CMJ

FAU 23 -------- NT 16 7:18 to go They're not having as much trouble with our defense as I would like. Gotta really dig in.

FAU 17 -------- NT 12 9:44 to go Owls hitting shots early.

NT 5 -------- FAU 4 15:27 to go Pretty scratchy start by both squads.

I watch a lot of sports on TV. We all do. One of the first things I always notice, no matter the game (or sport), is the attendance and noise the crowd makes. It definitely doesn't look good when someone struggles to fill half their arena.

I'm in California...I'll be watching our game on TV. But I also know (unfortunately) that any time we're on against NFL games, no matter the teams, we struggle.

Providence does have the state capitol thing going for it though. I have family in Rhode Island and they're pretty provincial despite their closeness to Boston.

Didn't have this kind of success though.

Attendance was definitely on an upwards trajectory during JJs last few years. I love Jones and I still think Josh White is my favorite player ever, but the fact that the success we've had the last six years hasn't dwarfed Jones' attendance figures is sorta ridiculous.

Temple kinda proves my point though (and if you of watched the game on TV, there wasn't anyway they had 2900 against Tulane, maybe half of that). Huge crowd against a Top 25 opponent, but have a tougher time when it's not. When Temple had some of their great teams under Chaney, they routinely drew awesome...but they were also making the Sweet 16 or Elite 8.

I think the answer is most any major metro area University. Everyone always talks up how lucky NT is to be located in DFW metroplex, but it's a double edged sword. If you look at school athletic programs in the footprint of big cities, they often have issues with attendance. I mean you don't necessarily want to be in the middle of nowhere, but when you're in (or close to) a Philadelphia or a New York, or a Chicago, or a Miami, etc. unless you're winning in a BIG way, or playing a top 5 opponent, it's tough to compete for viewers against NBA, MLB, NFL, NHL, etc., etc..

I know we'll be competing against one of the NFL playoff games, but I'm saying we need 5K+ on Sunday.

I mean if we win out till the conference final and lose to Memphis in a close game, we would definitely be looked at - but the lack of quality wins would hurt us a lot. I think it'd be 50/50.

Nice that we hit 4K, but disappointed it wasn't much better given the stakes for this game.

NC State never wins the '83 title if not for the late fouling strategy. That also happens to be one of the most memorable runs in March Madness history. So much so that even 40+ years later it's still talked about. Sure it can sometimes be a chore to sit through, I agree, but I guess I'm just used it.

Nice to see that no one is winless in league play now.

Time to face another set of Owls. Let's stay in 1st!

I saw a team down eight with 16 seconds left force overtime once by using the tactic.

NT 76 ---------- Temple 67 Final

NT 72 ---------- Temple 67 46.4 seconds Don't turn the ball over and hit free throws....

NT 65 ---------- Temple 58 1:36 to go Just play smart.

NT 62 ---------- Temple 56 3:14 to go Time to get the maalox. Gonna be a stressful homestretch.

NT 55 ---------- Temple 51 5:20 to go Need Wright to make some shots. Lorient has been carrying us tonight with some nice help from Sissoko and Floyd.

NT 53 ---------- Temple 47 7:50 to go We're keeping them at bay, but now that Mashburn is out of his funk, their offense is running much better.

NT 48 ---------- Temple 41 10:49 to go Mashburn had missed twelve straight, but now it seems like he may be "back." This timeout came a a good time.

NT 43 ---------- Temple 32 14:50 to go Keep plugging away, I think another 4-6 minutes of this and Temple may capitulate.