Tweet
Here are my thoughts on the trip, the game, and the surroundings:
-Like UNI, this drive can be had in one day but is much more pleasant when broken up. Drove Saturday afternoon to Mt Vernon, Illinois and then the rest of the way in Sunday (about 90 miles). Coming home drove to Columbia after the game and on in today. Not much to say about the drive that most haven't said since the bulk of it is the same route we take to St Louis. Evansville is tucked in between Illinois and Kentucky, and just not that darn far from Terre Haute or Carbondale. I am especially glad we fly charter after realizing the geographical travel advantage the other teams in the league have.
-Had a chance to drive around Evansville a bit. Saw where the movie "A League of their Own" was filmed (1915 ballpark that Evansville used to play in). I am not being condescending but I truly never found a "nice" part of Evansville, as in residential section. Maybe someone can tell me where it is. The school campus is tiny, like KCAC size, which I guess I should have expected given the enrollment. The downtown area looks to have been revitalized with a casino along the river and the new arena. Main Street next to the arena has several eateries/bars and I wandered into a place called the Main Gate, where I met the maniac shocker fan (and his sidekick) who hasn't missed a home or road game the past five years. If you are reading this, sir, you are my hero.
-Ford Arena was not my favorite venue for several reasons. The place was retrofit into downtown but was not built, in my opinion, for basketball. The seats are a long way from the court, temporary bleachers are put up behind the goal to try and give an intimidating effect (which blocks the view of permanent seats), and the upper level, while great for concerts maybe, just shouldn't be necessary for a 10k seat basketball arena. There were tons of fans there that I believe were given tickets to help fill up the place and many probably have never attended an Aces game. This includes the hockey twits sitting above me.
-The employees of the arena were nice as were some of the fans, but there were more jackasses there than any of the other venues I have visited combined. Not sure if it was the alcohol being served or the fact that they have really nothing to be happy about, but several folks I saw came to the game with the sole purpose of trying to make Shocker Nation's life as miserable as possible yesterday. FAIL. Like @jdshock: said in another thread, they seemed to be looking for a scuffle. Yelling "down in front" the second we stood up was one gem I clearly remember. These were grown adults (at least in age), as the student section couldn't have been more than 100-150 total.
-Now for the game. Evansville played good, probably one of their top three performances all year. They shot over 50%, only missed one free throw, and out rebounded us. However, we scouted the piss out of their motion and anticipated many passes that we didn't last game or last year. Those extra possessions were the difference...and the fact they couldn't stop us in the half court. Higgins and crew were the best we've had all year, IMHO. That is saying something coming from me. Not sure why they quit going to the big Euro but once they did, ballgame. Balentine started forcing as well...when you are primarily a one man show and it ain't workin, things go south in a hurry.
-Met some folks from Kentucky that knew the Baker family. Great bunch of people. Also met some classy Shocker fans from Nashville who made the four hour drive.
I have to work for a living so someone is going to have to carry the flame the next two road shows, starting Wednesday in Chicago.
-Like UNI, this drive can be had in one day but is much more pleasant when broken up. Drove Saturday afternoon to Mt Vernon, Illinois and then the rest of the way in Sunday (about 90 miles). Coming home drove to Columbia after the game and on in today. Not much to say about the drive that most haven't said since the bulk of it is the same route we take to St Louis. Evansville is tucked in between Illinois and Kentucky, and just not that darn far from Terre Haute or Carbondale. I am especially glad we fly charter after realizing the geographical travel advantage the other teams in the league have.
-Had a chance to drive around Evansville a bit. Saw where the movie "A League of their Own" was filmed (1915 ballpark that Evansville used to play in). I am not being condescending but I truly never found a "nice" part of Evansville, as in residential section. Maybe someone can tell me where it is. The school campus is tiny, like KCAC size, which I guess I should have expected given the enrollment. The downtown area looks to have been revitalized with a casino along the river and the new arena. Main Street next to the arena has several eateries/bars and I wandered into a place called the Main Gate, where I met the maniac shocker fan (and his sidekick) who hasn't missed a home or road game the past five years. If you are reading this, sir, you are my hero.
-Ford Arena was not my favorite venue for several reasons. The place was retrofit into downtown but was not built, in my opinion, for basketball. The seats are a long way from the court, temporary bleachers are put up behind the goal to try and give an intimidating effect (which blocks the view of permanent seats), and the upper level, while great for concerts maybe, just shouldn't be necessary for a 10k seat basketball arena. There were tons of fans there that I believe were given tickets to help fill up the place and many probably have never attended an Aces game. This includes the hockey twits sitting above me.
-The employees of the arena were nice as were some of the fans, but there were more jackasses there than any of the other venues I have visited combined. Not sure if it was the alcohol being served or the fact that they have really nothing to be happy about, but several folks I saw came to the game with the sole purpose of trying to make Shocker Nation's life as miserable as possible yesterday. FAIL. Like @jdshock: said in another thread, they seemed to be looking for a scuffle. Yelling "down in front" the second we stood up was one gem I clearly remember. These were grown adults (at least in age), as the student section couldn't have been more than 100-150 total.
-Now for the game. Evansville played good, probably one of their top three performances all year. They shot over 50%, only missed one free throw, and out rebounded us. However, we scouted the piss out of their motion and anticipated many passes that we didn't last game or last year. Those extra possessions were the difference...and the fact they couldn't stop us in the half court. Higgins and crew were the best we've had all year, IMHO. That is saying something coming from me. Not sure why they quit going to the big Euro but once they did, ballgame. Balentine started forcing as well...when you are primarily a one man show and it ain't workin, things go south in a hurry.
-Met some folks from Kentucky that knew the Baker family. Great bunch of people. Also met some classy Shocker fans from Nashville who made the four hour drive.
I have to work for a living so someone is going to have to carry the flame the next two road shows, starting Wednesday in Chicago.
Comment