Is the Big West Conference forgetting its basketball fans?
Let’s start to answer that question by pointing out that the tournament’s first game will take place at noon on Tuesday, March 8.
I’ll give you 20-to-1 Las Vegas odds that there won’t be 100 paying customers in the Dollar Loan Center for that game, including those who came there hoping they could get a loan.
And for sure, there won’t be a single student there from any California or Hawaii institution of higher education that is participating in this game. Other than the players themselves, of course.
Oh sure, Chamber of Commerce types will no doubt pass out complimentary tickets to scout troops and anyone in line at In-N-Out in order to make the “crowd” scene look respectable on national television, but it will be a neutral group at best that doesn’t care about the outcome.
Who knows, organizers may even resort to cardboard cutouts to fill the cheap seats.
A much better plan, one that serves both the players and the fans alike and truly rewards a team for its success during the regular season, would be to play the entire tournament at home sites, with the better seeded team always enjoying home-court advantage.
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