By now, you know the scores, so I'll talk a bit about the experience. I arrived in the arena about an hour before game time, and it was pretty clear that the
Clemson fans sold out to the UNC fans. Not unexpected, I guess. The Tar Heels were still lame, and the looks on the faces of their fans suggested they
expected to lose. On court, it looked very much like a team playing out a string. I've now seen two consecutive UNC games, and they're 0-2 in those games.
Can you think of anything to make a Duke fan happier?
Amusing side comment: On one side, you have a small private school that was originally a religous school, and on the other you have a large state school in a
multi-racial state. Guess which cheerleading squad was lily white? Yep, UNC.
UNC had their chances, but when Brendan Haywood tried to lead a fast break, you know it is over. The chants:
NIT! NIT!
85 North! 85 North!
Go to hell, Carolina! Go to hell!
Met up with DBR folks to find the tailgate, and walked back through the UNC area. Tickets for the evening session were going for $3.
Hey Duke fans: If you can drive to Charlotte, do it! Scalped tickets will probably be under face value. Come support the Blue
Devils.
Second game was Florida State vs Maryland. The Terps are very confident, and are already looking past Virginia/NC State to a meeting with Duke. Not much
originality on the part of Maryland, not much attendance on the part of Florida State. This game was over early, and we left after the last TV time out.
Between games we had a tailgate at the far end of the stadium. Subs, snack food, and diet coke. May thanks to Cary, Stray, Buddy and all the organizers. Met
more of the readers. Good fun.
The last game, Virginia vs NC State, was surprisingly well attended. With UNC heading north, I expected the arena to be about 50-75% full, but the upper deck
was fairly full.
You could see from the start that State wanted it more, and in games like this, it is heart as much as talent that wins. The first half was all State, the Wahoos
made a run in the second, but you could see they didn't have enough after their run.
Oh, the officials really sucked in that game. Clearly the C Team.
Cheerleaders:
FSU > Maryland
NC State > Virginia
Go Devils.