- Temple got out to a good start, which is something they haven't been doing lately. Was nice to see, actually got to cheer a little bit. Also, they were down 13 and came all the way back, that was fun.
- Felt bad for Dileo. Gets the second start of his career. When I saw he was in the starting lineup, I thought, wow, what a smart move, just have him shadow Clark. And he did that. He never left his side, then Andrew Smith sets a moving screen on him and sticks his leg out, Dileo turns his ankle and is done for the game. Not that calling a foul would have saved his ankle, but cmon, that needs to be called. I'm sure all week Dileo was pumped for this chance and wanted to show he could do it, three minutes in, all for not.
- Wyatt also came out wanting to take over. He has that ability and he had it in him Saturday, in the first half at least. In the second half they put Roosevelt Jones on him. That guy is bigger, stronger, and quicker, he shut Wyatt down.
- Hinkle Fieldhouse is old and just gives off a generally weird vibe. You definitely feel like you are watching a high school game. We walked around the lower section and you pass a bunch of rooms with kids eating pizza, and families just hanging out. We passed the dance team just stretching and chilling in the hall way. All of the seats are just benches, not like actual seats.
- The bathrooms are just the troughs instead of urinals. I think there are probably two bathrooms, but I could only find one. You can tell there have been no updates since it was bult in 16 hundred whatever. Which is fine and all, it gives off that vintage feel. I just think that if you are basically telling everyone that you aren't putting any money into it, then how can you have a 4 dollar slice of pizza and 15 dollar parking? Rip off right?
- One huge thing that I'll never forget about my Butler experience. I've been to a LOT of college basketball arenas in my day. Usually I am rooting for the away team so I am always amazed by the home teams fans. However, I can say this with 100% truth, Butler fans are the whiniest, most pathetic crybaby fans I have ever heard in my life. Not even a question. (And I'm sure my Dayton friends can't believe I'm saying that, don't worry, your fans are still second.) They are so mad at everything. I think they think they are entitled or something. I couldn't believe it. And Stevens makes it worse. When there is a bad call, wait, when there is a call that they believe to be bad, they boo with so much hate it's uncomfortable, but if Stevens yells at the ref, it gets twice as loud. Did you know Wyatt travels EVERY SINGLE TIME HE GETS THE BALL?!?! Well, did you ever wonder why the refs never call it? Oh wait, maybe because he isn't traveling.
- I've read a few articles about how Butler's fans are so intelligent. Could have fooled me.
- Back to the game. I walked out of that game with the same feeling about the Temple team as I always do. They have the players, they have the talent, they show flashes, but as a whole, they just can't quite figure it out. Knocked down some threes, some nice passes, some good D, some blocked shots, played under control. Then in the blink of an eye, Butler is dunking, hitting wide open threes. Temple is taking fall away shots, passing the ball out of bounds. I guess all you can say is, God damn college kids!!!
- Which brings me to a new topic that I haven't discussed in awhile. Is Dunphy a good in game coach? Temple comes back from 13 down to tie the game with under 8 minutes to go. And Rahlir takes one to the hole and gets blocked. Next possession he shoots a jumper, miss. Then two turnovers. Then Lee shoots some running hook, next thing you know it's a ten point game. I mean, does he call these plays or do the players just not do as he says? And during that run Butler got two easy dunks and a couple wide open threes. So, is it Dunphy or is it the players choking? I'm leaning towards both.
- But just to state my opinion here, Dunphy is still the right choice at Temple. I've been reading people lately saying he should be gone. Cmon, he's taken them to five straight tourneys, won three A10 tourney titles, two regular season titles, and they have beaten a top 10 team five straight years. You can't say he is a bad coach and then point out all the good things. He's a good coach, I don't doubt that one bit.
- I'm fully on the bandwagon to have QDC get all of Pepper's minutes. You can tell they have the same athletic ability, QDC just plays harder and wants it more, time for the transition.
- Anthony Lee brings it every game, I like that kid. He might leave as a better player than all the big men we've had in the last 15 years other than Lavoy.
- Could Scootie possibly be turning the corner. He still missed a lot, but he hit a couple of big shots. It's not his ability we are worried about, it's his confidence. So hitting a few big shots could help him snap out of it.
- One good thing I have to say about Butler. They are good. Clark and Dunham are great shooters. Smith and Jones can rebound and play D with the best of them. They have a pretty deep bench. They don't make too many mistakes. They have more athletic ability than you think, and they are big. I don't like them, but they have a good thing going there.
- Interesting that your favorite player has played like 15 games in his career for your school though, get off Rotnei's nuts.
- Always love the fans that yell about a call from the other side of the gym. HE WAS ON THE LINE!!! HE DIDN'T TOUCH HIM!!! Well kind sir, I'm going to believe the ref that is three feet from the play, and not you who is sitting about 50 yards from the play.
- And Stevens, I personally can't stand the guy. He's that quiet arrogant type, like coach K. I hope someday they get busted for some NCAA violations. Ha, ok, just kidding, kind of. Oh and one more thing, you could get away with saying a lot as an opposing fan, but I feel like if I said something aloud about Stevens I might get beat up and thrown out of there on the spot. He's like a God there, creepy really.
- Overall, I enjoyed the experience. Nice arena, good game, and somewhat happy the way Temple played as a whole. I hope this team starts getting on a roll and makes the tourney again. Personally, I think they will and this season will end up being a good one.
Any thoughts on your least favorite fans or arenas?
Thanks for reading.
Curt
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