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Court of many appeals
By Chet Sullwold
The command rang out loud and clear across the floor of the University of Toledo’s refurbished basketball home:
“Sarah! [That’s not her real name.] Tuck in your shirt!”
That verbal challenge came from the figure striding purposefully in front of the Rockets’ bench: Coach Tricia Cullop, director of women’s basketball operations.
It was an early game on the home schedule, but fans should have known right then and there that the UT women’s basketball program was in good hands.There’s a lot written about strategy — X’s and O’s and such — and of course the defining item about a basketball game is the final score. But how is that goal reached?
Perhaps in ways that don’t appear in the scorebook.
Let’s take a closer look at some of those other factors in the 2008-09 UT women’s season.
Respect: College and high school basketball games get started pre-game with the playing of the National Anthem. Unless they are on a school break, UT’s band, whose seats cascade down from the northeast corner of the stands, play their own spirited version. Both teams line up across the floor, facing the big U.S. flag at the north end of the arena, then go their benches after the anthem is over.
Several times during the season, the University had a military colorguard march onto the floor, taking the colors to mid-court. After the National Anthem is played, they ceremoniously march off the floor. The UT women’s team stood at attention on the floor until the marchers cleared the court.
Allegiance: When the UT PepBand is in attendance, their final rendition is of the UT “Alma Mater.” Experience has shown that many fans in attendance don’t recognize the tune in their hurry to get to the parking lots. However, the UT women’s basketball teamstood in respect in the center of the court until the last chord sounded. The cheerleaders also stood in respect in front of the band.
Smiles: There’s a five-minute show on the huge scoreboard over center court just after the visiting team is introduced and before the Rocket starters run onto the floor. Individual video segments introduce the UT team to the fans. Featured are huge video portraitsof the players, who display the same winning smiles on the big board you will see them wearing in pre-game drills and at most times during the game.
You can judge for yourself as to which player could be featured in adental ad, but one that stood out last season was Courtney Ingersoll. When the freshman was chosen to appear in a post-game press conference, the TV people didn’t have to turn on their auxiliary lighting equipment to make the focus of their camera lens brighter — Courtney’s smile illuminated the whole room. This year, we’ll watch for a possible successor.
Fans: The Igniters are a UTwomen’s basketball fan club of diverse and interesting members. They refuse to sit down after the game starts until Toledo scores (which might mean four or five minutes of standing in front of a seat they already paid for). They’ve also been known to hoot and holler during timeouts and action at the games. And they take bus trips to some away games.
The ushers and the Igniters have a common purpose before the game is played. A human tunnel of fans lined up shoulder to shoulder across from each other is created, through which the high-fived Rocket women travel to get ontothe court from the dressing room corridor. The Igniters in their identifying T-shirts help build the tunnel; their biggest allies are the ushers, who urge young and old spectators to come down to the floor and lengthen the tunnel.What started out as two sides at the start of the season became three sides and growing. Think of a spectator-lined rectangle. There might be a space problem looming here if the human tunnel is expanded to cover all sides of the court.
Lady-in-waiting: The vivacious young lady in cool campus clothes who patrolled the end court the previous season, retrieving loose basketballs when the Rockets warmed up beforegames, was Ashlee Barrett, a transfer from Evansville. Her sit-out season in 2008-09 was tough on her, as she would rather have been on the court. But had you asked her, she’d have told you she loves the University and couldn’t wait to get a chance to be one of its basketball representatives. This year she’ll get her chance, becoming eligible at the end of fall semester. (Spring semester, incidentally, she had a 4.0 GPA.)
The final word: Thanks to modern technology, fans in Savage Arena got a chance to immediately see and hear post-game comments from Coach Cullop and broadcaster Rich Hoffer via televised display on the giant screens high above center court. Coach must make a trip from courtside up the stairs to the mezzanine broadcast booth to be interviewed.
Some games it’s a tough climb. Other games, it is easier. (Checkthe scoreboard!)
The UT women’s basketball program faces a similar climb and challenge.It’s already proved, though, that it has more than X’s and O’s on its resume.