"you should know better by now."

For starters, our men's team won tonight 64-50. They're 6-5 heading into the conference schedule. Go Jags.

I'm not sure if I was particularly on my game tonight or what, but one fellow came up to me at halftime and paid me a very kind compliment. I'm guessing he's a parent of the opposing team (I know he was at least there to cheer on Samford). He came up to me and told me, in so many words or less, that he really liked my P.A. announcing and that I was very articulate and such. I thought it was very kind of him, really. He also offered a polite correction on one name, which I took graciously.

I'm honestly humble when it comes to doing this P.A. stuff. Oh sure, I love it and think I do a halfway decent job at it; but I think that's because I know I'm not the star attraction. I'm just coloring in some of the gaps for the spectators. That's my job. Period. Yes, I am cheering for the home team and will be more exuberant when they score and such. But I absolutely REFUSE to stoop to "homerism" like you see from that jackass at Auburn Hills. It's just not my bag, baby.

So when a fan comes to me and tells me they appreciate the job I'm doing, it makes me feel like I'm doing something right.

Another fan, after the game, asked me if I also work the Pacer games. I giggled a bit about that, but smiled and said no. I didn't get a swelled head over that. The only reason she said that, I believe, is because I made an announcement that the gym was closing in two minutes and punctuated it with a "two minutes . . . TWO-ahhh" a la Pacers P.A. guy Reb Porter.

Kevin Buerge, our S.I.D. shook his head, laughed and said to me, "we expect a lot more out of you in this job."

"You should know better by now," I replied.

The conference portion of our schedule is coming up. This is gonna be good.

giddy up!

Tonight's basketball game against Western Michigan was one of our men's teams first really big tests of the season. It seemed the Jags just didn't match up all that well against them. Although Hunter's game plan was obvious: find an Achilles Heel by raining three-pointers. It held up all right for the first half. Then WMU's perimeter game seemed to grind down the Jags in the second half. Sure, they made it interesting with same 11th hour heroics; but the hole was already dug.

I do believe this is how a team and program gets better -- facing tough teams in the non-conference schedule. So will the Jags get a breather? Well, they've got Louisville next. You do the math.

Tonight's game seemed to go off pretty well, from a PA/game management standpoint. Sure, we had our second scoreboard meltdown of the season. For reasons beyond any of us, the scoreboard just shuts down. Somewhere between the actual scorekeeper (the computer-looking thingy), the wires and the scoreboards, something went afoul. The only thing that works was shutting down all the power on the scorers table for a second then turning it back on. Too bad that momentarily took down the radio broadcast. Desperate times call for desperate measures, so I don't fault BuergeNation one bit. He had to do what he had to do.

The promotions -- pop-a-shot and halftime -- went well; although I must admit it's more fun when Anna and Co. can sit at the scorers table. It gives me somebody to talk to during the game (as though I don't have anything better to do with my time, eh?).

On yeah, I got a gig! Kris, the cheerleading coach asked me if I'd do PA for some big cheerleading competiton at Plainfield High School. it's a two-day event at the end of January. Why not? I don't mind being a hired hack. I imagine it won't be as much fun as these basketball games, but they're going to pay me. So giddy up!

a case of the yips.

We had a women's basketball game Wednesday night that felt awfully like a throwback game to me. Three years ago, our women's team built 20+ point leads and carried them into the second half . . . only to lose. It was heartbreaking and frustrating to watch. They'd play their hearts out and then get a case of the yips and run down their own shot clock with a prevent-style offense. It was miserable.

Wednesday night had that same look and feel. The team built a double-digit lead in the first half by swarming all over Loyola-Chicago. But you could feel things changing before the first half ended. Nobody was passing into the post. Nobody was rebounding. Nobody was making shots. Nobody was looking for shots. Here come da yips!

Late in the second half, during a timeout, I turned to Joe, the official scorekeeper, and said: "Four minutes to go, we're up by eight. They've got us right where they want us."

Did they ever. Loyola-Chicago forced overtime. We ended up winning the game, but not before making it interesting. It's worth noting IUPUI never relinquished the lead. They just didn't know how to protect it.

It's always more fun to watch the home team win.

As for the announcing duties, it's nearly business-as-usual. I've got the board figured out, the music dialed in, the sound amplifying good. Things are good from the scorer's table.

We have a couple interns from the NCAA helping us out this season, Anna and Beth (I don't know their last names). I know Anna was a competitive track runner at Univ. of Washington out in the Pacific Northwest.

I think it was during halftime she said to me, "You really have to multitask, don't you?" It was a very kind compliment, really. This PA thing is hardly brain surgery. I remind people of that every chance I get. It's something that I do purely for the fun of it. Plus, I get the best seat in the house. But it's always nice when somebody pays you an unsolicited compliment.

I hope I don't blow the karma by stepping all over myself Wednesday night when Western Michigan comes to town.

mailing it in.

IUPUI's men's team had a non-conference game Saturday night against IU Southeast, an NAIA team. IUPUI won the game going away. The score was something-to-something. This is what happens when teams of different divisions play one another -- nobody cares.

This is, by no means, meant as a dig against IU Southeast. They knew it would take the best game of their lives to beat IUPUI. It would be like IUPUI playing Kentucky...oh wait, we did that a couple years ago. But that was in The Big Dance, so it mattered just a bit more.

When NCAA D-I teams square off against NAIA teams, it's rarely entertaining. Therefore, everybody mails it in for the night. Even the fans were sitting on their hands all night. When the outcome is all but assured -- despite what any coach worth his or her salt will tell you -- nobody pays much attention to the details.

Believe it or not, though, I thought I was going to lose my voice during the game. I was surprised to find that I was not in good voice when I got to the gym last night. Usually, a game after a night of hanging out until 2 a.m. drinking beer gives me a perfect "whiskey voice." Not this time, apparently. I have to be careful, though. A couple seasons ago I lit it up pretty good one night. The following day gave me a double-header and I gave a performance for the ages...on Alternate Reality Earth, where mistakes are celebrated.

Lacy, who used to work the press row phones for us, scolded me and told me I was no longer allowed to go out the night before a game. It was humbling, I must say, getting chastised by a 21-year old.

But back to last night....

I'm sure nobody noticed a difference in the radio broadcast or the in-game PA announcing; but believe me, our performances were yadda-yadda-yadda.

Come back in February when we play Valparaiso at Conseco.

beating big men.

Saturday night's game against Colorado State was one of the best all the way around. For one, the team won a non-conference game by 10 points and showed that a small, fast team with good guard play can beat a team with a big front court. Granted, CSU is not Kentucky, so we're not popping champagne corks just yet.

From a PA announcer perspective, everything went according to plan as well. We finally got the sound dialed in to where it should've been since the first game. And I think we're all getting more comfortable with the new set-up. Of course, we had a situation where the scoreboards went out in the second half. Why? Anybody's guess, really. A cord came loose is all I can figure. We got it figured out and the game went on without a hitch.

Akeem Clark and Brandon Cole are going to be a strong one-two punch in scoring this season. George Hill is going to be a great player for the next four seasons. You watch.

oh yeah, we won.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Wednesday night's game, from a game management standpoint, has been the best thus far. I wouldn't dare say it was perfect, but we seemed to have less glitches. Well, I take that back. I somehow screwed up the team's intro music, so it was very "retro" by today's standards.

People may or may not be aware, but I also coordinate all the music as well as do PAs. No, it's not brain surgery; but when you're shifting gears from announcing one thing and having to cue up two or three different pieces of music inside of a minute or two, it's easy to get scatter-brained. I'm working on lessening such episodes.

The best remedy, of course, is repetition. The more I do it, the more natural it becomes. As it is, I'm still working to put new names with new faces, keep track of the timeouts and fouls, make sure I've got everything in place for promos and such, and so on. Please don't mistake what I'm saying for a one-man show. That's hardly the case. I am merely the conduit through which all avenues intersect on this side of the game.

Indeed, the game's the thing and I'd never suggest otherwise. I merely act as a friendly guide for those in attendance. I'm not here to take over, just enhance your experience by keeping you up to speed . . . and hopefully do so from a Jag-centric place. Maybe I need to be more revved up, but I'm something of a throw-back. I don't like PA announcers who think they're the star attraction. That dude up in Detroit, Mason, I just can't do that. I won't do that. I don't like it one bit. Give me the old-school Pistons announcer. Give me the dude from the Lakers. Ray Clay did his thing during the starting line-ups for the Bulls, but didn't distract during the game. I can even say the same of Reb Porter here in Indy. I try to work it like that.

I'd like to think I do a decent job, but I know I've got a long way to perfection. So far, though, I'm just happy IUPUI gives me the opportunity.

And oh yeah, the men's team won the game. We'll see how they do against Colorado State on Saturday.

Enjoy your Friday.

iupui - 53; evansville - 61.

So our women's team lost the home opener last night. Things seemed to be looking all right in the first half; but they just seemed out of sorts in the second half. Evansville brought quite a crowd of fans, I must say.

Sometimes our fans sit on their hands. The women's program is in full re-build mode, if you ask me. With a new coach, things will change. I like the intensity she brings. I think the players are feeding off it, but it's still her first year.

The glaring stat of the night for me is 9-for-36. That was our free throw shooting. Ouch. That's on par with my free throw shooting!

In terms of PA, I'm still getting used to the new system and set-up. For some reason, I feel more detached from the game, but I think I'm just not used to things yet. I'm learning to hate my headset mic, though. Hopefully tonight will be better.

Men's home opener this evening vs. Huntington College. I have to keep my head in the game because it's a lot faster than the women's game. And last night's game seemed to be pretty fast-paced.

tonight's game.

Exhibition is over. Tonight is the women's home opener vs. Evansville at 7 p.m.

Here's to a good game!

leave the fists at home.

Maybe I'm hypersensitive to fan behavior or something, but I was completely disgusted with the brawl last night in Auburn Hills. I was disgusted with the players. I was disgusted with the fans. That situation will sort itself out and the NBA will go back to business-as-usual in no time. But who is going to address the escalating problem of fans disrupting games? We all know about the incidents at professional sporting events, but it also happens on the collegiate level.

A couple years ago, during my second season as the Jags PA announcer, Oakland University Head Coach Greg Kampe charged off the bench and confronted a heckler, threatening, "I'm gonna kick your ass!"

The situation calmed almost as quickly as it erupted, but it opened the eyes of the A.D. that we have some hecklers who position themselves directly behind the visitors bench a la Robin Ficker. The program responded by no longer allowing "home team" fans to sit behind that bench.

While the solution was successful, it didn't really address the over-arching problem.

Last season's home finale nearly turned into a situation when chippy play between the Jags and UMKC quickly turned into an on-court fight. If that wasn't bad enough, I noticed that fans directly behind the men's bench were out of their seats, inching toward the floor.

Order was quickly restored, but not by security. I'm not blaming them for any of this, but it points out that organizers of sporting events are not actively planning for such occurances. "It'll never happen again," is what they often say. But he keeps happening.

Again and again.

Not 24 hours after the Pacers-Pistons incident, an on-field fight broke out in South Carolina's final football game.

It's time for players AND fans to check themselves. Cheer. Boo. Yell. But please, leave the fists at home.

home openers.

The home openers for IUPUI basketball are next week.

Women's opener
Tuesday, 23 November vs. Evansville

Men's opener
Wednesday, 24 November vs. Huntington College

Both games start at 7pm at the IUPUI Gymnasium on IUPUI's campus.

Be there!!!!

night & day.

We had our exhibition basketball games this past weekend. Man, I forget how fast the game goes! The men's game on Friday was, of course, fun; but it was like learning how to work a b-ball game all over again. Every year, the first game is always like that. In fact, the first few games go like that. You just have to get your "sea legs" I suppose.

Add to that a new P.A. system and it's only more difficult.

The men's team lost their exhibition game to Premier Sports. I, for one, don't think it's bad that they lost the game. Hopefully they'll identify the weaknesses exposed by the opponents.

By Saturday night, the women's exhibition game, we got most of the kinks ironed out with sound. Learning the new soundboard just took a little time. I think we've got most of it dialed in.

The women's team won going away, too. Of course, they were playing an NAIA team, so they should've won. Not to take anything away from the Jags, though. They showed more spirit and athleticism in this game than all last year. Hopefully that'll continue throughout the season when they take on the big teams.

game on.

Well, the clock just struck midnight. In 19 hours, we have our first basketball game of the season. It's an exhibition game, but still, this is not a drill.

This is my fourth season doing PA for IUPUI and I can't wait. It never gets old.

Game on.

it never gets old.

I've worked two soccer matches so far and I've seen two wins. It's great when the teams actually do well...sucks when they don't. That's about as simple as it gets.

I was supposed to start doing announcing for volleyball this season, but that may not work out. I already have commitments to soccer and basketball (men's and women's, in both cases). While it would probably be fun, I have never worked volleyball before. I have no clue as to what I have to do for that. Basketball is pretty easy; soccer is even easier (despite my woefully limited knowledge). But volleyball? What do I announce? Kills? Dinks? What?

Oh well.

For now, I'll worry about soccer. It's a fairly light season, so I shouldn't have too much trouble with it.

Mainly, I'm just looking forward to basketball season. It never gets old.