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Didn't Saxon use that year this year? She was a senior last year correct?
No. She has played four years at South Carolina. Thus she could play another year if she chooses.
Didn't Saxon use that year this year? She was a senior last year correct?
I tend to agree that this is a bad move but on the other hand, I have to believe they did some serious research before making this decision. We’ll just have to wait and see, I guess.I hope so. I am afraid however that the combined super regional will lose some of its TV appeal. I am sure however that the live attendance will suffer.
If you just take the live attendance difference in the Louisville- Michigan region versus the UCONN- NC State region it's 5,000 tickets. Probably a $250,000 to $500,000 revenue difference at a price point of $50 -$100 plus everything else the NCAA gets from what they sell. I think this is a cost cutting measure with a belief that by crunching the sites there will be greater attendance. I think it's the opposite. Now, if the venue was Vegas and you can turn it into a festival for all girl's and women's players and it became a resort draw then maybe it will work.
I think UConn fans will enjoy Greenville next year. The downtown is small but tightly compressed with every major hotel. All clean and newish. Restaurants and bars galore. Park your car and walk to the games and after gatherings. Great March weather (but for thunderstorms)
https://s3.amazonaws.com/newsimg.fu...153332/aerial-downtown-greenville-cropped.jpg
Simpsonville here. Greenville has exploded...but so has Simpsonville. My sister moved here 4 years ago after our father passed away, and bought a home in my neighborhood. When we're stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic on Fairview Road, in front of all the restaurants and shopping centers that have popped up in the last 28 years, I always just shake my head and say "When I first moved to Simpsonville, none of this was here!"I live about 30 minutes away in Travelers rest, very excited for next year. Agree downtown Greenville is great, hope lots of fellow UConn fans come down (of course assuming UConn will be there!)
And Dorka, Aliyah and Nika. I’ll take that in a heartbeat and wait to see what freshman and/or current bench player steps up.I don’t feel bad at all for UConn going into next season. Paige, Azzi, and Caroline… that’s for sure the best 1-2-3 combination on the offensive side of the ball in the country early next season.
You’ll be fine.
Simpsonville here. Greenville has exploded...but so has Simpsonville. My sister moved here 4 years ago after our father passed away, and bought a home in my neighborhood. When we're stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic on Fairview Road, in front of all the restaurants and shopping centers that have popped up in the last 28 years, I always just shake my head and say "When I first moved to Simpsonville, none of this was here!"
I agree with all that you say, except…”Boston is not a WNBA All-Star”. Sure not now, but unquestionably in the future.1-- We gain a full season of Paige. A definite 1st team A/A arguably POY better than Boston?
2-- We gain a full season of Azzi A possible 1st team A/A being possibly the 3rd best player on the floor vs SC. Or on some days possibly the best or 2nd best?
When you have the quality of 1 and 2 above- you need "A miracle" to beat another college team? It's just that you made it sound liek it's even harder than a miracle. UCONN is NOT "Creighton."
3-- We gain a full season of Edwards (has been our best inside player. The last month she has been much different.)
4-- We gain a full season of Ducharme (at one point during the season she was arguably our best/2nd best player)
5-- Boston is not a WNBA All-Star. On March 5th Ole Miss played SC to 61-51 game. Boston got 15 points. UCONN is defenseless? If UCONN has Dorka, Edwards and DeBerry and Piath, and Brady and Patterson, there is no way a defense can be put up to stop the player that scored 15 points vs Ole Miss?
I’ve heard from friends who vacationed there that it’s a wonderful place. Hope to be there (from Charlottesville) next March.I have lived in Greenville since 1994 and have seen tremendous growth in this area. What the city has done to the downtown area is nothing short of awesome. It really is a treat to spend a couple of hours downtown. There's so much to do. You MUST visit Falls Park if you come to visit.
I will be attending the Greenville Regional, regardless of which teams are there and hope I will finally get to meet some of the Boneyard posters I have interacted with on this message forum for the last few years.
I think UConn fans will enjoy Greenville next year. The downtown is small but tightly compressed with every major hotel. All clean and newish. Restaurants and bars galore. Park your car and walk to the games and after gatherings. Great March weather (but for thunderstorms)
https://s3.amazonaws.com/newsimg.fu...153332/aerial-downtown-greenville-cropped.jpg
If one of the reasons for this change is to try and build new fan interest in the host area by having 3 more games there, as opposed to a current Regional, then the decision makers at the NCAA are even bigger dilettantes and more shortsighted and incompetent than I thought and believe me, the bar was already pretty low.11,500 fans attended the Portland regionals in 2019. This year Spokane had attendance of 7,700 with the closest school being 900 miles away. Greensboro only had 6,500 with the closest school being 180 miles away.
Locations bid thinking they can get enough income from the event to justify it. Every so often the NCAA tries an experiment for 4 years to see if it increases attendance and/or fairness. 2005 they went to 8 sub-regional sites, like the men do. There was a period where schools could host regionals on their campuses. When these locations were bid on, Oregon and Oregon State were pretty strong and Washington had recently gone to a final four. UCLA should be able to make some noise the next four years with Kiki Rice. Hopefully Oregon and Oregon State will get better the next few years.
The NCAA hopes that having 6 regional games in one location will increase interest and possibly build new fans in the host area. I'm skeptical, but hopeful.
2026 the regionals will be in Sacramento (120 miles from Stanford- basically the same distance as UConn is from Albany) and Dallas.
Once you get to Spartanburg it’s fine. State line through Gaffney is horribleGreenville is a great place for the regional, the downtown is arguably the best in the Carolinas...and the arena's location is just about perfect.
Two qualms. If anyone is planning on driving there next year for the regional... be sure to leave a week before the games... cause it will take you about 6 days to drive from the NC border down to Greenville. Second... the arena needs to fix the issue with the ice condensation under the hardwood. It was a big issue when they had the men's tourney down there a few weeks ago. Lots of players were slipping and sliding, thankfully no major injuries occured.
One more thought about this. The NCAA can set up a NCAA WBB experience with former wbb players and coaches available for autographs and pictures. The final four games could also be played there negating the need for traveling to another venue.I have been talking about Vegas the last 2 days. You could have a girl's and women's basketball festival with contests, Hall of Famers, clinics, youth tournaments, mini basketball camps, exhibitors and exhibitions, and the like plus a great place for food and entertainment for the whole family. To grow the game you need a place the young players want to go to and the parents or grandparents want to take them to also. If I get on a plane to go 3,000 miles it will not be just to see games. I want other reasons also such as to make it a vacation. Seattle, Spokane and Portland ain't exactly the same nor are the other sites. Like someone said, when was the last time the NCAA did something right? They bungled the whole transfer hardship exemptions so badly they just scrapped it for the transfer portal. Do not think for a minute that was anything other than getting rid of potential future lawsuits due to the capriciousness of their decisions.
I think UConn fans will enjoy Greenville next year. The downtown is small but tightly compressed with every major hotel. All clean and newish. Restaurants and bars galore. Park your car and walk to the games and after gatherings. Great March weather (but for thunderstorms)
https://s3.amazonaws.com/newsimg.fu...153332/aerial-downtown-greenville-cropped.jpg
Greenville has apparently impressed the SEC and the NCAA, because now we are part of the regular rotation for both the SEC conference tournament and regional games for both the men's and women's tournaments. The public has done a wonderful job of supporting these events when held here.I was in Greenville back in 2017 for work and we just so happened to end a day earlier than expected -- and it was when the SEC wbb tournament was going on! Of course I got tickets and ended up getting to see both SC and Miss State play. Great atmosphere, nice stadium, and even though I was in "enemy territory" wearing UConn gear, everyone was very nice. I even ended up buying a SEC wbb tourney shirt to remember the trip!
I did go to dinner nearby later and confirm there is a lot there. It looked like a lot of new development and pretty easy to get around. I wouldn't mind revisiting at some point.
Greenville is my hometown. Grew up on North Main. Although I haven’t lived there in 30 years, I plan to retire in the area.I have lived in Greenville since 1994 and have seen tremendous growth in this area. What the city has done to the downtown area is nothing short of awesome. It really is a treat to spend a couple of hours downtown. There's so much to do. You MUST visit Falls Park if you come to visit.
I will be attending the Greenville Regional, regardless of which teams are there and hope I will finally get to meet some of the Boneyard posters I have interacted with on this message forum for the last few years.
Depending where you are coming from, skip Charlotte and Gaffney area and take 26 to 25. When we used to drive to CT that saved us a ton of hassle and traffic jams.Once you get to Spartanburg it’s fine. State line through Gaffney is horrible
Here is the RFP document for hosting a Regional:While I love the Greenville, SC location (I can drive), unusual some of these 2nd tier cities (i.e. Birmingham, Greenville) were picked. Nice cities but difficult locations to fly into with a limited number of hotel rooms. Would love to know the process that was followed to make city picks.
While I love the Greenville, SC location (I can drive), unusual some of these 2nd tier cities (i.e. Birmingham, Greenville) were picked. Nice cities but difficult locations to fly into with a limited number of hotel rooms. Would love to know the process that was followed to make city picks.
Probably boiled down to biddingWhile I love the Greenville, SC location (I can drive), unusual some of these 2nd tier cities (i.e. Birmingham, Greenville) were picked. Nice cities but difficult locations to fly into with a limited number of hotel rooms. Would love to know the process that was followed to make city picks.
Probably boiled down to bidding
super nice airport also, like a city parkGreenville is a great place for the regional, the downtown is arguably the best in the Carolinas...and the arena's location is just about perfect.
Two qualms. If anyone is planning on driving there next year for the regional... be sure to leave a week before the games... cause it will take you about 6 days to drive from the NC border down to Greenville. Second... the arena needs to fix the issue with the ice condensation under the hardwood. It was a big issue when they had the men's tourney down there a few weeks ago. Lots of players were slipping and sliding, thankfully no major injuries occured.
According to ESPN's box score the 15000 seat Wichita arena drew 4500 for their E8 game.With the exception of Spokane, all these arenas seat more than 15,000 (Spokane approx. 12,600). Bridgeport only seats about 10,000. Don't know if the NCAA will want to go with such a comparitively small arena, though Bridgeport fills the arena, while the others tend not to.