Oh, f--- us. Big Ten tourney at MSG in '18

[Sky ball]

It seems that a good idea would be for the Big 10 and Big East to alternate their tournaments from MSG and Chicago each year to appease both their Eastern and Midwestern fan bases. Since this seems to make sense it will not happen.

 

[DarthGrumpy]

The Big East is locked until 2026 so any negotiation will have to wait till then I guess... Right?

Yes; but, money talks. If the B1G Championship at MSG significantly generates more money for MSG (# of tickets sold and price of tickets sold) than the Big E, then all bets are off as I am sure MSG put in a few country clauses. Plus, the B1G Championship at MSG will generate a lot more media than the new predominately, small, Catholic Big E will.

 

[huskyjawz]

I was at that game as well. It was a home game for Maryland....literally. It was part of their home game package....their announcers, their band, etc. that's why there were more Maryland fans there.

That's why there were a lot of MD fans.

That doesn't explain the small number of UConn fans.

 

[DarthGrumpy]

That's why there were a lot of MD fans.

That doesn't explain the small number of UConn fans.

I was at the game. MD controlled the tickets including location and price. MD Alumni got the better seats and non MD fans were scattered all over the place and not together. There were no UConn Alumni or other Husky promotional tickets. MD did not want a repeat of the prior year when they played Kentucky, I believe, when their 'home' game was overrun by fans wearing blue. Also, Barclay's is a lot harder to get to from CT by road or by car.

The Indiana game at MSG a few weeks later was neutral game for both and it was about 60/40 UConn. Of course, we all saw what MSG looks like when UConn plays a meaningful game in New York, just ask Michigan St. and Mr. Delany.

 

[Marty Jackson]

When we played IU in MSG last year I'm pretty sure they had way more fans than us...(but I mean...MSG was probably way more novel and important for their fans than us) Not to mention people in the midwest seem to not have jobs but at the same time have infinite incomes where they can just stop their lives for a week and follow their team.

i was surprised at how many iu fans showed up but it was pretty close. i think the red shirts made them stand out. there were a lot of uconn fans there.

 

[willie99]

great news, since this move reflects their desire to grow their presence in the greater NYC market, and we're the solution to that problem

I think they may be banking on a MSU vs CT rematch in MSG in March of 2018

 

[DarthGrumpy]

i was surprised at how many iu fans showed up but it was pretty close. i think the red shirts made them stand out. there were a lot of uconn fans there.

I decided at the last minute to go to the Indiana game at MSG last year and as none of my friends wanted to go, I went by myself. Ended-up with a single ticket using the UConn TicketMaster code provide for the game for $40 and had a fold-out chair in the floor right behind the photographers and adjacent to the IU bench. While there was a LOT of red by me, including fans with those gaudy red and white striped warm-up pants that the Hoosiers wear. The opposite side of the floor by UConn's bench was predominately blue as was a large chunk of the second deck. Found the IU fans to be respectful and knowledgeable and enjoyed the game taking turns yelling a the refs and being amazed at Shabazz. Even the IU fans agreed with me that Crean looked like a lost puppy whenever he did not have a ref to stand next to and cry (reminded me of Boeheim). Only thing I kept my mouth shut about was how much I spent on my ticket becasue the IU guy next to me talk me be bough his and his girlfriend's ticket on StubHub for $300 a piece.

 

[willie99]

I don't think the reason for optimism has anything to do with filling MSG, that's kinda shallow

The reason for optimism is this move is a clear sign the B10 wants to improve exposure in NYC, and we can be very much part of that solution

The whole damn country has alum there so that's a mute point too, no traction in my world.

NYC is a pro town, it has no conference affiliation. But when St John's was a top tier program, one can argue NYC was a BEAST town. So I would suggest a highly successful local flavor would garner interest in the Big Apple. That's why I'm optimistic about our chances.

Right now, we're locked in a corner without many options so we're one of the last fruit to be picked from the tree. I suspect if either the ACC or B10 started to show interest, the other would too. RU was about cable boxes in NJ, Louisville could have been about having multiple other options like the B12 or SEC, so they got plucked earlier (there's no way they bring more revenue to any conference at any level. Our transitional phases may have hurt as well). Same can be said about Pitt & Cuse. Maybe our lawsuit hurt, maybe BC did, maybe Hathaway and PP were anchors because they sucked so bad. Maybe it was some convoluted combination thereof.

Let's just say the stars were "aligned" against us, but that will change.