End The Wave

[AE Braves Fan]

I love that the students are trying to get people into the game, but last night went too far.

Late in the close game, Sam Singh was shooting 1 and 1 FTs. Just as he received the ball from the ref, one rowdy Bradley student started running parallel with the baseline behind the basket from Singh's left to his right. Following the rowdy Bradley student were 7 little kids also running and asking for the fans to start the wave. They were running behind the basket just as Singh was shooting. Some fans in the lower bowl behind the basket actually threw their arms up with the student and his 7-child tail. Other than a cardboard cutout of Flava Flav, I cannot think of anything more distracting for a FT shooter. And IT WAS OUR TEAM AT THE LINE SHOOTING CRUCIAL FTs!!!!

Singh missed the front end of his 1 and 1.

Also, THE WAVE IS FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE BORED OR IF THE GAME IS BORING (a blowout). This was certainly not a boring part of the game. Try starting a wave at Wrigley Field - you will quickly be put in your place.

Again, I like it that one student tried to get fans into the game, but I really would have loved to see security put an end to it last night. We don't need 7 little kids running around the perimeter of the court, we don't need 8 people running in front of Sam Singh as he's trying to make important FTs, and we certainly NEVER need the wave anyway.

[AE Braves Fan]

Yeah, you're probably right. I'm sure our players love having people running and jumping in front of them as they're trying to shoot free throws.

You can have fun at games without being stupid.

I guess the only problem with common sense is that it isn't common....

[Da Coach]

I actually hate the wave. But if a student is going to go that far, make a bit of a spectacle of himself, and try to generate some fan excitement, to get a few kids involved in the game (they were the kids of the BU alumni who came to town for the game and who were sitting in section 8 ) then I will participate just to show the student we appreciate his effort.

It was unfortunate that they ran across the field of view of Sam just as he was shooting the FT. That was an unfortunate coincidence, and it looked like they regretted the timing. I'd like to know if it affected Sam.

That student, by the way, is a poster on our board. And with him being one of only a few students at the game I just wanted to let him know I appreciated his efforts.

[AE Braves Fan]

Fair enough, gentlemen.

[78Brave]

That student was also working the Niles Notre Dame Basketball team pretty hard to get them to generate some noise/support for Bradley. He had some success. I agree the timing was unfortunate with the freethrows and I don't like the wave either but anyone who tries to create some enthusiasm in a sometimes lifeless Bradley crowd is OK with me. It is much better than some of the fans glued to their seats whose only sound is telling other fans to sit down. Thanks and keep it up.

[longtimelistener]

HOW DARE THOSE CHILDREN INTERRUPT NAP TIME FOR ALL THE BLUE HAIRS!?!??!

Use your inside voices, children. You must have missed that you had entered Carver Arena Library. Yes, I know, there are no books.

[DUBrave5]

Personally I don't mind the wave as long as it is done at the right time. The kid that does it has more heart than a lot of people to get the crowd going when it seems quiet and our team needs our support, he just simply needs to learn that there is a time and a place. I hated the fact that they ran behind the hoop as SS was shooting. I don't care how much you stare at something, you still have peripheral vision so you can see that. Did it affect his shot, maybe, maybe not. In the end we won the game so I don't think it was that big of a deal, but sometimes people just need to learn that there is a time and a place.

If there is dead silence during the ISU game Wednesday, which by no stretch of my imagination do I think there will be except for our free throws, then yes we need to find a way to get the crowd back into it. The BU student seems to be one of the only people willing to risk looking dumb to get our crowd behind our team. This will be a lot easier starting again on Wednesday when the students get our section back and aren't stuck sitting in row 18 of the upper bowl in Section 7 and barely being able to make out who is who. There were actually a decent amount of students at the game, we were just all scattered.

In the mean time, hats off to the BU student for the effort, just please please learn when do that and when not to.

[Scouter]

The student's energy is nice and all, but please use some common sense about when to run around and try to get people excited. Was he the reason Sam missed the FT? I doubt it, but that's probably not the best situation to run around and try to get people to make some noise. It seems to me from watching him throughout the season that he's more worried about the fans than the game itself.

[Da Coach]

Since the student has not chosen to identify himself, the board's protocol is not to allow posts that reveal the personal identity of other posters.

Hopefully, posters will understand why we have deleted references to individual's names in this thread.

[Scouter]

Since the student has not chosen to identify himself, the board's protocol is not to allow posts that reveal the personal identity of other posters.

Hopefully, posters will understand why we have deleted references to individual's names in this thread.

Fair enough, DC.

[BUBraves2006]

I like seeing people have fun at the games, I like seeing kids have fun at the games and as far as the Cubs, who cares. You're way off base.

Actually, you're way off base. The point of going to a game is to have fun and to root on our team to victory. Being stupid and not paying attention to the situation in the game isn't "fun" in my book.

Great job AE by posting this!

And by the way, "as far as the Cubs," LOTS of people care. Typical knee-jerk reaction from a likely Cardinals fan.

This gives me the perfect opportunity to repost what I said in a thread a few months ago:

"Kudos to who started the wave? Wow. I think next to the "Applause-O-Meter" on scoreboards, that is the absolute dumbest cheer in all of sports. I would have booed every second of it and stayed planted to my seat.

How's about just organizing cheers for your team and not resulting to stupid gimmicks like the wave and 'requested' applause.

The best cheers are just when the crowd gets really loud, the "ohhhhhhhhh" thing where the students bounce up and down like Duke fans, "B-U B-U B-U," "Let's Go - BRADLEY - Clap clap - clapclapclap."

The whole point of rooting for your team is making some noise to get them pumped up to play even harder.

The wave represents fairweather fans who aren't all that interested in the game from San Diego. I'll take the stance of Cricket Australia:

Cricket Australia has banned the wave from all international grounds due to objects being, either unintentionally or deliberately, thrown into the air at the same time. These include plastic cups containing beer, hot food items, or even urine, which affects the other spectators around the person who threw it. Anyone who attempts to start a wave will be ejected from the ground.[8][9] The banning of the Mexican Wave has been met with a mostly negative response from Australia's sports-going public, especially in Melbourne as the result of the much higher popularity of the wave at the MCG. This charge has been led by Matthew Newton, 22, of Springvale, who was one of the first to suffer eviction while promoting his "Save the Mexican Wave" campaign. While gaining large amounts of attention within the Australian media, it did not affect the position of Cricket Australia."

[TNel]

HOW DARE THOSE CHILDREN INTERRUPT NAP TIME FOR ALL THE BLUE HAIRS!?!??!

Use your inside voices, children. You must have missed that you had entered Carver Arena Library. Yes, I know, there are no books.

Nice to know we're appreciated. What next? Another KW column blaming us for the home losing streak because we didn't stand for the games?


No Hair

[ph]

Wasn't there a timeout called before the FT's were shot. I kinda saw that as a poorly timed attempt to keep the croud going during the timeout.

[edmondo15]

Do you honestly think that a free throw shooter would rather have noise and commotion going in his shooting background than silence and stillness? If so I really question if you've ever shot a free throw in a game situation. No, it isn't golf. But free throws take intense concentration, especially in Carver, where the shooting backdrop isn't that great to begin with.

As far as starting the wave, if it's during a time out I'm all for it as long as it doesn't distract from the game. During time outs is usually when the wave gets started, and that's great. Get the crowd up and get them loud before action starts back up and hope it carries on when play resumes. I can't help but think of the game against Wichita St. where some student was running down the sideline, literally 2 feet from the court, while play was going on. He almost had to side step a ref he was so close. I'd would have been nice to see some security intervention there. My friends and I, who have been around basketball all of our lives have never seen anything like it before.

[edmondo15]

Next time you go play golf let me know, I'll stand right next to you, jump up and down and scream in your ear while you putt...ya know, just to take your mind off of the intense concentration.