If someone ever offers you tickets to the Cancun Challenge, make damn sure they're talking about the later rounds. The first two games for each team are played at home arenas for the wealthier programs, which means I went out to watch Rider take on the Virginia Cavaliers on a cold, dark, rainy night last Tuesday. The warm-weather stuff in Mexico happens on Nov. 24th and 25th.
Looking on the bright side, I only had to drive about 6 miles to join the other hundred or so die-hards who showed up.
Even with the arena half-empty, my son and I had to sit in the upper deck or pay for the privelege of watching these free-throws up close.
Rider spent a lot of time trying to keep Mike Scott out of the paint, but they failed miserably.
Tony Bennett is famous for his "pack line" defense. The Cav Dancers are known for their "flying wedge of spandex" formation.
And then they just get slinky. It's really not nearly as hot from a half-mile up, however.
"I had this terrible dream where I had the head of a small, white child. It was terrifying!"
There's the famous Bennett pack-line defense. Read more about it at Dear Old U.Va.
A little more of that pack line in action. In all honesty, neither team seemed crisp in this one, and the final score of UVA 79 - Rider 46 seemed to be a foregone conclusion early in the second half. Strange lack of oomph from the Broncs, who had just made national headlines by beating a ranked Mississippi State team a few days prior.