I miss the Big East Tournament so freaking much

[jec1521]

Brooklyn will be a step in the right direction at least. But no place is MSG. As another poster stated, the comraderie between each fan base was palpable.

 

[OttoMets]

I'm excited about DC next year (partly for selfish reasons as that's where I live). One of the things that made the BET at MSG so great is that you never had to worry about parking/driving and you could use mass transit to get anywhere you wanted. DC has that as well, for the most part.

Unless the Friday semifinals go late.

If we'd been relying on Metro to get us home after the six overtime game, we'd have been in for a long walk.

 

[OttoMets]

2013 was so close to effect. Spent Wednesday and Thursday finding ways to sneak out of the office to get drunk in the middle of the afternoon. That was a four day bender with work somehow getting stuck in the middle. And in my mind it ended with that Georgetown game and CJ dunking over Porter.

...

In my mind it ended when Southerland hit that three to put us up by 14 with about 15:00 left against Louisville in the championship game and the roof just about came off.

That is when the tournament ended, right? We won?

 

[NKR1978]

In my mind it ended when Southerland hit that three to put us up by 14 with about 15:00 left against Louisville in the championship game and the roof just about came off.

That is when the tournament ended, right? We won?

I don't think I've ever been as angry leaving a game after a loss as I was that night. I kept screaming to my poor calm friend that everything good we did that week was erased in those 14 minutes.

Fortunately I was wrong.

 

[orangecuse]

In my mind it ended when Southerland hit that three to put us up by 14 with about 15:00 left against Louisville in the championship game and the roof just about came off.

That is when the tournament ended, right? We won?

Indeed...I was there as well...the Garden was rockin at that moment as loud as I had experienced over the past 2 decades. Unfortunately, a heartbeat later, Southerland picked up his 4th foul and...well...that was that.

 

[senorpalmer]

Unless the Friday semifinals go late.

If we'd been relying on Metro to get us home after the six overtime game, we'd have been in for a long walk.

I just made it to the last metro north train that night, the one that makes every stop up the line. Ended up getting home a little after 4 am.

 

[Bayside44]

The Big East tourney was an event.

The ACC tourney is meaningless to me unless it's moved back to MSG.

Brooklyn doesn't count.

Honestly - I know you're a great fan but jeez it's over with. Hell the Garden isn't even the Garden anymore.

 

[Eric15]

I've severely regretted not going to that GTOWN game since that night. The tickets were just super expensive iirc.

They were ridiculous. We went to Seton Hall and Pitt the two days prior, and I remember sitting in our hotel monitoring StubHub like Gordon Gekko monitoring the price of the BlueStar Airlines stock in Wall Street, just trying to convince my wife that dropping $400 was a good idea. We ended up watching at a bar.

 

[Bill Orange]

Honestly - I know you're a great fan but jeez it's over with. Hell the Garden isn't even the Garden anymore.

True. When they got rid of the Willis Reed Tunnel, they ripped out a piece of my heart.

 

[Bayside44]

True. When they got rid of the Willis Reed Tunnel, they ripped out a piece of my heart.

Trying to figure out the worst owner in sports - Dolan and The Danny should have a cage match to the death on it.

People can now go back to lament missing crappy bars and CYO fan bases...

 

[Knicks411]

In my mind it ended when Southerland hit that three to put us up by 14 with about 15:00 left against Louisville in the championship game and the roof just about came off.

That is when the tournament ended, right? We won?

For some reason I always had it in my mind it put us up by 17 (46-29). Just looked it up, 45-29. So we were both pretty close.
They just wore us down from that point on. Louisville is not the team you want to play your 4th game in as many days against.

 

[OttoMets]

I just made it to the last metro north train that night, the one that makes every stop up the line. Ended up getting home a little after 4 am.

That's memorable, but not as bad as what will happen for late finishes in D.C., where the last train leaves Gallery Place at like 11:27.

 

[Bill Orange]

That's memorable, but not as bad as what will happen for late finishes in D.C., where the last train leaves Gallery Place at like 11:27.

But not on Friday and Saturday, as the system stays open until 3. For me, the last Red Line train leaves at 2:15am.

 

[Scooch]

Honestly - I know you're a great fan but jeez it's over with. Hell the Garden isn't even the Garden anymore.

I get the nostalgia, but some of the lamenting is a bit over the top. You know what tournaments I care about? The ones that Syracuse plays in. You know what conference I care about? The one Syracuse plays in.

My degree says "Syracuse University", not "Big East Conference".

 

[OttoMets]

But not on Friday and Saturday, as the system stays open until 3. For me, the last Red Line train leaves at 2:15am.

Good call, I was thinking of Thursday semifinals (but of course those games are played on Friday, when trains run later).

 

[Knicks411]

I get the nostalgia, but some of the lamenting is a bit over the top. You know what tournaments I care about? The ones that Syracuse plays in. You know what conference I care about? The one Syracuse plays in.

My degree says "Syracuse University", not "Big East Conference".

I get that, but for me personally, I've been going to the BET since before I was an SU fan. Then I went to school there, had some awesome times there, plus MSG is just the best. Plus I could pretty much count on going every year, as opposed to NCAA tournament games or ACC tournament games in DC or Greensboro or whatever) so it's always gonna be special to me.

 

[Scooch]

I get that, but for me personally, I've been going to the BET since before I was an SU fan. Then I went to school there, had some awesome times there, plus MSG is just the best. Plus I could pretty much count on going every year, as opposed to NCAA tournament games or ACC tournament games in DC or Greensboro or whatever) so it's always gonna be special to me.

Oh don't get we wrong, I went to a lot of BET games and it was fantastic. It should be special to people, and it is by far the worst thing we've lost by moving to the ACC.

I just think some of the "I'll never care about any tournament ever again" posts are a bit much. If Syracuse is playing people should damn well care, even if it isn't SU-Georgetown on a Saturday night in NYC.

 

[Knicks411]

Oh don't get we wrong, I went to a lot of BET games and it was fantastic. It should be special to people, and it is by far the worst thing we've lost by moving to the ACC.

I just think some of the "I'll never care about any tournament ever again" posts are a bit much. If Syracuse is playing people should damn well care, even if it isn't SU-Georgetown on a Saturday night in NYC.

Oh for sure, agreed that stuff is over the top.

Also, confession time, but when I was going when I was 10 or 11 I kinda...liked UConn.

 

[Scooch]

Oh for sure, agreed that stuff is over the top.

Also, confession time, but when I was going when I was 10 or 11 I kinda...liked UConn.

Don't sweat it, I was a BC fan until I was accepted to SU. In my defense, my next door neighbor was the VP of Student Affairs at BC, his son was my best friend, and Doug Flutie was friggin' awesome.

 

[CusefanATL]

Few things brought me more joy than being in the Garden (or at a bar) on a Wednesday or Thursday afternoon for some great hoops. And then the feeling you get when you walk out of MSG after we've won, and you get to enjoy the city for the rest of the day knowing there's another game tomorrow... what more could you ask for in life?

the only reason you miss the BE tourney is because we have SUCKED in the ACC come tournament time and will sit out a tournament. Thats an us problem. The ACC is stacked. We just arent a part of it right now and therefore arent creating any of our own memories.

The Big east was great - but it wasnt that great. Its great to remember the fond memories of it. But not even close to being so great its worth being sad over it.

I miss a top 25 football team, or a fun final 4 run, or a Gtwon game in the dome, I miss college, I miss classic rock, I miss old meangingless flings, i miss my Grandmother much more than I miss the big east tournament.

 

[Bill Orange]

Don't sweat it, I was a BC fan until I was accepted to SU. In my defense, my next door neighbor was the VP of Student Affairs at BC, his son was my best friend, and Doug Flutie was friggin' awesome.

BET Memories: Pass & Catch Edition

At the BET in '85, I was sitting down low in one of the student sections after our game and who plops down next to me wearing a Holy Cross hoodie? Doug Flutie. Right after his Orange Bowl pass to Gerard Phelan.

Fast forward to BET 2009. Sitting courtside with CTO on my right and this guy comes and sits down next to me on my left and I introduce myself and he says "David Tyree, nice to meet you." Needless to say, when CTO asked who I was talking with, she switched seats immediately, which I had no problem with. ;-)

 

[FortyFourCT]

The old BE Tournament was the greatest sporting event for me and nothing the ACC has can ever top it. Where I am from (CT) everyone you know went to Uconn, or BC or Cuse or another BE school. It was the start of spring, NYC, everyone choosing sides and battling it out. Good times. It was the only conference tournament that ever meant a damn.

 

[Scooch]

BET Memories: Pass & Catch Edition

At the BET in '85, I was sitting down low in one of the student sections after our game and who plops down next to me wearing a Holy Cross hoodie? Doug Flutie. Right after his Orange Bowl pass to Gerard Phelan.

Fast forward to BET 2009. Sitting courtside with CTO on my right and this guy comes and sits down next to me on my left and I introduce myself and he says "David Tyree, nice to meet you." Needless to say, when CTO asked who I was talking with, she switched seats immediately, which I had no problem with. ;-)

A BC guy in a Holy Cross hoodie?! Are you sure that wasn't Gordie Lockbaum?

 

[orange79]

Don't sweat it, I was a BC fan until I was accepted to SU.

Oh, so you were the one.

 

[cuseguy]

I get the nostalgia, but some of the lamenting is a bit over the top. You know what tournaments I care about? The ones that Syracuse plays in. You know what conference I care about? The one Syracuse plays in. My degree says "Syracuse University", not "Big East Conference".

Nevertheless, still hard to watch a Big East tourney at MSG that doesn't involve Syracuse.

They kinda go hand in hand.