The View From Press Row

By Lauren Biggers

The View from Press Row has moved! Click here to visit it at blog.davidsonwildcats.com.

 


















Related Links
Wildcats' Roar
The View From Press Row
From Up Front
Will In Turn

Do you think we can Fly?

Sept. 5, 6
Field Hockey vs. Georgetown, VCU

As I turned onto Baker Drive Saturday afternoon, I remembered. I love this time of year.

The beginning of the summer is nice, to be sure, as we in the sports world get to flirt with the 40-hour (ish) work week. But after getting caught up on life, it’s time to get back to the business of getting ready for the busyness.

Students are back on campus (no, we don’t get the summers off, too), the Wildcat Den is open (!), and preseason conditioning is on. Two and three-a-day practices, early-morning lifting and running, all in the name of playing and, hopefully, of winning.

Saturday I watched as the football team loaded the buses for UNC Pembroke, fielded an optimistic call from head women’s cross country coach Jen Straub, and readied to watch the field hockey team in action, and felt it. Fall is in the air.

On my morning run, an old song came on my iPod, Limp Bizkit’s “My Generation,” and while the lyrics are far from child-friendly, they are appropriately angry for the trail. (And less you fear, mine is the Wal-mart version. I'm not that angry.)

The song wonders, taunts really on the last hill, “Do you think we can fly?”

Ah there's the rub. That’s what is so special about the fall. After all the recruits arrive safely, all the playbooks are delivered, memorized, inhaled, after all the team meals and socials, you finally get to put it all together and see if you can fly.

And if one pack (did you know, by the way, Wildcats are solitary creatures?) soared above the rest this weekend, it was the Wildcat field hockey team, who posted a pair of wins over Georgetown – the lone victor on ‘Cats vs. Hoyas day – and VCU. (Rumor has placed Muggsy Bouges in attendance on Friday night, meaning someone more famous than Stephen ("Can I get a still one?") Curry was in the stands. In disclaimer, I said rumor, and my investigative journalism skills consisted of asking, “Really?” a few times to a few different people).

Leading the way was the Wildcats’ newest international sensation (ahem, good marketing) rookie Kathelijn (Kate) van der Ven.

With the team graduating a lot of scoring, including all-time leading scorer and NorPac Player of the Year Kayli Maxwell, Kate is expected to contribute heavily and immediately for the ‘Cats. And so far, she has not disappointed, scoring a pair of goals and an assist on a team-leading 13 shots.

After the team’s 4-2 win against VCU Saturday afternoon, she wonders into my office for an “interview,” along with teammates and classmates Hannah Lawrence and Meg Jarrell. I like when freshmen first experience the idea of sports information. It is to them, like most, a foreign affair.

I roll out my standard response to the standard, “So what do you do?” question, and after explaining the different roles that assistant SID Matt Harris, this year’s field hockey contact, and I play, she turns to Matt. “Ohhhh, so you are the guy on the microphone?”

It’s an admirable start. He is, he admits, and she fires back, “It was much better today.” Sidebar: I think I’m going to enjoy her sarcasm.

It is quite simply the job of sports information to tell the student-athletes’ stories, and to do so in a most compelling manner.

Kate’s story begins with the purchase of a book of the top 300 Divison I Field Hockey programs in the United States and ends like so many at Davidson, where she found her desired mix of athletics and academics.

Standing 1.7 meters-tall (translation per ask.com: 5’6) and hailing from the Netherlands, she had a pair of older sisters study in the States and dreamed of doing the same. An accomplished field hockey player, she took official visits to Davidson, Georgetown and William & Mary, and settled on the Wildcats.

She hasn’t gotten to try the chicken parm in Commons yet, and says she doesn’t have time for much beyond playing and studying, but along with Hannah and Meg, seems at home in her new home.

“Today, we were actually really a team,” she says of Saturday’s win. “We started to connect better. And we actually scored.”

Only time will tell if these Wildcats can fly.

 

Good Times

Men's Basketball vs. Kansas
March 30, 2008

Sitting on the bus waiting to board the plane home, assistant director of marketing Jason Sabow leans up between the seats.

“Well, Lauren, I just gotta ask you,” he says. “Was it worth it?”

That he even had to ask makes me wonder about him a bit, but I cut him some slack because, well, we are all running on fumes here.

He is referring, of course, to my own personal Elite Eight journey, which included four flights, two hotel rooms, an 11-hour car ride with an extremely nice couple I met on Saturday morning at the airport, a baseball game and little to no sleep over a four-day (was it really only four days?) period, but he could have been talking to anyone in Davidson red.

There is no hesitation in my answer, though, “Can you imagine not being here?”

If Jason’s last-hope shot had in fact gone in (and I watched again on Tivo, and it still wouldn’t... Why won’t it?), I had to be there. And if it didn’t, well, I had to be there for that too.

I knew I’d have to write this story eventually; I just didn’t know when. I thought it might be my first road-trip with the men’s team to Elon, way back when, when Stephen (What more can I say? Does he still need the qualifiers?) Curry’s late-game heroics saved the day.

Then I thought it’d be Greensboro, but the night again belonged to Steph, the Midwest Regional MVP (Rock chalk Jay Hawks).

Or the Gonzaga game. Ordinarily, I title my stories by opponent on my computer, but I nearly saved that one as NCAA. Then I thought, what to do when they win? And they did. And they just kept on winning.

Since I started writing this column, the Wildcats hadn’t lost. I had nothing to do with that, of course, but writing about winning is easy. Writing about losing is hard.

Losing is hard.

It hurt bad last night. You could see it on Jason’s face as he crumpled to the court. Or SteF-in’s as he untucked and bit his jersey in defeat. Or on any one of the Davidson coaches’ and players’ as they went down the line to congratulate the other guys, the winners.

But this one was different in other ways.

Walking off the floor to the post-game press conference, I couldn’t make it a few feet without someone stopping me, “You guys have nothing to be ashamed of.” “What a great team.” “We have loved watching you and having you here.” “You’ll be back.”

The list goes on and on. For these very special days, TINY and SCRAPPY little Davidson was America’s sweetheart.

I couldn’t go anywhere this week without people asking, “Are the players really as nice as they seem?” “Is the coaching staff really as accessible?” “Is Davidson really that special?” The answer is yes, and then some, to all three.

Sports writers, they of the impartial and hardened media, across the country adopted these Wildcats, and after the game ...the loss, some big-time names give me sad and knowing disappointed looks of condolences.

In the locker room, the sadness is palpable. If the shot had fallen, you can imagine what the scene would have been. Oh, what could have been. But in this moment, every sleepless night is evident on the coaching staff’s face, every ounce of energy drained from the players.

There is no joy in Mudville. Mighty Casey has struck out.

In place of words, there are hugs, looks, pats on the back. Words are unnecessary because everyone is feeling the same emotion. So close.

It is hardest for the seniors, this being so close. Jason Richards, Thomas Sander and Boris Meno have given so unselfishly of themselves over their careers, and the abrupt ending seems the cruelest for them.

As always, Jason handles himself beautifully in the post-game interviews, answering all the questions about the shot. It’s been his dream since he was a child, he admits, a game-winning shot to send your team to the Final Four, and in an instant, it is gone. If you’ve been there, you know what Jason is feeling, but how many have?

Before the game as I took my seat on press row, I greeted the Kansas SID at my side. We talked about our teams and wished each other luck. “One of us will be in San Antonio next weekend,” I said.

It is not me. It is not the Wildcats.

Afterwards at the hotel, I try to get to as many of the coaches and players as possible, and without knowing what else to say, I say, “Congratulations.” It doesn’t seem an appropriate greeting after a loss, and yet, it’s what I want to say to them.

As we sit on the bus and wait for a plane to take us home, assistant director of ticketing and roommate on this crazy ride, April Albritton has a song stuck in her head. You know the one.

Good times never seemed so good.

It is the song that has come to define a season. A season so good that we will always remember this crazy ride.

And yet, without the good times, there is no reference point for this moment. These feelings.

They make the good times feel so good.

This loss will hurt for a while, to be sure. But when it’s all said and done, it’s the good times that we will remember. The winning, the records, the championships, the banners.

Beyond that every story is personalized. Remember where you were when the Wildcats knocked off Gonzaga? Georgetown? Wisconsin?  Remember how you felt? Remember that.

And as we sat around eating pizza last night at Detroit’s Cheli’s Chili Bar for the umpteenth time, the talk turned to next season. There are more good times to come, we realize.

Next year is going to be fun.
 

The Aftermath

Men's Basketball vs. Georgetown
March 23, 2008

“Did you write a Sweet 16 blog?” Stephen (the man behind the mask) Curry asks around 2:30 p.m. on...what day is it? Tuesday?

When I tell him I didn’t, he seems disappointed. I begin to explain how busy I’ve been, but realize if anyone gets it, it is he.

And Joey Beeler, men’s basketball SID, who handles player requests.

“Right now in my inbox, I have 90 emails,” Beeler said. “In my deleted items, I have 178.”

And Marc Gignac, in his first season as Davidson’s sports information director, who handles Coach McKillop’s media requests.

“Oh geez,” he says when I ask how many emails he’s fielded over the last 48 hours. “Hang on... From Sunday through 3:43 p.m. this afternoon, it’s 332.”

And you don’t even want to know about the phone calls.

Earlier in the day, Marc steps out of his office, likely wandering up to the men’s basketball office, where he has been told, several times over, to get out and don’t come back. In jest, of course…This is fun.

When he comes back, no more than three minutes later, he checks his voicemail.

“You have eight new messages,” that female voice, the bane of his existence, says.

“Super,” he deadpans. If you didn’t know, Marc is pure deadpan.

Waiting for his turn in front of the camera on Monday afternoon, Stephen’s dad says, “It’s been crazy. I’ve heard from people I haven’t talked to in years. I feel like I’m playing again.”

And there is no containing this madness.

“I have 600 emails in my inbox right now,” associate head coach Matt Matheny says. “But I probably had 200 or so before. So I’ve gotten around 300 this weekend.”

“Is your phone ringing off the hook?” he asks SteF-in outside my office door. “Mine’s off the hook.”

“Yes,” SteF-in sighs. There’s a new Facebook group called “Stephen Curry is the man” with 1,002 members and counting. After the Georgetown game, he got over 890 new friend requests. He currently has 1,331 friends on the networking site and has been tagged in 407 pictures.

“He got how many?” roommate Bryant Barr asks, after being put on hold in the middle of an interview. (We all think this is funny, including Bryant.) “It will take him forever just to get through them. That’s insane.”

Never has there been so much energy in Davidson. And like the majority around the program, I have never been a part of something quite like it.

The madness started as soon as the horn sounded on the ‘Cats 74-70 win over Georgetown on Sunday. I left Beeler a voicemail, screaming into the phone (I was very excited... you understand) after the game. This morning, he just got to it. “Why are you screaming in my phone?” he hisses, more than says.

Monday morning when I arrive, SteF-in is sitting in the corner on Beeler’s phone, getting ready to go on ESPN’s Mike & Mike. We stand and watch the TV as Steph sits behind us answering questions. There is about a 30-second difference, which makes following difficult, but this is fun.

For the rest of the day, the phones don’t stop. At one point, we have MAX, Jason and SteF-en doing interviews around the horn throughout the office.

My mom, an insta-fan, calls me later to tell me that Jason was on WFNZ, my dad’s favorite radio station. “I know mom. He was sitting beside me, on my phone.” “He was sitting beside her!” she screams to my dad, as to myself I think, do they know what I do?

Around 1 p.m. we all realize we haven’t eaten, and I get nominated to pick up lunch for the marketing, ticketing and sports info offices, since Easter has shut down our trusty Wildcat Den, and I am also acting office secretary. At McAllister’s, the guy behind the counter spots SID assistant Will Bryan’s Davidson basketball shirt and asks if we are with the team. We are not technically of course, but rather than explain we say yes. After breaking down the match up with us, he wishes us luck and sends us on our way, with everyone’s food but Marc’s (my fault, not theirs).

Back at Baker, there is major excitement for SteF-in’s appearance on PTI, and director of basketball operations Jeremy Henney has come up with the idea of getting him involved in the role play. After much discussion, we decide on Jason, and Will Bryan is given the arts and crafts project of a lifetime.

My parents call to tell me Steph as Jason is a hit (thanks mom). I’m not sure where he got his lines, but writer to writer, “Steph Curry is nothing without me” is a winner.

As the week begins winding down (yes, I know it’s Tuesday... here’s hoping), the excitement keeps building. Unable to witness the Georgetown game in person, I will not let that be the case on Friday.

“Biggers is going to sell her soul if we make it to the Sweet 16,” Beeler says, prophetically, last week. On his way home from the office today, he calls to tell me that the lady at the movie store recognized him as “the guy hugging Stephen Curry on TV" and gave him his movies for free as a consequence. We think this is funny.

“But it’s my first Sweet 16,” I tell... beg... Marc.

“Mine too,” he says. I gave him half of my sandwich, and he gave me the credit card. Seems fair.

I leave Thursday.

Way back in November, we got the first shipments of men’s basketball media guides. As the rest started to pour in, Beeler began counting, adding and subtracting and all in his head.

“If we make it to the Sweet 16, we will run out,” he concludes.

But did we think it would really happen? (He and athletic trainer Ray Beltz put their hair on the line, after all.) Those around the program and in the “sleepy little town” of Davidson knew it could happen, but did we really think it would?

We have 75 media guides left. It happened.
 

Our Own Story

Men's Basketball vs. Gonzaga
March 21, 2008

In case you haven’t heard by now, the tenth-seeded Davidson Wildcats beat the seventh-seeded Gonzaga Bulldogs in the first round of the 2008 NCAA Championship at the RBC Center in Raleigh on Friday afternoon.

By now, you’ve had the time to digest it, having read/watched/listened to anybody and everybody’s thoughts on the game. It was simultaneously the kind of game you talk about all day and for years to come, and it had all the necessary ingredients of an ESPN instanta-classic, that is, if ESPN could ever figure out how to get in on this bracket stuff in the first place.

It had also-rans turned big-time programs. Legendary TV commentators. Superstars in the front rows. Lead changes and game-winning REBOUNDS. And 40 points from Stephen (Who's Your Daddy?) Curry. The only thing missing on Friday afternoon was TV Teddy, and well, his dance card must have been full.

For me, this story started around 5 a.m. Thursday morning. (Round trip: 43 hours and 402.7 miles). SID assistant Will Bryan and I left from Davidson around 8:30 a.m., skating into the team’s press conference and practice slot, with full intentions of enjoying our NCAA tournament experience to the fullest. We made a day of practice and press conferences, and I even posed the Davidson-Gonzaga question to North Carolina’s Roy Williams in the afternoon session. By now, you’ve heard that story.

“I’ve heard her tell this story eight times,” Davidson color man Logan Kosmalski said later in the day, as apparently, I told it a lot.

“If I remember correctly, we blew them out by four earlier in the year,” Williams offered, good-naturedly and sarcastically. “I wouldn’t call that a mid-major matchup. Those are two really good teams, and if I were just a fan of college basketball, that’d be a game I wouldn’t want to miss.”

For the crowd, that story started around 12:20 p.m. Friday afternoon.

The Wildcats took the floor to the pep band blaring “Welcome to the Jungle.” The Davidson faithful earned a smile of approval from MAX Pauhlus Gosselin, the lights came on, and the ball went up.

Despite playing in front of an extremely friendly crowd, the ‘Cats seemed a bit tentative in the first half. The ‘Cats, of course, were down five at the break, with most of the Wildcat contingent feeling fortunate.

But if anyone on that court was as nervous as yours truly, it didn’t show. Fourteen points from the ever-steadying Jason Richards had Davidson right in the game at the break, and as everyone in red hoped, SteF caught fire to the tune of 30 points in the second.

For these Wildcats, the story started 365 days ago.

When the horn sounded on the almost-Maryland game, they dedicated themselves and their season to this day, and it all came down to the final 10 minutes.

With 13 to play, Davidson trails 10, and I was forced to think of that dreaded “what if” scenario, predictably, settling on “happy to have been here.”

Trailing 62-57, SteF-in gets a floater to go in the paint. After a Zag miss, Richards grabs the defensive board and tough-as-nails Thomas Sander finds SteF for a three to knot the score.

62-62 with 9:26 to play.

I abandon my “happy-to-be here” notion, and nearly every bit of professionalism, and will now settle for nothing less than a W. I heard tales of legendary Georgetown play-by-play man standing and jumping on press row, and well, I’m toying with the idea now.

For the next several minutes, a mere point separates the teams. Richard connects with Steph to go up one, and seconds later, despite my urging, “Four fouls Steve, four fouls,” SteVen Rossiter makes the lead three.

Gonzaga’s Steven Gray hits what feels like his 34th trey of the game to tie it, and I now understand how opposing SoCon teams must feel. Despite my wishing he wouldn’t, MAX takes a three and line drives it into the hole. I exhale. Apologize. Cats by one.

A made free throw by Andrew LOVEdale gives Davidson a two-point cushion with just under three to play, and for some inexplicable reason the Gonzaga band chooses the “Hey” song for its timeout.

With hardly an empty seat in the house, these scrappy Wildcats have won over the rest of the crowd and promptly hijack the ‘Zags song as well. As suggested often lately by the man in the mirror, Davidson has stolen a lot of hearts this season, and I can barely field the text messages fast enough.

MAX takes another shot I’m not crazy about, but I don’t care, because well, have you watched him play? Time is of the essence now, and this place is starting to believe.

He misses, but there is LOVEdale with the biggest rebound of the game and a fresh 35 for his team. (I write “ANDREW!!!!!!!!!!!” in my notes, which I still think is a pretty accurate description.)

He, in turn, kicks it to Steph, and if this next three isn’t on YouTube, it will be by tomorrow, and the ‘Cats know it now. There is Thomas running on to the court to congratulate Andrew. There is Jason yelling, “Let’s go” at the crowd. There is Gonzaga burning its final timeout with 59 seconds to go, trailing three.

The ‘Zags get off a three, miss, and there is ANDREW!!!!!!!!! again. “I know you have to make Stephen the player of the game,” Billy Packer says, correctly, as LOVEdale wrestles through a pair of defenders. “But you don’t win these games without a Lovedale.”

Give the ball to Steph and send him to the line, I urge the bench in my head. But it is LOVEdale who is fouled, and he who makes the pair of freebies. Three more from Steph ice it, and this one is in the books, 82-76.

For Bob McKillop, this story goes back 19 years.

“He eats, sleeps, breathes, lives Davidson basketball,” Steph tells the press room, much to the delight of Richards, who is looking very comfortable at the podium tonight.

Tens of questions later, leaving the press conference to rejoin his team’s locker room celebration, the winning coach smiles, free of all monkeys, and offers, “I’ve never done that before.”

Indeed, this year’s NCAA CD will be full of smiling press conference photos.

For Davidson College, the story goes back much, much farther. We’ve all heard that story.

And today, we got our own.
 

Perfection

Men's Basketball vs. Elon
March 10, 2008

Whenever I struggled with an opening to an essay in school, I went back to the old standby.

Webster’s dictionary defines perfection, as the quality or state of being perfect, as freedom from fault or defect, maturity or the quality or state of being saintly. (Well, we can eliminate that last part. Sorry fellas, nothing personal, but saintly you ain’t.)

Or as an exemplification of supreme excellence, an unsurpassable degree of accuracy or excellence. Hm, better.

Finishing a conference season AND winning a sudden-death tournament with an unblemished – yes, perfect – record is a seriously good accomplishment. But what does it mean to be truly perfect?

“Flawless,” says Stephen (Most Valuable Playa) Curry.

Are you flawless? “Not yet. We gotta win some tournament games.”

“Without flaw,” agrees director of basketball operations Jeremy Henney.

“Put a mirror in front of me,” says an assistant basketball coach. I’ll let you guess which one.

I’m not much of a movie person. I very much enjoy going to the movies, but I will rarely, if ever, sit down and watch a movie simply for the sake of watching a movie. But there is one movie that I will watch no matter how many times TNT airs it (okay, two if you count Legally Blonde), and tonight it’s plenty applicable.

Remember the Titans? The Titans are, of course, on their way to a perfect season (say what?), but nearly stumble on a roadblock (pesky, pesky phoenix...), and are in dire need of that perfect half-time speech that probably really only happens in the movies.

The ever-dapper Denzel, er, Coach Boone, tells his guys, “It's all right. We're in a fight. You boys are doing all that you can do. Anybody can see that. Win or lose... We gonna walk out of this stadium tonight with our heads held high. Do your best. That's all anybody can ask for.”

Seriously?

“No, it ain't coach,” Julius, star defensive end, disagrees, “With all due respect, uh, you demanded more of us. You demanded perfection. Now, I ain't saying that I'm perfect, 'cause I'm not. And I ain't gonna never be. None of us are.”

No, not even you Mr. Curry. Or you Mr. Richards.

“But we have won every single game we have played till now. So this team is perfect. We stepped out on that field that way tonight. And, uh, if it's all the same to you, Coach Boone, that's how we want to leave it.”

In my humble estimation that’s the best way I can summarize this season. This team is perfect.

Taken apart they are just guys who sometimes make big plays – Max disrupting the inbounds for the umpteenth time, Steph/Bryant with the daggers, Jason with the cutters – and guys that sometimes don’t.

You can pick something that each does great – Thomas taking a charge, LOVEdale with that baby hook, Jason, Steph, well, you know those two. MAX the defense. Will, the hair. Boris, the tomahawk. . Where Steve is the muscle, Bryant is the flare.

But divided that’s all. You need them all for perfection... Together, they are perfect.

And before you say anything, I know there are more games to be played, but there’s plenty more where that third straight SoCon championship came from, which is why I settled on the last definition.

Perfection is the act or process of perfecting.
 

Thank you Seniors

Men's Basketball vs. Appalachian State
Feb. 28, 2008

I meant to write something about last week’s BracketBuster matchup at Winthrop, but it’s a tough time in the sports information world. With spring sports starting up and winter sports still plugging along, the overlap often makes for, how shall we say, long weeks.

After a pair of home basketball contests, we got a brief respite on Wednesday. I spent Thursday at the Huntersville Aquatic Center, watching as the Wildcat women kicked off the 2007 Coastal Collegiate Swimming Association Championships, from which they would eventually bring home the inaugural trophy.

On Friday, we headed down I-77 to Rock Hill and the campus of Winthrop University. In the interest of full disclosure, I spent a year as an intern in the Eagles’ sports information office. It’s pretty tough to be loyal when you work in sports, but for what its worth, I wore red to the game. I was looking forward to the homecoming of sorts, but like Davidson baseball’s home opener, the Winthrop Eagles’ baseball kickoff got pushed back.

After giving SID assistant Will Bryan the quick tour – including my now condemned living quarters – we headed over to the Winthrop Coliseum. Finding the pressroom without food, we headed back out to Chick-fil-A. (I was told earlier in the season by an NBA scout that we have the best hospitality in the country at Belk, and I’m starting to think he’s right.)

Hunger satisfied by waffle fries courtesy of Davidson’s own Photo Bob, I settled into my spot on press row. The atmosphere was every bit as big-time as ESPN had to hope, with the Winthrop students and the Davidson fans sitting side by side and more than enjoying themselves. After the game, Winthrop head coach Randy Peele compared it to a second-round NCAA tourney game, not so subtly reminding everyone of his Eagles’ recent success.

On the court, it was not the Stephen (the assassin, water-gun toting) Curry show that the network had hoped for. The one-who-got-away finished with a season-low 12 points, but pulled his weight on the boards with eight rebounds. In a role reversal, Jason Richards decided to get in on the scoring, finishing with 21 points. Richards was fun to watch in the first half, shaking his head and smiling as his shot just kept falling.

In the hallway at halftime, a woman I used to work with said, “Your team is great,” and meant it. “That number two... He’s good.”

Flash forward a couple of baseball games and a lacrosse match, and the senior guard from Barrington, Ill., is still playing with a hot hand, leading the ‘Cats to a 68-55 win over Appalachian State on Wednesday night.

I missed the senior day presentations along with the first half of the game because of the overlap between baseball and basketball. In the interest of full disclosure, baseball is my first true love. But it’s tough to get excited about baseball when you can’t feel your toes, and like the sell-out crowd of 5,838 in Belk, I wanted to see the senior day show.

A glance up at the uber-fancy scoreboards at halftime pretty much gets me caught up, and as I thaw out, I settle back into my spot on press row for the final half of men’s basketball at Belk Arena of 2007-08 and the last I’ll see in person.

SteF-in got his points, finishing with 17, but the night once again belonged to Richards, who led all scorers with 24 points to go along with six assists and three steals. Needing 21 to become Davidson’s 37th 1,000-point scorer, how fitting that he would accomplish said feat in his final stand at Belk.

Afterwards in the media room, the notorious stats junkie says he wasn’t aware he’d hit the 1,000-point plateau until someone told him after the game, but I’m disinclined to believe him. Nonetheless, he, along with seniors Thomas Sander and Boris Meno seemed genuinely at ease while waiting in the holding room. The mood was festive, with the three taking congratulations from anybody and everybody from the final horn until long after the record-setting crowd had nearly emptied the building.

There’s not much to say about these three special players, who have been such a huge part of these really special times in Davidson basketball, but as they took to their bench for one final bow, the crowd of nearly 6,000 strong said it best:

“Thank you seniors.”
 

In the Spotlight

Men's Basketball vs. UNC Greensboro
Feb. 19, 2008

It was the kind of game you want when the lights come to town.

By the first media timeout, MAX Paulhus Gosselin had a pair of his career-high seven steals, Andrew LOVEdale had two of his game-high three blocks, and the ‘Cats were up 10-2 and feeling good about it.

Kyle Hines was keeping Greensboro in the game, scoring all seven of the Spartans’ points to open play. Last year’s SoCon Player of the Year is a fine player to be sure, joining an elite club last night with 11 rebounds to become just the sixth player in NCAA basketball history to record 2,000 career points, 1,000 career rebounds and 300 career blocks. I’ve been impressed with Hines – who joins the more than notable group of David Robinson, Pervis Ellison, Alonzo Mourning, Tim Duncan and Derrick Coleman – every time I’ve seen him in person, including in UNCG’s win at Georgia Tech... until last night, that is.

Last night, Hines looked human. And about midway through the second half, the guys from the “World Wide Leader in Sports” were trying to get some sort of stat line to flash on the screen about Kyle and the Spartans, but Stephen (the human highlight) Curry, MAX Pauhlus Gosselin or Andrew LOVEdale just kept stealing the spotlight.

Coming off a career-high 41 points against the Spartans just a few days ago, SteF-in dropped in an even 30 this night on 10-of-18 shooting, going 6-of-9 from behind the arc and a shocking (?!) 4-for-5 from the line, in the Wildcats' 75-66 winning effort. (Both announcers came by after the game to apologize for the announcer curse on the missed free throw. Don’t take yourself so seriously guys.)

With ESPN in the house, SteF made sure to make its Top 10, getting a little assist off Hines' back on an inbounds play. I originally credited Jason Richards with an assist on that play. (“Gavin, I don’t know where he got the ball. Jason I guess.”). Some other-side-of-the-court help from men’s basketball SID Joey Beeler and SID Marc Gignac - who offered, “I guess you could give Steph an assist,” cleared things up, as did numerous showings on SportsCenter.

But if Steph was once again the key on offense, MAX was the lock on defense, recording a block and SEVEN steals to go along with eight points. Unfortunately for MAX, Davidson hasn’t kept a single-game steals record, but this effort was surely recordable.

After declaring last week’s game vs. Greensboro his “most fun ever,” did this one one-up that one?

“It was a fun game,” he said slowly, and I think a tad sarcastically.

So, did you do anything special today that might have affected your play?

“Nutella and bananas,” he says sitting on top the mini-fridge in the SID office.

Before the game, I was messing with Will Bryan’s desktop, selecting a new picture for the game, and I picked MAX. I think that’s funny. He humors me.

“When we got up by 20, we maybe felt a little too good,” he says, once I finally ask him a somewhat serious question, re: nearly losing the 20-point lead. “We maybe let down a little bit, but we got some stops and reacted really well.”

So on a night when “TV Teddy” hung out by the scorer’s table long enough to shush the crowd, and Doug Gottlieb (He’s kind of a big deal) held down a table at the Brickhouse, SteF Curry, MAX and the Davidson Wildcats earned the spotlight.
 

Saying Thanks

Men's Basketball vs. Furman
Feb. 16, 2008

After last week’s “Greensboro experiment,” it took a while for my heart rate to return to normal. It certainly took most of the car ride back home, over the river and through the snow, and after that adventure in not cheering on press row, Saturday’s game against Furman was a lot easier to swallow.

Once the ‘Cats jumped out to a 19-0 lead (have you ever seen that before?), this one was less about the final result, more about the margin.

And after Stephen (someone outscored me?) Curry and Will Archambault, who put up a combined 54 points in the ‘Cats 86-51 win, make their way to the bench, the nearly 5,000 fans at Belk let them know they enjoyed it, saying thanks with an extended ovation.

Three minutes later, with the game firmly in hand, frosh Brendan McKillop enters the game in relief of senior Jason Richards, and the crowd once again roars its approval. Surely acknowledging yet another outstanding performance from the Cats’ floor general, who finished with nine assists and seven boards despite not scoring, it’s clear the applause isn’t for Jason alone. With seven minutes to play, this crowd is excited to see what Brendan will contribute.

And when fan favorite Can Civi checks in at the three-minute mark, the ovation is the loudest of the game, that is, until he takes it to the hoop, and with under 30 seconds to go, lays it in. This layup inspires undoubtedly the biggest ovation of the day, and as the students chant, “Civi! Civi! Civi!,” you can’t help but just feel good, can you?

I asked Civi’s roommate, Andrew Lovedale, about it after the game, about how it feels to watch these guys that practice so hard day in and day out get rewarded on the court and acknowledged by the crowd.

And while I left his answers on my desk (seriously, I lose a lot of stuff), he said something along the lines of, “It was fun.” And I’m pretty sure he even used the word “awesome.”

So while it would be easy to note the accomplishments and individual efforts of STEF- in and Archambault on days like Saturday - and surely the result wouldn’t have been such without them - players like Can Civi and Brendan McKillop tend to get lost in the box score.

And yet, the result wouldn’t have been the same without them either.

MAIL CALL

Our first official question comes from Judge Joe Craig, class of '78, who asks the following:

I'm Class of '78 and a huge fan of this very special team. I've only seen them in person twice this year, both games on the road -- At Elon, and then last night at UNC-G. I know you are superstitious and that some of the players are big on karma as well. Both games, I wore a dark red/black plaid shirt, and at halftime of both games, I nearly tore it off my back, thinking it was bad luck. But both games we stormed back and won. My question: should I keep wearing this shirt when I go to games, or leave it home in the closet?

I am, as you point out, somewhat superstitious by nature, so my immediate thought is that you've got yourself a seriously lucky shirt. Both the Elon and Greensboro road games were come-from-behind, heart-stoppers, and perhaps we can attribute some of that to your shirt (though surely, SteF-in Curry may object a bit). As for the team, I did an informal survey of which players are the most superstitious. Getting an athlete to admit to a superstition, other than the obvious, is tough, but it was nearly unanimous that the most superstitious on the team is athletic trainer Ray Beltz.

Thanks for the questions! Email yours to labiggers@davidson.edu, and I will bring you the answers if possible.
 

Little by Little

Men's Basketball at UNC Greensboro
Feb. 13, 2008

Making their way from the Davidson locker room to the post-game interview in the Fleming Gym media room, Stephen (Are you not entertained?) Curry and MAX Paulhus Gosselin look simultaneously exhausted and exhilarated.

As many words as I will write, SteF-in sums up Davidson’s down-to-the-wire 83-78 thriller in one. “WOW,” he sighs more than says.

Call me a pessimist, but when the Spartans took a 9-0 lead behind the dominant play of current SoCon Player of the Year Kyle Hines, I wasn’t exactly feeling the “wow” factor.

Watching the players and coaches on the bench… they too looked, well, uneasy. For most of the first half, the Davidson contingent, fat and happy (?) and accustomed of late to kicking back and watching, could only sit quietly, nervously, and watch as the UNCG students more than earned their middle block of seats and the pep band played the SportsCenter theme song for what seemed the 10 millionth time.

“We were a little down,” Curry said of the locker room mood at halftime. “Coach told us to find a way to win. To chip away little by little.”

“To play defense. To stop them from shooting threes in our face. To keep our heads cool,” MAX says of the coaching staff’s halftime advice. “Chip away, chip away until we get in a position to win. Which we did.”

“It wasn’t really that bad,” Thomas Sander, relegated to street clothes on this evening, said of the team’s half-time mentality. “We weren’t really down. We made some adjustments. We have a mature team. I feel like we all knew that we were gonna come back.”

In the first stanza, the Spartans simply couldn’t miss – hitting an insane 9-of-12 from behind the arc and shooting a blistering 69.6 percent (16-of-23) in the first half. On the flip side, Davidson simply couldn’t get a stop, much less mount an attack. When the ‘Cats took to the locker room trailing 52-37, I didn’t exactly feel hopeful.

Nothing if not confident, men’s basketball SID Joey Beeler said, “We are still gonna win,” and I told director of marketing Martin McCann, well, it’s either gonna be a really ugly loss or one heck of a comeback.

Forty-one points from Stephen ensured it was the latter.

I have no –zero, nothing, nada – notes from the first half and four pages worth from the second, so that tells you something. But there isn’t really one play or even player that can sum up the game, and I have four pages of notes because I kept waiting for it.

Watching Steph put up 41 was fun, to be sure, but every player in red kicked it up a notch in the second half so that effort mattered in the end. Doing exactly what they discussed, the Wildcats did exactly what they had to do to win; they chipped away, little by little.

Finally within striking distance at 60-52 with just over 13 minutes to play, the ‘Cats send SteF to the line to cap off the and-one play, and the shift in momentum is nearly tangible. Tearing through a pack of gum on most days, I decide to get a new piece in honor of the new karma. This might happen, you start thinking.

Soon after, a BORIS! Meno rebound on one end turns into a Jason Richards layup on the other, and the ‘Cats are down just three, 65-62.

And then, the obligatory SteF sequence puts the ‘Cats on top. Steal, three, defensive rebound, finger-roll lay-in rattles around the rim and takes an eternity to fall, but does. Davidson, up 67-65. Greensboro, TIMEOUT.

The emotion that was mounting finally explodes. Stephen taunts the crowd; Jason, who left the game gushing blood from a cut above his eye, returns, thanks to the A-game of athletic trainer Ray Beltz, chest bumping and high fiving; the coaching staff is clapping, smiling, the bench standing and cheering. No, this happens.

“One of the most fun games I’ve probably played in my life,” Max says. I ask him if that’s a hyperbole, and as he begins clarifying, I get lost in his accent. To overcome our language barrier, he clarifies slowly, “It was real fun.”

“Exciting to say the least,” Steph says, post 41, post media room, post radio. “We brought a lot of fans and to find a way to win without The General and against a team like this on the road, that was pretty exciting.”

“It was really fun to watch Steph, and to see the team rally around him,” Thomas says of his unusual view from the bench. “It was a little nerve wracking, and I felt a little helpless. You aren’t out there so you can’t control what’s happening. I have superstitions though. I got a new piece of gum at halftime.”

Guess what? Same kind. As it turns out, peppermint Orbitz proved very good luck for the Wildcats.

As if this weren't enough, we're going to launch another NEW feature to enhance the Wildcat experience. Email your questions for the players and coaches to labiggers@davidson.edu, and I'll bring you the best questions and answers. My question of the day: favorite movie. Stephen: Scream. Max: Life is Beautiful. What do you want to know? Ask.
 

These Wildcats Hustle

Men's Basketball vs. Coll. of Charleston
Feb.9, 2008

I get asked quite commonly now, “How do I warrant a mention in your blog?” And while I admit it's mostly in jest, there is certainly something about our YouTube/MySpace culture that loves to see our names in lights, isn’t there? (Or on a T-shirt perhaps?)

Simply put, you gotta earn it, people, and assistant director of ticketing April Albritton did just that on Saturday afternoon, conducting the post-game conversation with SteV-en Rossiter. (I don’t use the term interview intentionally, as I don’t particularly “interview,” though, a bit paranoid, he kept insisting things were “off the record.” Too much Law and Order, Steve?)

I caught some slack for being a bit tardy with my last post, and I expect the same treatment this time. But you’ll come back, because where else can you learn that SteV-en Rossiter’s favorite “actress” is Jessica Alba?

Rossiter earned his mention in today’s blog, and not just because SteF-en (how long can she keep this going?) Curry and Jason (Man on the T-shirt) Richards bolted for Kilgo’s post-game radio interview. He finished yesterday’s 81-56 win over the College of Charleston with eight points on 3-of-4 shooting and four boards in 18 solid minutes off the bench.

Rossiter is a good interview, measured and well spoken, and yet entertaining. He even gave credit to Davidson SID Marc Gignac’s pre-season media training when pressed on why he insists on answering with all the “right” answers.

“How do you keep playing that hard when you are beating a team by 30?” April, and most everyone else, wants to know.

“We are constantly trying to get better,” Rossiter answers quickly, and correctly. But you can tell he believes it.

And if you watched the Wildcats dismantle the Cougars on Saturday, you believe he believes it.

In front of a crowd of 5,753, great majority clothed in black per the “Blackout Belk” theme, the game lived up to its hype for a little while, with things staying close through the first 10 minutes. But after a Tony White, Jr. layup, the ‘Cats – or really just Rossiter and BORIS! Meno – scored eight straight and took a commanding 28-13 lead.

And then they just put it in cruise control. Unfortunately for Charleston, it was set around 85.

No matter the score, these Wildcats just keep coming. On this day, they were without question the best team on the court. But no matter the margin, they played with more hustle, too.

For this team, MAX Paulhus Gosselin, finishing with four points and four boards, defines hustle, but you’d be hard pressed to find a Wildcat on this 2007-08 team that doesn’t nearly match his efforts game by game.

I was going to do a Top 10, a la Letterman, today, but well, I did six and stopped. (Sometimes even I can’t explain my methods.) The plays and the players involved were all over the place, but my favorite remains the first.

It was early in the game, and Jason was looking for Stephen. They nearly fumbled the exchange, but worked it out, and SteF buried a three. Coach Cremins shakes his mop of white hair and turns around, smiling. It’s like he knew it was gonna be that kind of day.

Afterwards in the media room, April is enjoying her time, basking in Cremins' presence. This is not the type of person you would expect after a 30-point loss. Completely relaxed and unassuming, yet slightly confused about why the media didn’t request him, Cremins is a great presence.

But still not quite as good as Belk and these Wildcats on this day.

“The crowd was amazing,” Rossiter tells April, now enjoying his time in the limelight a little. “They were into the game the whole time.”

And so were these Wildcats.
 

Winning Ugly

Men's Basketball vs. Elon
Feb.6, 2008

"You got any creative ideas for tomorrow’s post?,” Stephen (worth the price of admission) Curry asks, looking up from his private viewing of “The Office” on his Mac at his makeshift desk in the SID office.

It’s Tuesday, the day before the Elon game, and ABC Sports is making a day of interviews with several Wildcats, including a feature on the Curry father-son duo and international players Andrew Lovedale and Boris Meno. Stephen, free of class on Tuesday and Thursday, decides to make a day of it as well.

“Not yet,” I reply. “You gonna do anything creative?”

“I’ll think of something for you,” he promises.

Thirty-six points makes good on that promise, and several of those typical “seriously?” baskets certainly qualify as creative.

Curry finished last night’s 74-64 win with 36 points on 12-of-18 shooting, including three treys and a perfect 9-of-9 night at the line. He once again had his way with those once again pesky Elon Phoenix, but unlike Jan. 9’s near-miss in Elon, SteF-en had his shot from the beginning.

Well, maybe not quite the beginning.

After last night’s game, I managed to make it to my desk with my notes (an accomplishment in and of itself … the copy machine was perfect too, so I went a personal 2-for-2), which tell me that the ‘Cats were 0-for-5 at the first media timeout and trailing 3-2. Not quite what you’d call a “made for TV” start, EH?

From there, Davidson put together a 9-2 run and was up 11-5 at the next media timeout. Curry had all nine.

“I tried to get going early,” Curry said afterwards, suffering through our post-game conversation after being mocked and stranded by senior captains Jason Richards and Thomas Sander. “Last time, they tried to shut me down.”

Last time, they did just that until the ‘Cats got eight points from Curry in under a minute to escape with a 59-57 victory at “The Nest.”

This time was different. Many have qualified this win as “ugly.” In fact, “official stats coordinator” Will Bryan jotted down that very word at one point, and soon after the guys from the TV truck asked if we were keeping stats on air balls.

But you have to be able to win ugly too – “winning in the 50s and 60s” as the talking heads call it, and Davidson showed it can do just that.

In my last post, I asked for a close game. And after the Chattanooga game, I (quickly) rescinded that complaint. This one didn’t seem close - just uncomfortable.

And so it goes. After the next media timeout, Davidson is up 21-9 on 6-for-15 shooting. Stephen Curry’s line? Same.

The ‘Cats got a pair of free throws from LOVE-dale, a three and a pair of freebies from JRich and an and-one play from SteV-en Rossiter to take command.

Late in the game with the final (sort of) in doubt, Thomas secured a rebound to force a jump ball with the possession arrow favoring the ‘Cats. Jason earned three straight trips to the line and sank five straight gimmies to seal it. Curry iced it with another pair.

And the Wildcats won ugly.

“It felt pretty good. It was DEFINITELY (emphasis mine, word preference his) a tough game,” Steph says. “They play us tough. They try to stop Jason in transition. We had to find a way to win.”

Check.
 

Unfamiliar Territory

Men's Basketball vs. Wofford
Jan. 30, 2008

I had jotted down some notes from last night’s men’s basketball win over Wofford, but I can’t find them. No matter, because I’m pretty sure I didn’t write down anything Pulitzer Prize worthy. (Some day.) Or for that matter, worthy at all. And should my musings fall until opposing hands, well, for crying out loud, somebody get a hand in Stephen (How do you like me now?) Curry’s face. But surely you knew that already, eh?

The observations that I find myself making from the Davidson press row are a bit different than those from the road or the Brickhouse. Because of the nature of my game-day responsibilities, assisting women’s basketball SID Gavin McFarlin with the stats keeping, I tend to get lost in the game. Turnover, steal, layup. Assist?

On most nights, you could pop in SteF-in and Jason (how many assists did I have?) Richards into this sequence. But for a while in the first half, the Wildcats were in unfamiliar territory... That’s it. That’s what I had jotted down.

You see, Davidson’s previous home contests (and for these purposes, we mean ACTUAL home games in cozy Belk) have included a 120-56 win over Emory, a 98-50 win over N.C. Central, a 95-74 win over the Citadel, a 92-67 win over Georgia Southern and an 85-58 win over Chattanooga.

Against the Citadel, the ‘Cats were tied (39) at the half, but before last night hadn’t gone into their own locker room with a half-time deficit. Even in the other “close one” at home this season, an 86-73 win over Western Carolina, Davidson was up 50-38 at the break.

What’s more, Steph missed the free throw that would have tied the score with under three minutes to play in the half. (I love when he misses a free throw. Not because he missed it, but because it’s such news that he missed. Did you hear the collective gasp? He IS human people.)

No matter, he comes back with a pair of freebies to tie the score, but after a Wofford jumper puts the Terriers back on top, the desperation three clanks off the rim. Though it was close – and would have been worth the gasp, the ‘Cats head to their locker room down by one. Unfamiliar territory.

After the intermission – which included A LOT of jump ropers, the universe was righted. A JRich steal/ layup put the ‘Cats up a pair, and Curry’s trey (on a Richards assist, of course) builds on the lead. And I got lost in the game again.

With the clock winding down, I checked the monitor. Steph has poured in 34 points, and the ‘Cats are up 78-65, not nearly as close as it looks.

Afterwards in the media room, I express my disappointment to SteF-in and the fashionably astute Maximus Paulhus Gosselin. Maybe one of the only ones, I wanted a close one. “That was close,” Max counters.

Was it? I had already forgotten.
 

 

This Day in Davidson Athletics

Swimming vs. UNC Wilmington, Campbell
Women's Basketball vs. Wofford
Men's Basketball at the Brickhouse
Jan. 26, 2008

Instead of making the trip to Charleston, I spent Saturday afternoon taking in Davidson athletics locally.

After my (bi? tri?) weekly trip to Panera, I headed into the office. Down the hall at the pool, the swim team was getting ready for their final home meet of the season, preparing to host the UNC Wilmington Seahawks and Campbell Camels. (There must be a camels and water joke in there somewhere…)

If you’ve never been to a swim meet, you should. Not necessarily spectator-friendly, there’s something to be said for a sport in which the athletes engage in back-and-forth coordinated cheers with the opposition. No, this is not your local Y.

Saturday was senior day at Cannon, and the team honored seniors Kirsten Allen, Leslie Sherrill, Maddie Stough, Robb and Will Broughton, Fiete Stegger and Adam Topaz before the meet. The Four Coursemen sang the anthem, and the show was underway. I got to see the Wildcat men win the 200 medley relay (fun), but had to hit the court for the women’s basketball match up with Wofford before the Wildcat women’s dramatic win in the 400 free relay (too bad) to take the meet. (To see the swimmers for yourself, take in the first annual Coastal Collegiate Swimming Association Championships at the Huntersville Aquatic Center on Feb. 21, 22 and 23.)

A couple days later, I don’t remember much about the women’s basketball game. I remember that they won, 70-58, over Wofford. That things were close for a while in the first half, not so much in the second. But I do remember Mercedes Robinson.

The junior from Mansfield, Texas, was outstanding on Saturday, netting 15 boards and 16 points on 7-of-11 shooting, to go along with a pair of blocks and three steals in 38 minutes. For a while it seemed every time the ball was in the air, it ended up in Mercedes’ hands, prompting women’s basketball SID Gavin McFarlin to question aloud his own stat keeping abilities. Consistently good, on Saturday, Mercedes was great. (See for yourself on Tuesday, when the women hoopsters host SoCon rival Furman at 7 p.m.)

For the nightcap, I headed over to the Brickhouse to watch the men’s team battle the College of Charleston on the big screen. I’m sure the sold-out atmosphere at Kresse Arena was pretty good, but the Brickhouse was equally at capacity.

At the town’s local “Cheers,” it’s not hard to run into someone you know, and Saturday night was no exception. With nary a bar stool in sight, I was fortunate to happen upon women’s assistant soccer coach Winnie Corrigan and her crew of Bill, of davidsoncats.com fame, and Mark, the former swimmer, who keeps score at swim meets in his head. (Thanks for the table guys!)

Everyone settled in, the crowd turned its attention to the game at hand, which was, unfortunately, not Davidson vs. CofC. In the meantime, some very dedicated fans kept us updated via Satellite radio from the car, as did text messages from courtside.

(As expected?) the ‘Cats went on for the easy 70-58 win, despite just 16 points from Stephen (16 points is an off-night) Curry. (It’s just not a blog without SteF-in, right?) Didn’t matter because Thomas Sander and Andrew LOVE-dale were eating the Cougars alive in the paint. Neither particularly flashy, the big boys put on a dazzling display, and the Bhouse crowd loved it.

From the start, LOVE-dale was our anointed crowd favorite, and the “Big Cat” lived up to his hype, finishing with 10 points and seven boards. “The Winnster” did everything in her power to get the crowd to buy into a “Big Cat” cheer, and she had lots of opportunities. (All together now… make hands into claws. Hold in air. Scream, the ‘Big Cat!’ Now you’ve got it. Use it.) Winnie also tried a round of “Sweet Caroline” at the eight-minute media timeout, but alas, we were the only interested parties, and as it turns out, we don’t know the words.

All in all, it was a good day in Davidson athletics from start to finish. And with another win in the bag, I closed my tab and went home. Eventually.
 

Not According to the Script

Men's Basketball at Western Carolina
Jan. 21, 2008

Writing a column is different than writing a game story. Sometimes you have a certain angle in mind; sometimes you have to wait and see. Tonight’s match up at Western Carolina was a little bit of both.

Coming into the game, I had a couple of ideas for tonight’s post. I thought about writing about how both Andrew Lovedale and Boris Meno have been playing extremely well since the lineup change. Problem was, neither was playing extremely well.

What if I write about ‘X?,’ I asked Davidson SID Marc Gignac. Seconds later, it was apparent that wasn’t going to work either. Why don’t you not say anything more, he suggested.

Point is, sometimes things don’t go as scripted. And I’m just guessing, but the first 10 minutes of this one probably didn’t go as the Davidson bench would have scripted.

On one end of the court, Stephen (“Do you need me for an interview?”) Curry was 2-of-8. But he wasn’t the only Wildcat whose shots weren’t falling; Davidson was 6-22 at the eight-minute media timeout.

On the other end, some serious defense was keeping the ‘Cats in the game. With six steals in the first half – four for Steph – and plenty of things that don’t show up on the box score or in the play-by-play, Davidson was playing with serious hustle. Leading the way once more is Max, he of the three names, Paulhus Gosselin.

“I’ve had this role for a while now,” Max said of his anointing as Davidson’s go-to defensive stopper. “We have a great scorer in Steph, and a great point guard in Jason. Thomas cements the paint, so I just do what is needed for the team.”

Hustle is a necessary part of the game. Every team needs a selfless player on the court. and Max is nothing if not selfless. But you can’t measure hustle.

“Creating turnovers for runouts and winning games,” Max says after another in-your-face defensive effort that was nearly in mine at one point. “Seriously, winning games is my favorite part of playing defense.” Touché, Max. That’s a pretty good way to measure hustle.

And eventually the shots started falling. When you are shooting a combined 47% on the season, it’s bound to happen, and by the end of the half, this one was all but in the books. SteF-in had gotten hot, as he is fond of doing, and finished the half with 18 points on 7-for-13 shooting. Backcourt mate Jason Richards chipped in 14 points on 5-for-7 shooting, and Davidson was up 42-23.

From there, the most exciting thing – besides the final score, 82-67 - was the three-point T-shirts courtesy of Zaxby’s and the Catamount mascot that kept visiting the table (mascots, in general, freak me out).

Though, I heard that there was a kid for the halftime entertainment that won $10,000 after making all those crazy shots in 25 seconds, but I was on the hunt for a Diet Coke. Sometimes, you just can’t script it.
 

A Fun One

Men's Basketball vs. Chattanooga

Jan. 19, 2008

There was a point in today’s game that it happened. If you were one of the 5,300+ in attendance, you probably didn’t miss it, but you might not remember it.

The ‘Cats were holding a tentative 11-8 lead and it was, obviously, still early. After a missed Moc field goal and an offensive rebound, Stephen (excuse me, can I get your autograph?) Curry makes the first of four steals and, after a little give-and-go, caps the play with his first of eight three balls. A second later, a second steal results in a second three-pointer.

A Jason Richards steal turns into an easy back door lay-in for Boris Meno, and the scoreboard reads 19-8. This one is essentially over, again.

And then it happened. Jason is smiling. SteF-en is celebrating. The bench, always led by SteV-en Rossiter, is up and shouting.

This team is having fun again.

There’s Max Pauhlus Gosselin crashing into the scorer’s table with Davidson leading by eight. The students chanting “Steph-en Cur-ry” as he pours in his 25th, 26th and 27th points of the half, putting the ‘Cats up 41-26 at the break. The crowd sending the Wildcats to the locker room with a standing ovation.

“We haven’t played in front of the students in a while, and when they get going with all the chants and “Sweet Caroline,” we get pretty pumped up,” Curry said between signings. (He wasn’t pulling rank; it was autograph day, and all interviews were impeded by signings. This particular fan wanted nothing to do with mine though.)

In the second half, back-to-back dunks by Meno bust the game open, putting Davidson up 49-26 and getting the crowd to strike up the BOOOOORIS! chant, the one with the tomahawk and my favorite. There is fist pumping and chest bumping.

“I always have fun,” Boris said in between the media room and the autograph session. “Every time I play a basketball game, I have fun.”

There is Will Archambault passing to Andrew Lovedale, who has a better position under the basket, and earning a high five from his coach as he sprints back down the court. There is Lovedale earning an ovation after fouling out. And of course, there is “Sweet Caroline,” forcing, to the students’ great delight, a missed free throw.

“It’s always fun to play at home,” Rossiter said graciously granting me an audience and proving himself a worthy interview. “When we come out and execute our game plan, it allows us to really get out there and have fun.”

“Max always has his energy. If Thomas takes a charge, or Steph makes a shot, or Boris gets a dunk, or J makes a play on a fast break, any of those things can really get us going.”

Davidson’s non-conference schedule has been called one of the toughest in the country. Plenty of people will say - have said- too tough. Everyone has an opinion, but one thing is certain, those close losses weren’t fun.

But if you made the game today, you had to feel good about one thing. This team is having fun again.
 

Road Warriors

Men's Basketball at Furman
Jan. 17, 2008

Life on the road can be tough. For the Davidson crew it’s just a hop, skip and a jump down I-85 South to Greenville, S.C. We needed two cars to transport our entourage tonight, but hey, if we can help Billy the manager (extremely well-versed in his classic rock, I might add) get into that Spanish class, we’re happy to help. (Davidson SID Marc Gignac kept teasing with steakhouses, but I for one am glad we held out for the press room pizza.)

But to the Wildcats, the trip to Greenville is a third straight conference road game, and like I said, life on the road can be tough. Channeling the Cameron Crazies, the Furman students did all they could to give their 2-14 Paladins a fighting chance, but the ‘Cats proved every bit hardened.

In Timmons Arena, a building I heard lots of negative things about, not many of which proved true, the “View from Press Row” was certainly treated to a unique view tonight.

Seated behind the Furman basket in the corner farthest away from the Wildcat bench, the official scores table, and well, anything to do with the actual game operations, it felt as if we were a bit banished from the action. (Not the fault of the excellent Paladin sports info department; we just embrace the “go big or go home” theory and thus, take up some space.)

What we got instead was a seat surrounded by Furman students, exactly as missing from my trip to Wofford. From my (not the slightest bit) cushy seat on press row, I can find humor in opposing students’ rants, but unlike Jason Richards and Thomas Sander, I don’t have to listen to my sister’s name on repeat while trying to focus on the game at hand.

Each time Richards got the ball, the students began chanting his sister’s name, and later in the game, Sander received the same treatment. My own sister might have relished the attention, but I can’t speak for the players’ siblings (Thomas’ sister heard her name being chanted by Furman students courtesy of the radio broadcast, letting us know by her comment on Will Bryan’s live blog at Will’s World). Neither Jason nor Thomas seemed to mind though. Richards finished with 11 points and eight assists, while Thomas, unaware of the students’ taunting until I mentioned it after the game, added five points and rebounds each.

“We are kinda used to it,” Sander said, dubbing my press conference “his favorite ever.” Okay, maybe not in those exact words, but he liked it. A lot. “Especially from last year at the end of the season, and then this year, we went to a lot of big-time places –Duke, UCLA- that are completely different.”

Not to be left out, Stephen (according to my press row neighbor, “Wasn’t it Steven last year?”) Curry drew chants of “Overrated” and “Your dad was better,” while some of the Furman students next to me seemed to have animosity for Thomas dating back to high school. Curry once again led the 'Cats in scoring with 14 points.

“Being Davidson in the SoCon, you are always going to get a good contingent of fans pulling against you,” Sander said. “I think we do a good job of tuning it out and focusing on the game.”

But by late in the second half, they didn't have to; this one was over, and the ‘Cats were up big. The students still standing, admirably, dropped the “Overrated” chants in favor of some more “FU”-friendly cheers. (Though a late-game three by Brendan McKillop got them back in the game momentarily.)

After three straight road wins, including this 73-51 triumph, it will feel good to get back to Belk Arena. I can sit at my desk until 30 seconds remain on the game clock, drink as many Diet Cokes as women’s basketball SID Gavin McFarlin will allow me and, most importantly, not have to eat pizza.

And the Wildcats, who adopted the “Embrace the Bull’s eye” mantra many long weeks ago and seemed to have done just that on this three-game swing, will get Saturday’s big-time match-up with Chattanooga on their home court. On the 100th Anniversary Celebration of Davidson Basketball, Wildcats past, present and future will get a much-needed shot of “Sweet Caroline” in front of a grateful home crowd before taking to the road once more.
 

Without Drama

Men's Basketball at Wofford
Jan. 12, 2008

Back by popular demand – well, my mom and (most of) the guys in the office liked my mindless commentary at least - I decided to make a second straight road trip. Will’s World was kind enough to air my thoughts again, but in keepin up with the trends we are launching our very own blog here at davidsonwildcats.com. (Add a bookmark. Come back and read all about the inside world of Davidson athletics directly from staff, coaches and student-athletes.)

This time we traveled just over the border into the Palmetto State and onto the lovely campus of Wofford College. It really is lovely, and it’s certainly less hot than I remember from my Panthers training camp trip, and much quieter and all around tamer than my last visit to the home of the “Beware of Dog” sign last season. (I love that sign).

In ’07, I drew the short(er) end of the stick with a seat next to the Davidson bench on the official scorers table. From what I remembered of my trip last year, I expected a much louder atmosphere, though that expectation may have been distorted by that row of students shouting over my shoulder the entire time, mistakenly calling Bryant Barr “J” so much that I finally turned around and clarified for them. A momentary lapse in judgment to be sure, but they did help me get connected to the wireless Internet and, well, you need friends everywhere you go.

I digress, and I just spent most of this opening writing about last year’s game, and that’s because, well this wasn’t last year’s game. Nor really, a game at all. The atmosphere wasn’t electric, the game wasn’t close, and unlike some in Davidson red, I wasn’t annoyed by the Wofford students.

The antithesis to last week’s Elon game, where nothing needed was falling for the ‘Cats, Davidson couldn’t miss out of the gates tonight, going nearly six minutes before finally missing a shot. It was the kind of game that when Wofford scored on an inbounds play to make the margin 21-7, I found myself cheering just a little. Cheering, after all isn’t allowed on press row.

It wasn’t that Wofford was slacking off or even playing that poorly, it was just one of those games that was decided right from the Andrew Lovedale tip. At the point when Davidson finally missed a shot, Stephen (not pronounced Steven, except sometimes for fun) Curry was outscoring the Terriers 12-7 all by his lonesome.

Even the Wofford students couldn’t get up for this one, and can you blame them? At their own arena the P.A. announcer directed a security guard to take away their bullhorn, in so many words, over the loudspeaker to cheers from the Davidson contingent. Though, you can’t blame the guy, since the bullhorn was literally within an earshot. And don’t even get me started on the unnecessarily lengthy horn for timeouts. Was that guy serious? Or just as bored as the rest of us? Or afraid that Wofford wouldn’t actually come back out?

Lacking in drama from the start, expect for if the ‘Cats would get to 100 (no), the crowd pretty much kicked back for a show. For Davidson though, the memories of a close win at Elon combined with a near-miss at Wofford last season, combined for a big win on Saturday night.

“It felt really good,” said Jason Richards, demoted, also to his amusement, to my press conference this night. “Coming down here, it’s always a battle against Wofford. We came out fired up. We learned a lot from the game against Elon. We knew we needed to get out of the starting gates early, and we got out to a big lead. It was a good win for us.”

And if it was a lackluster game, as indicated by the final score of 85-50, it certainly wasn’t for effort. Steph finished with 26 on 11-of-13 shooting with three each in rebounds and assists. Jason finished with 12 (four treys) points and was credited with six assists, though it probably should have been more. Will, who had such a big game in this arena last season, posted another good total with 15 points on 7-for-11 shooting, while Stephen (actually pronounced Steven) Rossiter was close to a double-double with eight points and rebounds off the bench, back after an off-night at Elon.

“Obviously that builds confidence for us,” Jason said of back-to-back SoCon road wins. “Winning on the road in the conference is huge; every game in conference is hard. Furman will be really important for us; they are gonna bring it. Anytime you go on the road in the conference, we just need to come out like we did tonight against Wofford.”

Here’s hoping for a very similar result.
 

Another Stephen Curry Story

Men's Basketball at Elon
Jan. 9, 2008

 When I decided to make the trip up to Elon, it was mostly because it was a Wednesday night, and my other option was actually cooking a meal and a trip to the gym. Tivo was handling the North Carolina game, which wasn’t compelling enough to force me to stay inside anyways, no disrespect to UNC Asheville intended. I also forgot about the ridiculous 9 p.m. tip time. Nonetheless, a commitment is a commitment, and I’d never been to Elon. Plus, I’ve been angling for a posting on Will’s World for a while, and what better night than tonight. All this to say I was excited about writing a column about the Wildcats. It was supposed to be fun.

But this, what was happening, this was anything but fun. Knowing my intentions to write something about the game rather than sit and watch, and finding said intentions humorous, Joey Beeler, men’s basketball SID, asked about my angle. Have to wait and see, I told him. These things have to unfold, after all, and that takes time.

A few minutes into the first half I had figured out the story. The backcourt superhero duo of Jason Richards and Stephen (not pronounced Steven) Curry had forgotten to get off the bus, but it didn’t matter because the rest of the team was doing the little things. Back-to-back steals by Max Paulhus Gosselin, a favorite on the court and off, and Steph were converted into easy layups. Will hit another key three. Another steal for Max turns into a smart dish for Jason that ends in an Andrew Lovedale basket on the break. And yet, the little things weren’t adding up to a big lead. In fact, there was a little deficit instead. And worse, a staggering line, Curry just 0-3 in the first half and without a three, threatening to snap a streak of insane proportions.

And things weren’t getting any better. If you were watching the game from the Davidson end of press row, it seemed like the Wildcats were down 50, but when you looked up at the scoreboard you felt relieved it was just two. Two points with 10 minutes to play. Panic, with this team anyways, didn’t set in. Every loose ball was chased into the stands, every board crashed for a rebound, but the rim seemed no bigger than the needle of an eye. Nothing was falling. Sure, the atmosphere was a bit more intense than the ‘Cats were used to lately, as Elon benefited from a Jan-term student presence, but Davidson had played Duke and North Carolina to the wire in front of much larger, much louder crowds. These were battle-tested, road-weary Wildcats.

Cut to late in the second half. SteF-en picked up his fourth foul with under five minutes to play. Bad news for most teams. Terrible news for the Wildcats, trailing by one. Doesn’t matter, I said to esteemed Davidson SID Marc Gignac. He’s 1-10 anyways. Never wavering, Marc said, He’ll hit the game-winner though.

And then it happened. The most impressive 30 seconds of basketball I’ve been within six inches of. Ask Davidson broadcaster John Kilgo how close press row is to the court. You are practically in the game, proven by a loose ball during shoot around combined with a Coke that made for difficult circumstances for the seasoned play-by-play man.

Down by one, Jason grabs a rebound on the defensive end, and is off, pushing the ball up the court and dishing to Steph before you can say..."this is familiar, we’ve seen this before."

“Well, he kinda reached from behind,” Curry said of his defender at the opposite end, in a postgame interview. He wasn't taking me very seriously for some reason. “And I saw the lane to the basket.”

Mistake number one, don’t grant Curry a lane. That must be in the scouting report somewhere. But the basket, like so many for the ‘Cats this night in this gym, didn’t fall. Still doing the little things, Thomas Sander, the lone double-doubler of the night for the ‘Cats, grabbed his 13th and arguably most important rebound, and sailed a quick pass to Steph, who connected on his first three of the game to tie the score at 57 and preserve his streak for Beeler’s game notes.

After a Phoenix timeout, Richards, who finished with 10 assists, comes up with another huge steal, finding Steph on the wing on the break yet again. After a couple moves to shake a defender, Dell’s eldest launches a jumper that clanks out. But there is Max, the night’s unsung hero turning in his third straight lockdown effort on defense, for the rebound that requires a belly flop onto the court. Steph takes the pass, gets off the ground, just inside the line, switches hands in mid air – I was there, it happened -- and nails a left-handed shot that makes the Davidson bench go wild and the Elon crowd go silent.

“Every shot I take, I think it’s going in,” Steph says, still entertaining my post-game press conference despite dubbing me “intimidating” and not meaning it at all. “And when they don’t have a hand up, I’m gonna shoot it. You gotta have confidence to shoot it no matter what your stats are. I knew it went in.”

I didn’t want to write a Stephen Curry story. Everyone is doing it. But he outscored the Phoenix 8-0 at the end of a nail biter and forced my hand. I wanted to write about the little things. Like the final 40 seconds of this-is-what-we-were-waiting-for-defense that forced the Phoenix into four, count ‘em, four missed potential game-winning shots.

But tonight, Davidson’s big thing won the game. And as the crowd emptied the building, I overheard one student say to another, "that shot was sick." I like to think it was the same kid I overheard earlier say, "I thought he was good?" We’ll never know for sure, but Gignac concluded and I concurred: the legend grows.

Davidson College