Troy - 1/31/09

TROY, Ala. – It’s been a great week for Denver basketball, and there are high hopes that it will continue tonight against Troy. Both the men and women swept Western Kentucky and South Alabama. It was the first time ever that the men’s team beat both Sun Belt powerhouses in the same regular season.

If you missed it, Nate Rohnert was named Sun Belt Conference Men’s Basketball Player of the Week for his effort against Western Kentucky. That accomplishment, while richly deserved, was somewhat of a surprise in a league that consistently has players with gaudy numbers. Because of the offense that DU runs, it is unlikely that any player is consistently going to put up a lot of points and rebounds. The voters of the award should be commended for realizing just how good Rohnert’s game was against Western: 22 points, six rebounds, nine assists, four steals and a block in 37 minutes. Two of those 22 points were on a backdoor layup with 13 seconds remaining that sealed the game.

Rohnert is the only player remaining from the previous coaching staff, but it could be argued that he may be the best suited player for Denver’s system. Certainly no player has improved as much as Rohnert since Joe Scott and his coaching staff came to Denver. Rohnert was a pretty good player his freshman year, but two years later he’s in the running for first team all-conference. Rohnert is fourth in the SBC in assists (4.60), sixth in steals (1.40), eighth in scoring (15.0), 11^th in assists/turnover ratio (1.53) and 17^th in rebounding (5.1).

Tonight’s game will be a challenge. The Trojans are the hottest team in the Belt right now, winning five straight – and four of them were on the road. One of those wins? A 24-point drilling of South Alabama on the road in Mobile. Needless to say, Troy has a good basketball team.

About Troy: Easily the question I get most when discussing the Sun Belt is, “Where is Troy anyway?” It is about an hour south of Montgomery and an hour and a half north of Panama City Beach, Florida. No matter what, it’s not very easy to reach from Denver. Really, most towns in the Belt are within an hour or two of a major airport with direct flights to Denver. Troy and Monroe, Louisiana, are the exceptions. However, the teams were fortunate enough to have a charter flight down here, meaning it was a fairly easy trip to Montgomery followed by a short drive to Troy.

While not easy to get to, it certainly is easy enough to find everything once you are in Troy. People in town say there you can reach any part of town within 10 minutes, including the Bandmaster Hall of Fame, which sits in the middle of campus.

Without a doubt, the nicest part of town is the Troy Campus, which sits atop a hill just off the main drag. The buildings are all brick and connected by tree-covered walkways, and the athletic facilities blend in nicely with the rest of campus, much like those at DU. Perhaps the strangest part of campus is the name of the main bookstore: Barnes & Noble. It’s right in the center of campus and complete with a Starbucks that also serves cheesecake from the Cheesecake Factory.

The Trojans basketball team has a successful track record and has been to the NCAA Tournament in 1988, 1991, 1992, 1993 and 2003, although many of them were when the school went by Troy State. The problem for some outside fans is that Troy has been in five conferences in the past 20 years, making them somewhat difficult to track.

Like the rest of the campus buildings, Trojan Arena blends right in and could easily be mistaken for the history department. The only downside to an otherwise nice arena is the number of arts crawling around. They are not easily seen at first, but then they start to bite, which is considerably more noticeable.

The big surprise was a look in the display case. A few years ago, Troy won the Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament championship, for which the team was awarded the Cliff Wettig memorial trophy. That award is named after the founder of the Atlantic Sun Conference and the father of DU senior associate athletic director Pam Wettig, who was as surprised as anyone to see her father’s name on a trophy. In fact, Joe Scott pointed it out to Wettig.

Sneakers: This weekend coaches across the NCAA will be wearing sneakers with their suits as part of the annual Coaches vs. Cancer Suits and Sneakers awareness weekend. Denver’s coaches are no exception, as Joe Scott and his staff will be sporting white Adidas sneakers on the sideline.

Writing Award: Shortly after DU hired Joe Scott, our friends in the communications department across campus decided to profile him in University of Denver Magazine. Richard Chapman, the writer of “Joe Scott: More Than Just Tough Talk,” was recently awarded the CASE District VI Gold Award for the feature story. The story is still available online at http://www.du.edu/magazine/archive/2007/04/Sports.html.

Additionally, Chapman won a Bronze Award for “Workers Spend Long Nights Converting Floor,” an online story about the difficulty involved with converting Magness Arena from an ice rink to basketball court and back again, which workers often do a few times a week. Certainly, all of us in the athletic department send our congratulations out to Richard for two great stories.

Son of ShamWow: I hate to say it, but our good friend Mitch Hyder replaced what was thought to be his one-of-a-kind ShamWow shirt with one that looks really similar, except it is black. Guess what. He wore the shirt for both games against Western Kentucky and South Alabama. Although it’s a quick turnaround, which translates to “probably not laundered,” the Son of ShamWow shirt is likely making the trip to Troy.

Yearly travel totals:                          

Total Flights – 16

Total Mileage Flown – 13,451

PACK THE HOUSE vs. Western Kentucky - 1/23/09

DENVER – Huge game coming up tomorrow. In addition to the annual PACK THE HOUSE game and all of the promotions that go along with that ($10,000 anyone?), Denver is facing Western Kentucky, the most storied program in the Sun Belt Conference.

The Hilltoppers caught a lot of notice during last year’s NCAA Tournament after senior guard Ty Rogers drilled a shot at the buzzer that was about 10 feet behind the three-point line to upset Drake. WKU followed that by beating San Diego in the Second Round and waltzing to the Sweet 16, where they played extremely well against No. 1-seeded UCLA.

Those of us who have been watching the Sun Belt for a few years were not really surprised by Western’s success. They finished the season 29-7, the fourth-straight year the team had won at least 22 games, and they had a guard named Courtney Lee, who was chosen by the Orlando Magic with the 22^nd pick in the first round of the 2008 NBA Draft. Finally, WKU had a point guard named Tyrone Brazelton, who DU head coach Joe Scott called the most valuable player in the Sun Belt Conference last year. Scott would not argue that Brazelton was better than Lee, but he said that no other player was more important to his team than Brazelton.

WKU’s head coach last year, Darrin Horn, could not resist the call from South Carolina, which offered him a large contract to take over the Southeastern Conference team. The Hilltoppers replaced him with Ken McDonald, who spent four years working as an assistant coach under Rick Barnes at Texas after serving as a Georgia assistant for one year and a WKU assistant for five seasons. McDonald helped in the recruiting future NBA players Kevin Durant and D.J. Augustin, among others, while at Texas.

This season, McDonald has already coached WKU to an upset of then-No. 3 Louisville in Nashville on Nov. 30. The Hilltoppers have also beaten a few other teams that were in last year’s Tournament – Georgia and South Alabama – as well as Missouri Valley power Southern Illinois.

Western Kentucky’s recent success is nothing new. WKU is eighth in the history of the NCAA with a .670 winning percentage, and its 1,548 wins entering this season were tied for the 15^th most. This is a team with 20 appearances in the NCAA Tournament. In 1971, the Hilltoppers advanced to the Final Four, where they finished third in a year when teams still played a consolation game. They have also had 13 NIT appearances and 37 All-Americans.

PACK THE HOUSE: Tomorrow’s game marks the Sixth Annual PACK THE HOUSE at Magness Arena. Among other prizes, one lucky fan will have the opportunity to win $10,000 by playing Deal or No Deal at halftime. Fans also have a chance to win a year’s worth of burritos at Qdoba Mexican Grill, and one student will walk away with a customized Denver Pioneers long-board.

Random Question: Is Michael Jackson making a comeback? Prior to the games at both North Texas and Florida International, a variety of songs from Thriller were blasted through the arenas. If we’re waxing nostalgia back to the early ‘80s, are Huey Lewis, REO Speedwagon and the Thompson Twins going to give us the next surefire hits on Jock Jams?

Yearly travel totals:                          

Total Flights – 15

Total Mileage Flown – 12.088

Total Bus Miles – 1,329

Total Number of Hotels – 12                 

Total Number of Different Airports – 9

Total Number of Airline Delays – 1

Total Number of Cancelled Flights – 1

Total Number of Bags Lost – 3

Total Number of Bags Lost by Team, Not Airline – 1

Average Attendance at the first five PACK THE HOUSE games –  6,345

Florida International - 1/17/09

MIAMI, Fla. – Yesterday was a long day. The team woke up early, had a quick breakfast at 7 a.m. and headed to DFW to catch what seemed like a long flight to Miami. When we got to the hotel, sandwiches were waiting, but the players had to eat them quickly before getting back on the bus and driving to Florida International for practice.

Of course not all of us made it back to the hotel with the team. Radio voice Mitch Hyder stayed at the airport to report a missing bag, but when the team got to the hotel we discovered that someone had grabbed it and thrown it on the bus.

FIU’s women were practicing in the Arena, so Denver ended up in an auxiliary gym upstairs, which would actually be covered up if all the bleachers were extended. To say the gym was cozy would be an understatement. There was about two feet beyond the end lines, and the sidelines were walls. However, the team made due and had a good practice for about 90 minutes before a quick workout in FIU’s weight room. The drive back to the hotel was a little longer due to rush hour, but there was still about an hour before dinner.

For the second-straight time, we ate at an Italian chain restaurant the night before the game, and for the second-consecutive time a server dumped a drink down the back of one of the players. Nigel Peter-Denman jumped up pretty quickly as a glass of water cascaded down his back before shattering on the concrete floor. At least he got a free dessert out of the ordeal.

Yearly travel totals:                          

Total Flights – 14

Total Mileage Flown – 10,340

Total Bus Miles – 1,287

Total Number of Hotels – 12                 

Total Number of Different Airports – 9

Total Number of Airline Delays – 1

Total Number of Cancelled Flights – 1

Total Number of Bags Lost – 2

Total Number of Bags Lost by Team, Not Airline – 1

Total Number of Players Doused with Drinks by Waiters – 4

North Texas - 1/15/09

DENTON, Texas – We are on the crispy cold campus of North Texas right now inside The Super Pit, where they put their students in the Pit Crew right behind the visitor’s bench. If nothing else, North Texas really has a way with names. That includes the Mean Green.

As I’ve heard it, North Texas has always used a screaming eagle as the school’s mascot (if you go to www.meangreensports.com you can hear the scream of the eagle – I don’t recommend doing so at work), but at some point after Mean Joe Greene graduated from North Texas in 1969 and headed to the Steel Curtain in Pittsburgh, the school renamed its teams. As a side note, according to Wikipedia (which everyone knows is the foremost reference point when checking accuracy), there was a movement a few years ago to add the albino squirrel as a second mascot. I cannot be the only one in favor of the school adopting the albino squirrel. However, the web gurus might have trouble adding the scream of the albino squirrel to the website.

Here are a few more famous names that graduated from North Texas: Norah Jones, Pat Boone, Ray Wylie Hubbard, Roy Orbison, Dr. Phil and “Stone Cold” Steve Austin.

One Streak Snapped: Assistant coach Jon Jordan was given an aisle seat on the way to Dallas yesterday. From everyone’s recollection, it was the first time this season that Jon was not sitting in a middle seat. Needless to say, the 6-foot-4 Jordan looked considerably more comfortable when he wasn’t shoehorned between two other travelers.

Welcome Home: Freshman guard Travis Hallam grew up in Mesquite, Texas, which is about 50 miles from Denton on the other side of Dallas. Next season, the Pioneers expect to bring a pair of Hallams back to the Super Pit. Denver signed Travis’ younger brother Chase to a national letter of intent back in November. In the meantime, Chase’s current team Mesquite High School is ranked 11^th in the Texas 5A rankings. From recent reports, about 80 people from Mesquite are expected to drive up for the game tonight.

When Life Hands You Lemons: A few players were a little sticky last night at dinner after the waiter at an Italian restaurant lost control of a drink tray, and three glasses of lemonade went flying. Fortunately, the restaurant served drinks in plastic cups, so no one was at risk when they hit the concrete floor.  

Shirt Update: Unfortunately, Mitch Hyder’s ShamWow Shirt seems to have lost its magic after narrow losses at New Orleans and against Arkansas State (Mitch did not wear it during the double overtime loss at Louisiana-Lafayette), Hyder has retired the camelhair. Hyder has suggested that the shirt be burned during halftime of DU’s next home game, but it seems the fire marshal has denied his request. Its official record was 14-4.

Hotel Update: More than a couple people made the comment this morning that our hotel did not have a waffle iron shaped like Texas, but there’s still hope. The team will check out the Denton hotel today and head to another hotel by the airport after the game. Perhaps the breakfast buffet near DFW will come through like the one near Bush International did. Tomorrow, we will jump on a flight to Miami.

Yearly travel totals:                          

Total Flights – 13

Total Mileage Flown – 9,258

Total Bus Miles – 1,229

Total Number of Hotels – 10

Total Number of Different Airports – 8

Total Number of Airline Delays – 1

Total Number of Cancelled Flights – 1

Total Number of Bags Lost – 2

Total Number of Players Hit by Flying Lemonade – 3

Total Number of Consecutive Flights Jon Jordan sat in the middle seat – 12 prior to snapping the streak Wednesday

Louisiana-Lafayette - 1/3/09

LAFAYETTE, La. – The bus ride from New Orleans to Lafayette was pretty quiet. That loss was as hard as any I can remember. Fortunately, despite their youth, this team is resilient, and confidence remains high for today’s game.

The bus stopped in Baton Rouge, about halfway between New Orleans and Lafayette, for a meal at the Texas Roadhouse. If you’ve never been to one, it’s a nationwide chain that is decorated with all things Texas. What struck me was the history on the back of the menu. Texas Roadhouse, it seems, was started in Clarksville, Indiana. Apparently, Indiana Roadhouse didn’t quite have enough of a ring to it.

“Off” days on the road are always a little strange. Everyone is used to the routine of arriving one day, playing the next and flying out the morning of the third day. There is always a feeling like something is supposed to be on the schedule, but for the most part the day is spent killing time until game day with the exception of a two-hour practice. After a full night’s sleep, the team practiced for two hours followed by some weight lifting at a health club near the Cajundome. The team seemed to be a spectacle to the other people working out. The remainder of the day was spent eating and conserving energy. The team walked to Outback Steakhouse, just across the river from the hotel, for dinner last night after which the team hung out in their hotel rooms.

Breakfast this morning was in the hotel restaurant at 9:30, followed by shoot around at 11 a.m. As usual, the pregame meal was grilled chicken, pasta with meat sauce and green veggies, served in a private meeting room four hours before tip time, which in this case was 1 p.m. At 3:15 p.m., it was finally time to head back to the Cajundome for pregame warm-ups and shooting. The game this afternoon will be aired on Cox Sports Television in this region and ESPN+ everywhere else, so anyone with the ESPN Full Court package will be able to watch the game live with Eric Richey and Wimp Sanderson calling the action. Additionally, the game is available on the Internet at ESPN360.com, which is free for all college students.

After the game today, we’ll jump right back on the bus and return to New Orleans around 10 p.m. We are booked on the first flight out tomorrow morning, so we will get a couple hours sleep prior to an early 4 a.m. wakeup call.

Shirt Update: After Thursday’s loss in New Orleans, Mitch Hyder probably will not be seen wearing his infamous ShamWow shirt during road games. If nothing else, the shirt would be a little warm in some of the upcoming Sun Belt towns, especially the ones in South Florida. Either way, at 14-3 the shirt retains a little mystique.

Yearly travel totals:                          

Total Flights – 11

Total Mileage Flown – 7,655

Total Bus Miles – 1,161

Total Number of Hotels – 8

Total Number of Different Airports – 7

Total Number of Airline Delays – 1

Total Number of Cancelled Flights – 1

Total Number of Bags Lost – 1

Number of Restaurants with “Texas” in their name that were founded in Indiana – 1 (Texas Roadhouse in Baton Rouge after Thursday’s game – not sure if they serve waffles shaped like Texas, too.)

New Year's in New Orleans - 1/1/09

NEW ORLEANS – Greetings from a crowded Big Easy, and Happy New Year.

The Pioneers travel to UNO at least once a year and ever since Hurricane Katrina devastated this city, we have not seen a whole lot of progress in rebuilding New Orleans.

Perhaps it’s just that the progress has reached the places we travel through, but even last year the number of houses with broken windows and spray paint on the front door outnumbered the habituated houses by at least five-to-one. As we drove to Lakefront Arena this morning, that number appeared to be closer to every other home. Certainly there are still areas that are virtually empty, but it is nice at least some rebuilding.

Speaking of Lakefront Arena, UNO has finally moved its games back into the 8,933-seat venue. For the past few seasons, they have been playing in the Human Performance Center across campus. To say this place is an upgrade would be a vast understatement. The “Chamber of Horrors,” as the Human Performance Center is nicknamed, is smaller than some high school gyms with bleachers set up to hold about 1,200 people. Lakefront, on the other hand, has been completely refurbished, complete with a new court. Needless to say, the improvements since March seem to be greater than the previous two-and-a-half years combined, and that’s great to see.

The team flew from Denver yesterday in a flight that was jam packed with Utah football fans who were heading down here for the Sugar Bowl against Alabama tomorrow night. A few of those fans recognized head coach Joe Scott from his days at Air Force, and Coach Scott seemed to enjoy talking to a few of them about the great battles between the Utes and Falcons on the hardwood.

After landing and checking in, the players ate grilled chicken sandwiches at the hotel, and that was pretty much the extent of their crazy New Year’s Eve in New Orleans. There were no French Quarter tours for the student-athletes.

Alumni Update: When the Denver Nuggets traded for Chauncey Billups, the University of Denver benefitted, too, because it meant the return of his brother Rodney, who was a standout point guard for the Pioneers from 2003-05. In fact, Rodney still stands fourth in DU history with 418 career assists. Rodney was at DU’s game last week and said that he’s moved back to Denver fulltime after splitting his time between Denver and Detroit while helping run his brother’s foundation.

Also stopping by the game against UC Riverside was Joe Jackson, who is on a two-week holiday break from his team in Finland. As I have mentioned in previous blogs, Joe is having a great season with BC Jyväsklä, and he reports that he is thoroughly enjoying his time in Europe but was pleased that he has some time at home.

Shirt Update: There have been quite a few comments since the blog about Mitch Hyder’s shirt. First, importantly, I’m happy to report that it has officially been dubbed the “ShamWow Shirt.” More importantly, the shirt remains undefeated this season and currently stands at 14-2 since last season. Most importantly, Mitch is wearing the ShamWow on the sidelines in Lakefront Arena as I type this.  In no way are we implying that the shirt has anything to do with the current five-game winning streak, but there’s also no reason for Hyder to test it.

Yearly travel totals:                          

Total Flights – 11

Total Mileage Flown – 7,655

Total Bus Miles – 1,021

Total Number of Hotels – 7

Total Number of Different Airports – 7

Total Number of Airline Delays – 1

Total Number of Cancelled Flights – 1

Total Number of Bags Lost – 1

Number of Times a 6-foot-9 forward was asked if he was at least 15 years old – 1 (Flight attendant asking whether Justin Coughlin was old enough to sit in the exit row)