UNC; we always have the next game and the tourney. We also have a 20 win season- and that isn't something that I've seen over my 25+ years of watching Liberty Basketball.

[LUconn]

I've never understood the "can you please sit down" folks. It's not like we've got assigned seats, and even if they had to stay in that spot, they are attending a sporting event. I'll admit that for the last few years I've been mostly a sitter. And occasionally I'll get some fans in front of me that stand. But since I want to see, I stand. If I was physically unable to, I'd move somewhere else. I'm sure they've got a handicapped section somewhere (Although it was probably full last night with the geriatric VMI crowd). Have any of you guys ever tried talked to these folks tactfully? I can't imagine what they're thinking, telling their fellow supporters of the team to sit down.

[SuperJon]

the crowd was out of it from the start...what else is new that is how its been all year...i hope people aren't trying to use the crowd as an excuse for not playing hard...

i understand that they feed off the crowd...but we got killed and the guys from the start did not look like they wanted this game

I am sorry if that upsets some people...

now is the season ruined because of this one game?? of course not...but i am so sick of people trying to blame the crowd for losing...its a lame excuse

play with some heart then the crowd comes to life

and 90% of the schools out there if their teams were playing like ours did last night the place would be dead...yes there are those rare exceptions...but you're fooling yourself if you really believe that most schools would get up and cheer after the butt kicking we got last night...

I just want to forget about this game...this is the last time i am even going to look at this thread

No one is blaming the crowd for losing. VMI was the better team last night. I'm saying that our fans suck. Both can be true at the same time.

The game didn't start getting out of hand (meaning more than 12 points against VMI in my opinion) until two minutes left in the first half. The fans did absolutely nothing the entire first half. They were a joke. Students included. VMI's ALUMS made our students look absolutely terrible. Their ALUMS were louder, from the beginning of the game when it was 0-0, than our students.

Should the team have come out and played better? Yes. However, anyone who has played college athletics can tell you that a good crowd can give you that little boost of confidence or that little shot of energy that gets you to that next level and helps you play better.

Yes, it made me mad that our fans sat on their hands the entire night. I'm used to that. That's not what made me so mad. What I couldn't stand was the stuff that was being said to us when we were trying to get people involved. Our alum/boosters yelled at two 13 year old girls who were trying to cheer the team on. Do I have to say that again to get the point across? The girls were 13, were cheering, and were getting yelled at to sit down. The fact that they were our head coach and athletic director's daughters isn't even the point. If I can go to VT, VMI, W&M, ODU, Wake Forest, and countless other schools and not get heckled as bad as I did at a home game, something is wrong.

[Fumblerooskies]

http://www.newsadvance.com/lna/sports/c ... 991/13778/

If you read the article...you will see quotes from Coach. Not sure if that was in a regular press conference after the game or addressed directly to Chris.

[SuperJon]

I'll admit that for the last few years I've been mostly a sitter. And occasionally I'll get some fans in front of me that stand. But since I want to see, I stand. If I was physically unable to, I'd move somewhere else. I'm sure they've got a handicapped section somewhere Have any of you guys ever tried talked to these folks tactfully? I can't imagine what they're thinking, telling their fellow supporters of the team to sit down.

Sitting down is fine. I'm sure when you sit down you still cheer and are involved in the game. There's no problem with that.

And yes, I've talked to people tactfully about this. At away games in the past (Coastal this year for example) I told the person I was in my spot in my seat and was choosing to stand. When he said he paid money to see the game too and wanted to sit I said I paid just as much and wanted to stand. I politely told him there were plenty of other seats and that me and my friends would be standing the entire time so if he wanted to move, he could. He got mad at us and told us we were horrible people, dropped a couple words that can't be said on here, and left.

[Mo]

No Mckay was first hollering at Duggar. Like Duggar should call the dogs off. That is embarrassing. McKay needs to take his spankings like a man.

Excuse me? Take his spankings like a man? First off he was getting ticked at Jason for celebrating. And second Even if it was at Dugger The man was up 40 with 5 to play letting Keith Gabriel and Austin Kenon shoot from where ever the heck they wanted to. If you ask me thats a classless act. we gave it to Dugger after the game. If you seriously were running the double team on Seth while you are up 40 something is wrong. I've kept quiet all night but this is over the line. When you can get out and coach a DI mid major to 20 wins give me a call.[/quote

Wow it is a classlass act to bring in a team on a three game losing streak and beat an opponent by 37? We have 20 wins but our RPI strength of schedule is 305. Four non's on the schedule and two provisional games. We have one win against a D1 with a winning D1 record outside the BS. The Big South is as weak as it has been top to bottom.

I hope we beat Radford and win the BS tourney, but less be realistic about the schedule and not just drink the kool aid.

If you've seen any of our games this season, you know that we can give up a slew of points in a hurry, so Duggar has played everyone this way all season. He doesn't pull starters until the other team does. I would have preferred he rest and protect his horses because the difference between winning by 10 or 40 is meaningless to me. Perhaps he believed the margin would help our struggling self-confidence, I don't know.

As for Coach McKay, he probably doesn't care that much about it, but likely used and will use the margin to inspire his team, which is another reason Duggar probably should have pared back.

"Classless" for shooting three's versus two's? Nah.

[paradox]

I agree, I don't think that it was classless, but it may have been a little unwise, since these two teams may face-off again in a much more meaningful game with elimination on the line.

[rogers3]

I do think that VMI should have shown us a good dunk-fest. That would have been more fun to watch than the 3's, and we wouldn't have stopped that, either.

[Hold My Own]

http://www.newsadvance.com/lna/sports/c ... 991/13778/

If you read the article...you will see quotes from Coach. Not sure if that was in a regular press conference after the game or addressed directly to Chris.

Everything is back to normal

[grm]

Here's Chris' brief take on the brouhaha.

"Things got a little chippy in the final five minutes as VMI continued to play a trapping defense and chucked 3-pointers up 41 points. At a media timeout, McKay glared and yelled at VMI coach Duggar Baucom, seemingly unhappy about the Keydets’ style of play with such a huge lead."

[RagingTireFire]

If I remember correctly, when J Allison was playing at LU -- well, 'playing' may be the wrong word -- when J Allison was on the team at LU, he was the spark plug guy on the end of the bench jumping up and down and celebrating every little thing like it was a game-winning shot. You need guys like that on your team and I don't know if VMI has one of those kind of guys on their roster so maybe he's still in that role for them even as an assistant. From the other side now, it's clearly annoying but I can also see why he would do it.

As for the fans, anyone who yells at 13 year-old girls at a sporting event for cheering their team needs to be taken out behind the team bus, made to stand in the exhaust fumes until they're nice and lightheaded and then pimp-slapped repeatedly.

[thepostman]

Our alum/boosters yelled at two 13 year old girls who were trying to cheer the team on. Do I have to say that again to get the point across? The girls were 13, were cheering, and were getting yelled at to sit down. The fact that they were our head coach and athletic director's daughters isn't even the point. If I can go to VT, VMI, W&M, ODU, Wake Forest, and countless other schools and not get heckled as bad as I did at a home game, something is wrong.

i know i said i wouldn't read this thread again...but i am a liar..haha

anyways...you're completely right about this...there is no reason for stuff like that to happen. I meant to say that in my thread...

I know you aren't blaming the loss on the crowd...i have a slightly different opinion of things...the crowd was bad from the start...unfortunatly the crowd needs something to cheer about...yes we were in it in the first half, but there was only one player out there that seemed to be playing hard and that was our senior...that is why the crowd stayed dead even while we were still in the game....

anyways...the loss sucks and it pisses us all off and then we start yelling at each other...

[LUconn]

Here's Chris' brief take on the brouhaha.

"Things got a little chippy in the final five minutes as VMI continued to play a trapping defense and chucked 3-pointers up 41 points. At a media timeout, McKay glared and yelled at VMI coach Duggar Baucom, seemingly unhappy about the Keydets’ style of play with such a huge lead."

I'm sure if you asked RMK now he'd say that they should have played defense, but in the heat of the moment, the moment of being taken to the woodshed, he got mad.

[rogers3]

Here's Chris' brief take on the brouhaha.

"Things got a little chippy in the final five minutes as VMI continued to play a trapping defense and chucked 3-pointers up 41 points. At a media timeout, McKay glared and yelled at VMI coach Duggar Baucom, seemingly unhappy about the Keydets’ style of play with such a huge lead."

I'm sure if you asked RMK now he'd say that they should have played defense, but in the heat of the moment, the moment of being taken to the woodshed, he got mad.

+1

[Rooster Cogburn]

Bottom line, this team is young and played young last night. They seem to discourage easily and at times don't seem to have the fight the scrap back in. The answer last night in their minds was the jack up threes when they were cold as ice when in reality the lane to the basket was open again and again. I love this team and think we will be incredible next year and the year after, but I think their early success gave most of us elevated expectations. The reality (even after last nights embarassment) is this team has overachieved all year and has won more games than any of us thought possible. Can they still make a run at the tourney title, YES! But do we all need to rachet expectations back a little, YES! Just my opinion.

[LUconn]

They're one game short of an entire regular season. I don't think we can call them young anymore. They only thing they haven't experienced is a tournament. But we aren't playing in one of those yet.

[grm]

I'm not sure what I would have done, or if I would have yelled at the coaching staff, but I probably would have done some serious backstabbing later among my friends. I've taken some good beatings, and handed a few out. Bottom line is, you'd better lace 'em up & be ready to compete when you arrive.

I certainly understand Ritchie being upset. I think your players have to be a little more physical when they're getting drubbed, not letting guys get the loose balls, making sure they contest every outside shot, and physically clogging up the lanes. Let them win by 40 from the foul line, but don't let them rub your nose in it, and don't let them be more physical than you. I'm not saying dirty, and I'm certainly not saying hurtful (injury-wise). I'm saying, make them pay to play.

If I may be permitted just this one little bit of humor, it will be this.

"At least Ritchie had his shirt tucked in while he was being restrained."

Sorry...

[Rooster Cogburn]

They're one game short of an entire regular season. I don't think we can call them young anymore. They only thing they haven't experienced is a tournament. But we aren't playing in one of those yet.

People keep saying that, but I don't think they had yet seen some of the situations that arrose last night. There is an art to adjusting to the strategy that VMI employed, and to coming back from that kind of hole. They will handle it better next time.

[4everfsu]

I have no problem with VMI shooting 3's or what ever when the game was in their hand. Instead of the coach crying or the players pouting, play defense! You coach your team to play offense until the whistle sound. It is up to you, the team to stop them, not fold when things are not going your way. Now I am glad the game was not on MASN last night.