Observations Meredith Professor for Teaching Excellence David Bennett

SU 85, Bonnies 72

I attended the sporting match with the esteemed David Bennett, Professor of Modern American History, former faculty rep to the NCAA, season ticket holder, and teacher at SU since the late 60s. Since he is smarter than me in every way, I'll turn this post over to him...


Loves: Jim Boeheim.

Hates: Loud music blasted at the dome

Loves: Andy Rautins. Professor thinks he's our 2nd best player, and was disgusted for most of the game that Andy wasn't getting good looks. Quote: "Remember that shot against Florida?... He's such a money player!"

Hates: All the advertising in the dome, particularly the loud ads played during breaks and the massive new Turning Stone ads covering the upper-deck seats at the opposite endzone.

Loves: Wes Johnson, although "If he plays like this he won't be entering the draft much less getting in the lottery!"

Hates: St. Bonaventure, who he called "a bunch of thugs" and "turkeys" multiple times, particularly after Rautins got hit in the male situashe. [Andrew Nicholson, St. Bonnaventure's best player, was tossed.]

Loves: The new permanent seat cushions the dome installed for all season ticket seats. Since the dome opened, he's been lugging his own seat cushion to the game. He showed me the scratches on his bench to prove it. Now he just brings garbage bags to protect coats and other excess clothing on the floor.

Hates: Ronald Reagan. But that's another story.

Loves: Rick Jackson. "He's going to be a great player," he noted, referring to Ricky's NBA potential.

Hates: Knee injuries. Professor put his head in his hands twice during the game, and cried, "That's it! That's the season!" after both A-O and Brandon Triche limped to the locker room with some kind of knee injury. [Both returned, but saw limited (Triche) to no (A-O) action in the 2nd half.]

Loves: Kris Joseph's athleticism on offense, and sees KJ replacing Wes nicely next year.

Hates: When Kris Joseph attempts a three. He also hates when the following people attempt threes: Scoop, Ricky, A-O, Mookie. I got the feeling he also hated when Triche took a three before tonight, when he hit two big ones in a row.

Loves: A-O against big, strong frontcourts more than against small, quick frontcourts (like tonight).

Hates: Small children who wave pom-poms three rows in front of him, obstructing his view. Basically, anything blocking his view is a problem, especially if its a family who decides to leave while the game is going on even though there were 100 time outs and stoppages that offered a window to leave without being disruptive.

Loves: Dome cuisine. We got there an hour early so he could have dinner. I ordered a pepsi. I think they gave me a diet.

Hates: Referees Tim Higgins, James Haney, and Gary Prager, who he referred to as "blind nitwits," and shouted frequently, "you can't call THAT!" To be fair, the game dragged on longer than 2012, with just as many diversions away from the fun parts.

Loves: Scoop's quickness. Although he was convinced Scoop was trying to score simply to match Triche's total.

Hates: Tonight's game overall. It was sloppy on all ends. "We're not losing to Oakland, but if we play like that against Seton Hall, we'll lose."


Indeed.