(03-10-2018 06:14 PM)dukes13 Wrote:  WNIT bound again...wonder how long the path will be before there’s a collision with VA Tech...sounded like first round matchup will likely be Radford or Liberty.

Liberty is going to the NCAA so we don't have to look at their icky coach again, or listen to that screaming fan....thank goodness. I hope they get clobbered in the first round. (Can you tell I don't like them?)

We'll see about Radford.

I personally don't like conference tournaments because of the upset factor in one-bid conferences like ours and other non-P5 conferences. What you get, basically, at the end is a lot of tired basketball. The least worn-out team often pulls a shocker. I think it sucks.

(03-09-2018 09:02 PM)J.B. Wrote:  

(03-09-2018 04:27 PM)PhillyDuke Wrote:  The DAC is the worst arena in the league and I dont think its close.

I was walking around at the JMU/Elon game tonight, reflecting on how I thought they did a great job with the renovation, and still aren't finished. Video and new scoreboards are coming next year...a year too late IMO. New lighting is on the horizon too. Anyway, I've heard a lot of great things about the DAC from outsiders who were there for the first time. They love the intimacy and the closeness to the court. It's no longer hot as hell, and the new seats are rather comfortable. There's also a decent amount of legroom compared to some arenas. The bathrooms are brand new, and large and easy to get to.

So I'm curious (not trying to be critical), what is so bad about the DAC that you would make that statement? Other than it having fewer seats, what makes it worse than say...JMU or W&M, or Northeastern?

Since I started the "I am not impressed with the DAC" posting....

I have never been to the DAC before last weekend, either before or after the renovations so last weekend is my only frame of reference.

It felt like a high school gym to me. Small, significantly fewer seats than most college arenas I have been in. The acoustics are such that, when you have two good bands playing (like most of last weekend), it gets very hard to hear people talking to you and I left each day with a headache (not related to the bad game the Dukes played on Friday). When you come in, you have to wait until a stoppage of play before you can go to your seat because there is literally no way to get to the seats without stepping on the floor. We noticed that if JMU had been playing in the finals, there probably would not have been enough seats for all of the fans.

Someone mentioned the Presidential suite as being one of the positive points. I did see it a bit from where we were sitting, but how many times a year is that space actually used and who uses it? My friends and I were talking about how much wasted space there seems to be in the entire building.

I give points to the nice restrooms and to some of the helpful staff but others on the staff were less than competent. And the scoreboard with team names that cannot be changed? It just looked odd that everything was "Drexel vs. Guest" the entire weekend. Hopefully the new scoreboards will help.

I know I am in the minority but I LIKE the Convocation Center (most of it, at least). For what we are....and who we play...I think it serves our needs very well. That being said, I look forward to seeing what the new arena ends up looking like. I just hope we are not following in the ODU footsteps where their huge new space looks even bigger and emptier because of their fanbase.

I sure hope after our expedition to Delaware next year that the CAA returns to a neutral site. The Showplace Arena may not have been the Taj Mahal of arenas to play in, but everyone was on the same playing field in terms of being familiar (or not) with the floor and the site and nobody had any kind of advantage. Of course, the last two years have not proven to show home field advantage but I still think a neutral site would be better. Some options I would suggest would be back to Showplace Arena (after going there six years we know where lots of good restaurants, hotels, and things to do are!), Richmond or Baltimore (as long as it would be in an area where there are reasonably priced hotels). Pick an area in the middle of the conference and market the heck out of it.

One thing we noticed last weekend was, with the exception of the Delaware surfing spirit folks (very cute by the way) and the drum performance on Saturday, there was NO halftime entertainment or anything at time outs with the exception of the pep bands and dance teams. I got veryyyyyyyyyyy tired of seeing the same dance routines over and over, especially with the Drexel dancer who appeared to be auditioning for a porn movie. Hopefully next year will bring out some other forms of entertainment, even if it is like we did at JMU last year with the same kid's games that are done during the season. It breaks up the time for folks who are watching all the games in a single session.

(03-14-2018 09:19 AM)LovethoseDukes Wrote:  I got veryyyyyyyyyyy tired of seeing the same dance routines over and over, especially with the Drexel dancer who appeared to be auditioning for a porn movie.

Lol love this