MBB: Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association

[scottiedawg]

While storming the court has become quite commonplace, especially in upset or rivalry games, it is still not very classy.  As one who stormed the court, I admit that a sort of mob mentality ensued.  Once the first few went, all the rest followed.  However, I was surprised that the Hope players joined in with the celebration.  Also, when Calvin fans stormed our court last year, as unpleasant as it was, some part of me knew they deserved it after beating Hope at DeVos.

p.s. The "This is our house" chant" is completely out of place and doesn't make a shred of sense. 

[hopehoopfan]

Having a seat with a good view of the celebrating on the court, I was able to see two Calvin fans in particular(one male,  one female)  that got into some jawing with some courtstormers, and I don't have to be a lip-reader to know what was being said(I saw the word "VACUUM" yelled a few times  ).  If those comments are said to the wrong fan, it could have gotten ugly. Now, I am positive the Hope students were not saying appropriate things either, but their backs were to us. Fortunately, it never escalated to anything more than taunts. 

[Flying Dutch Fan]

I hope Dew Crewers who read this board will keep this in mind for the future. I understand and appreciate the spontaneous enthusiasm, but it has to operate within certain constraints. Staying off the court is one of those.

I agree with you to a degree. But I would also emphasize I certainly don't think the Dew Crew took the action to "disrespect" or "taunt" Calvin. I think it was a rather spontaneous celebration. I just think in the future a better practice would be to reserve "storming the court" to home games and jump up and down in the stands on the road.

While storming the court has become quite commonplace, especially in upset or rivalry games, it is still not very classy.  As one who stormed the court, I admit that a sort of mob mentality ensued.  Once the first few went, all the rest followed.  However, I was surprised that the Hope players joined in with the celebration.  Also, when Calvin fans stormed our court last year, as unpleasant as it was, some part of me knew they deserved it after beating Hope at DeVos.

p.s. The "This is our house" chant" is completely out of place and doesn't make a shred of sense. 

<RANT ON>

Are you all serious?  You have got to be kidding me.

This is a bunch of college kids relishing in the fact that they won THE GAME and expressing their joy.  Contrary to HopeConvert's poor memory, Calvin fans did storm the court both times they won at the DeVos last year. 

Does it make Hope fans happy - NO!

Why doesn't it make them happy, because their team lost, not because the students stormed the floor.  I'm sorry, but if you can't take that you should resolve yourself to tiddly wink tournaments, or basket weaving.  This is the same kind of thinking that has lead to rec league games where we don't keep score because "we might hurt little Jimmies feelings".  THIS IS A COMPETITION!!!  Celebrations will occur

As to "this is our house" - it's pretty appropriate when you just won your 8th straight game on your rival's floor.

<RANT OFF>

[dumezrules]

While storming the court has become quite commonplace, especially in upset or rivalry games, it is still not very classy.  As one who stormed the court, I admit that a sort of mob mentality ensued.  Once the first few went, all the rest followed.  However, I was surprised that the Hope players joined in with the celebration.  Also, when Calvin fans stormed our court last year, as unpleasant as it was, some part of me knew they deserved it after beating Hope at DeVos.

p.s. The "This is our house" chant" is completely out of place and doesn't make a shred of sense. 

I think storming a court is in no way poor sportsmanship but rather a celebration of a hard-fought victory....I think it is a compliment to the team that lost....can you see Hope fans storming the court after a victory over say.......Alma?  or Kzoo?  me either....

As an aside....what was up with the Calvin student section?  They seemed to be split between the people with the uniforms and the other students and didnt work together at all.  And what was up with pretending they were being introduced...shaking hands with some other student and a fake ref??  not funny at all and not a celebration of your team.

[hopehoopfan]

I thought the "this is our house" was a great thing to say. Just be ready for the same comment to be yelled the next time Hope loses at home(let's hope that doesn't happen, ever!) to Calvin, as turnabout is fair play.

[Hopester]

I hope Dew Crewers who read this board will keep this in mind for the future. I understand and appreciate the spontaneous enthusiasm, but it has to operate within certain constraints. Staying off the court is one of those.

I agree with you to a degree. But I would also emphasize I certainly don't think the Dew Crew took the action to "disrespect" or "taunt" Calvin. I think it was a rather spontaneous celebration. I just think in the future a better practice would be to reserve "storming the court" to home games and jump up and down in the stands on the road.

While storming the court has become quite commonplace, especially in upset or rivalry games, it is still not very classy.  As one who stormed the court, I admit that a sort of mob mentality ensued.  Once the first few went, all the rest followed.  However, I was surprised that the Hope players joined in with the celebration.  Also, when Calvin fans stormed our court last year, as unpleasant as it was, some part of me knew they deserved it after beating Hope at DeVos.

p.s. The "This is our house" chant" is completely out of place and doesn't make a shred of sense. 

<RANT ON>

Are you all serious?  You have got to be kidding me.

This is a bunch of college kids relishing in the fact that they won THE GAME and expressing their joy.  Contrary to HopeConvert's poor memory, Calvin fans did storm the court both times they won at the DeVos last year. 

Does it make Hope fans happy - NO!

Why doesn't it make them happy, because their team lost, not because the students stormed the floor.  I'm sorry, but if you can't take that you should resolve yourself to tiddly wink tournaments, or basket weaving.  This is the same kind of thinking that has lead to rec league games where we don't keep score because "we might hurt little Jimmies feelings".  THIS IS A COMPETITION!!!  Celebrations will occur

As to "this is our house" - it's pretty appropriate when you just won your 8th straight game on your rival's floor.

<RANT OFF>

Amen! I don't understand where people have got this notion that storming the court is a form of taunting. It is mainly a form of celebration between player and fans (mind you also in a much safer form then being in those bleachers). Yes there will be a few who go overboard and go "taunt" the opposing student section, but mainly it is just a pure form of celebration and enthusiasm after your team has won THE GAME.

This is another reason college athletics are more entertaining (to some people) than professional. Their is an intimacy between player and fan. They know each other and want to celebrate with each other after a huge win.

[realist]

I am not overly worried about some Hope students celebrating on Calvin's floor after a close win.  Seems sort of normal to relieve some pent up anxiety after a tense game.  What would seem odd is the dewcrew filing out quietly, and meekly.  The games are supposed to be fun, and celebrating a win is fun.  Remember the scene after Calvin's win several years ago.  The two schools have too much common respect, and the coaches and administrators have their own means to let students/players know if they have crossed the line into improper behavior.  This is not a new issue as nearly 20 years ago the presidents of both schools threatened to end the rivalry if fans did not rein in certain behavior.  

[Pat Coleman]

I don't have a problem with fans storming the court. (I do have a problem with tearing down goalposts, but that's another story.)

The number of times a court is stormed in college basketball on an annual basis is fairly high. The number of times a brawl or riot is precipitated because of it is very low.

[Flying Dutch Fan]

I thought the "this is our house" was a great thing to say. Just be ready for the same comment to be yelled the next time Hope loses at home(let's hope that doesn't happen, ever!) to Calvin, as turnabout is fair play.

Which happened last year, and it hurt - again, not because of the chant, but because of the loss.

[realist]

In going to rivalry games for over 40 years I have never once felt threatened or intimidated.  In fact quite the opposite.   Would you help push a stuck fan's (from the opposing school) car out of a snow bank or use your jumper cables to help start their car?  I have done these things, and have received assistance from Hope fans.   I intend to celebrate all future Calvin wins, and I might even direct a spirited comment or two towards the Hope fans.  Knowing full well if I dish it out I better be ready to take it (when the shoe is on the other foot).

[dothedew]

I attended Hope/Calvin games from 99-03. Sadly, we didn't have many opportunities to rush the court after THE GAME.
As long as you are doing it to CELEBRATE as a student section/team together and not to SHOW UP the other school...then it's not a problem.
CELEBRATING the shock that Calvin didn't tie it up was reason enough in this case.
HOPE PLAYS
HOPE WINS

[Flying Dutch Fan]

In going to rivalry games for over 40 years I have never once felt threatened or intimidated.  In fact quite the opposite.   Would you help push a stuck fan's (from the opposing school) car out of a snow bank or use your jumper cables to help start their car?  I have done these things, and have received assistance from Hope fans.   I intend to celebrate all future Calvin wins, and I might even direct a spirited comment or two towards the Hope fans.  Knowing full well if I dish it out I better be ready to take it (when the shoe is on the other foot).

Well said.  It's like beating your brother at anything - you get to rag on him until next time, knowing that you're gonna get paid back. 

[Erm Schmigget]

DCHopeNut, HopeConvert, scottiedawg....  Who pooped in your Wheaties?

FDF, dumez, hopehoopfan, Hopester, realist, Pat, dothedew....  Thanks for being voices of reason.  These are kids we're talking about, after all.  We should all be so enthusiastic about the important things in our lives, and believe you me, this Rivalry is that big at this stage of their lives.

realist....  Thank you for pointing out what is probably the best part of this Rivalry: we may fight like brothers when it comes to The Game, but we are quick to give our brother a helping hand.

[hoopdreams]

For anyone who has not been to a Hope home game recently, there is a great bond between the players and the fans.  first home game of the season the players came out of the locker room wearing the new DEW CREW t-shirts.  Also, after the starting lineups are announced the entire team circles up by the student section and many fans surround them.  It's actually pretty cool to see.

The only negative to crowds storming the court is the potential for someone to get hurt if things get too crazy.  I always reflect on the Arizona prep star (Mr. Basketball i think) who accidently got trampled and was paralized. Granted, it is an extreme case, but I would hate to see a knee or ankle injured on anyone.

When its time for students to stop celebrating in a positive way, its time to stop having teams play in front of an audience.

[HopeConvert]

I'm told I have a decent memory. Perhaps other posters have a recollection of this (Calvin fans being prevented from storming the court last year).

It's absurd to claim it's the "same kind of thinking" that leads to not keeping scores.  I have no objection to competition per se, quite the contrary. But I think any reasonable person would agree there are limits to fan behavior, and the question here simply revolves on the extent of those limits. I think cheering and bouncing up and down in the stands is great (quietly filing out is a false binary alternative), but I fail to see why running on to the floor is either appropriate or desirable. A rant or an assertion to the contrary is not a counter-argument. I have no objections to celebrations, competitions, or feeling badly in defeat. No one pooped in my Wheaties. The one reasonable counter-argument has been Pat's, to which I would say there is even less likelihood of an incident if fans celebrate wildly in the stands rather than on the floor.

I see it as a sibling rivalry as well, and I think it's great the mutual respect the schools have for each other (I agree with realist and ES). I don't like to see that attenuated by borderline behavior, even as a relationship between brothers can be damaged by going a little too far. Some of you don't think rushing the court, standing in front of the other student section and saying who knows what is going too far. Fine. I think it is.

I appreciate hopester's comment about the intimacy between player and fan, and wanting to celebrate after a big win. That seems to me the best argument that can be made in favor of being on the court. Whether it's a sufficient reason is another question.