No more dancing.
On a night when the action on the court didn’t matter so much, the biggest revelation for the good folks in Section 123 of the Qwest Center was the elimination of the Dance Cam during the under-8:00 official timeout in the second half.
Seriously? You’re going to take away the Dance Cam? This better be some sort of cruel, exhibition-only joke. Alas, I don’t feel it is.
I don’t mean to get all Ren McCormack on you, but some of my favorite memories at the Phone Booth include the Dance Cam. Perfectly positioned in the second half, during some of Dana Altman’s teams’ greatest home comebacks, the Dance Cam timeout often served as one of the only timeout events at the Q that didn’t kill the crowd’s momentum.
And it was replaced with … another shooting game?! Really?! I’m sure I’m making a waaaaay bigger deal about this than I should, but so be it.
—
Wait. What? There was a game last night, you say?
Missouri Western State made the drive from St. Joe’s to try and replicate what LeMoyne pulled off against Syracuse the night before. Instead, the Griffons lost to Creighton by 25 points, turning the ball over 22 times in the process. Ten of those came from steals by the Bluejays, as Dana Altman’s team displayed athleticism and anticipation on the press and stepped into some passing lanes in the half-court defense.
Much will be made (edit: has already been made) about the rebounding (or lack thereof) on behalf of the Bluejays last night against a smaller, inferior opponent. 44-28. FORTY FOUR rebounds for MWSU, with 19 of those on the offensive end — must explain the 22-10 advantage for the Griffons in second chance points. But why dwell on it? The rebounding issues have tainted almost every conversation I have about CU hoops going all the way back to the start of last season. It’s the focus of every post-game radio interview with Altman. It seeps into most articles about the Bluejays’ efforts and fortunes.
I’m going to stop writing about it, because it doesn’t look like it will change. There. I said it. Call me a non-believer. I’m going to stop worrying about it, because there are a lot of positive points to turn my attention to. Namely:
- The spacious confines, 15,000-plus fans, and sweet new Nike uniforms didn’t seem to faze JUCO newcomers Daryl Ashford and Wayne Runnels. Ashford (16 points on 6-7 FG) and Runnels (13 points on 6-8 FG) shot 80% from the floor. Runnels led the Bluejays with 6 boards. Ashford dished 5 assists from the wing and didn’t commit a turnover. Welcome, guys.
- Casey Harriman got the start and responded with 11 points (4-5 FG), 5 rebounds, and a flurry of activity on the defensive press in just 15 minutes of action. He displayed a quick release on the two 3-pointers he drilled, and his hustle was obvious.
- P’Allen Stinnett didn’t start, something he addressed here. But he made the most of his time when he hit the court. Stinnett scored 20 points in 20 minutes, dished 5 assists without committing a turnover, and made all 8 of his free-throws. The 20 points came from a mixture of sneaky-quick moves to the basket and traditional jump shots.
- The results were mixed for Creighton’s crop of freshmen. Josh Jones rushed some shots and posted plenty of zeros to match his uniform number: the only columns on the score sheet in which he registered numbers were minutes (12), fouls (3), and misses (3 from the field; 2 from 3-point range). Andrew Bock logged 11 minutes, during which he swiped 2 steals and had an assist during his time running the offense. And Ethan Wragge led the freshmen with 16 minutes, during which he launched 3 3-pointers (hitting one) and grabbed a couple of rebounds.
On a night when “They” took dancing away from the Qwest Center crowd, it was hard to imagine this Creighton team participating in the Big Dance come March. But that’s the case every exhibition game. Some of Altman’s best Creighton teams struggled in the games that didn’t count. And the players and coaches have about a week to work things out so they’ll be ready for the games that do matter.
Now, pour one out for the Dance Cam!
November 5th, 2009 at 11:40 am
Thank you for not dwelling on the rebounding. Yes, the jays need to improve but shooting percentage and steals all can take away from your rebounding advantage. The only thing that really bothers me when I watch basketball is when the offense freezes up in the face of aggresive defense to the point of passing up good shots. I am kind of surprised by the percentage of threes they are taking. It probably makes mathematical sense though.
November 5th, 2009 at 3:28 pm
I think there’s a difference between not dwelling on rebounding and not writing about it at all. Like it or not, this is a crucial part of the game that the Jays have been extremely subpar at for a long time now. Yes, they do plenty of other things to win games, and I’m all for focusing on that stuff. But unless you can shoot 50% from downtown and force 20 turnovers a game, you’re going to need to get a few boards eventually.
November 5th, 2009 at 5:07 pm
Oh, I’ll write about it. But I won’t spend countless words trying to describe something that can be summed up rather briefly: unfortunate.
That being said, CU hasn’t been horrible at rebounding for a long time now. I know this isn’t a definitive tool by any means, but here’s CU’s conference rank in Total Rebounds Per Game for the past few seasons.
Again, I’ll have to do some searching for the Rebounding Margin #s for seasons past.
November 6th, 2009 at 12:02 pm
The loss of the dance cam cut me deep. If anything i thought they would implement it at morrison stadium. Let the players be the ones who play basketball on the court, not the fans. If you want to include fans in some contest, have a dance off, or see which section cheers the loudest, or get the wave going, all which can be sponsored. For example, “the wave” brought to you by pipeline tavern. I’m just brainstorming. Anyway, keep up the great work.
November 6th, 2009 at 1:59 pm
Yeah, I was serious when I wrote that in my post as well — the loss of Dance Cam was tragic in a things-that-are-ultimately-inconsequential meaning of the word “tragic.” But a second shooting game in its place? Really? I have no interest in those whatsoever. Half the time the people look like they haven’t shot a basketball in their lives, and many can’t even hit the backboard. If you can’t make a layup by your second attempt, stay in the stands! Watching that is not entertainment, it only drives me to pull out my phone, go buy another beer, or other activities that do not involve cheering and/or making noise. I don’t want to do these things. I feel compelled to when the alternative is watching a person chucking more bricks than a stonemason.
Save Dance Cam!!
November 6th, 2009 at 2:08 pm
Just had another thought: with no Dance Cam, that means no Dancin’ Grampa! This is the opposite of outstanding.
November 7th, 2009 at 1:35 am
If we’re talking about advertising dollars, there’s no reason they can’t have somebody sponsor the Dance Cam. I also think it’s more consequential than you give it credit for. As you mentioned (or Otter, sorry), it’s one of the few timeout activities that actually energizes people rather than deflating them. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen a great run by the Jays get everyone going, only to see it all dissipate during the next stoppage. Disappointing.
Re: rebounding. You are correct, sir, I overstated my point like a champ. And I do totally feel your frustration at people who dwell on one thing or another, and who fail to see the bigger picture. One reason why I don’t read message boards anymore.