Notes from the Allstate...

[DonCornholeone]

- Man, that place felt empty.  I give credit to the few students that show up for the games.  But during the runs DePaul made, the place actually got kinda loud.  But it also got as loud for MU.

- It took balls for those two DePaul students to take on the entire Marquette student section.  Glad nobody got hurt.

- They have the worst time-out and halftime activities I've seen in a long time.  The wind-sprint-money pickup and build-a-burrito.  They dont have to be so complicated.  And it was kinda retro to see cheerleaders actual throwing the free t-shirts into the crowd.  The whole experience was very 80s.

- Will Walker is a f-ing baller.  The game could have been very scary if Tucker had played.

- One highlight was the fact that it took less than 5 minutes to get out of the parking lot and onto the highway.

- Another highlight was the 20 or so "Selloutuconn.com" stickers that someone plastered all over one of the stairwells...

[The Lens]

Would love to see the final numbers from this game

# of tickets that were sold for $40
# of tickets that were sold for $20
# of tickets that were given away

I still think DePaul did themselves a major disservice by trying to "marquee" this game.  I would have rolled out the red carpet for MU fans, booked the best TO & halftime gigs and done a great give away.  On top of that I would have given every fan a buy one get one free for the Pitt game (and then at that game a BOGO for the Lousiville game).  If they have any sort of a decent lease (and they should b/c it's a minor league arena) they get a cut of concessions.  They need to get people in the door. 

You also show that at the All State you can see some great Big East hoops, even if they're not wearing Blue & Red.

IMO, the DePaul Ath Dept is in shambles.  A rudderless ship.

[DonCornholeone]

The basketball program is obviously a much lower priority at DePaul than at Marquette.  I think they give them a token budget for such things and they do what they can.  And really, until they get an on-campus, or at least a closer, arena, there is a ceiling as to what they can do.

[fjg44]

Did anyone see the promo for $15 and $10 tickets to the Pitt game this Saturday?  I am thinking about going back just to see Pitt play live.

[AlumKCof93]

I was really surprised at how empty the arena was yesterday.  I can't imagine what it would have been without the MU fans.

I don't typically notice such things, but I agree that their timeout entertainment was beyond awful.  I had my 2 kids there who typically enjoy such things and they commented on how stupid it was.

One other thing, their band chose some truly terrible songs to play.  With about 4 minutes to play, they played such a slow song that it zapped any energy from the place.  DePaul should have learned that if their product is awful, they should make up for it in some type of promotion - the Bulls have been doing it for years.

[Avenue Commons]

I still think DePaul did themselves a major disservice by trying to "marquee" this game.  I would have rolled out the red carpet for MU fans, booked the best TO & halftime gigs and done a great give away. 

I love MU and grew up a DePaul fan (like a lot of guys from Chicago) and I felt kind of ripped off paying $40 a seat. It definately backfired. WAY fewer MU fans and not as many DePaul fans who usually come out for the MU game. The 8pm tip didn't help matters much either. I didn't get home until pretty late for a work night.

[MR.HAYWARD]

actaully it probably did work out for depaul...i have not seen there numbers but my guess is 11k is still at there high for the year.  even if not if the average ticket is normally $25 ...11k at $40 would equate to about 18k at $25 fans and I dont think they have come near that #

[muboy262]

It definately didn't feel like 11K in there last night.  Both ends of the upper were COMPLETELY empty.  I did enjoy seeing the DePaul fans with paper bags over their heads though.  I totally agree with every comment on the "entertainment" (used loosely).  I thank God for the quality atmosphere @ the BC.

[Pardner]

- They have the worst time-out and halftime activities I've seen in a long time.  The wind-sprint-money pickup and build-a-burrito.  They dont have to be so complicated.  And it was kinda retro to see cheerleaders actual throwing the free t-shirts into the crowd.  The whole experience was very 80s.

Did the Wiffle Ball Bat Chick toss her cookies on the mat after she did her circles?  It sure looked like it.  The human burrito would have been good with real food.  MU dominated the lowers too.  THiggins is a very popular guy before the game greeting fans courtside.  DJ was even working him.

[Daniel]

It's hard to believe the Allstate Arena can hold 18,000+ - it looked empty at the game.  The saddest part was the tiny DePaul student section - wow, when you see ours a tthe BC, and compare it to what they had - pathetic.

I don;t know what that place must look like when they play someone from a great distance.  MU filled a good poration of the fansl ast night.