MSU fans not spartan with support

Fifteen thousand basketball fans clad in school colors, screaming until their faces turned purple. This is what school administrators envisioned when The Bryce Jordan Center was only a blueprint. What they have gotten instead is roughly 9,000 apathetic fans who look like they'd rather be home sleeping (which some do in their seats anyway).

So what's the problem? Why can't the Penn State men's basketball team consistently draw one-tenth the number of fans the Nittany Lion football team does?

As I gazed at the vast amount of empty blue seats at the center this season, I was beginning to think maybe college basketball just wasn't as popular anymore. Then last Saturday I traveled to Michigan State for the Lions' game against the Spartans.

The place was packed. All 15,138 seats were filled by raucous Spartan fans. That's right, the game was sold out and Michigan State was playing the eighth-place team in the conference.

But it wasn't just the amount of fans that was astonishing. It was the way they acted. They were loud, crazy and perhaps the most creative fans I have ever heard.

They taunted the Lions with cheers such as, "Just like football," referring to Michigan State's 49-14 dismantling of the Penn State football team. Their taunts weren't reserved for the team as a whole, though. They singled out some Lion players and taunted them as well.

Every time Lion guard Pete Lisicky got the ball the Spartan faithful would shout, "Ball hog, ball hog." They even came up with a pet name for Pistol Pete, calling him "Lisucky." But, in what was perhaps the most well-researched taunt of the day, one Spartan fan shouted, "Your brother Gabe is better than you." Lisicky's brother Gabe plays for East Tennessee State.

The chants of the green-and-white choir were relentless. Even when it looked as if the Lions might pull an upset, they never shut up. The band blared as the Spartan cheerleaders and dance team kept the fans on their feet.

If it can happen in East Lansing, why not in University Park?

Well, for starters, Penn State is not in first place like Michigan State currently is. It's always easier to root for a winner. But Lion fans aren't excused on this one. If you look at the Big Ten attendance figures, Ohio State ranks higher than Penn State in average attendance. The Buckeyes are the only team in the conference without a Big Ten victory.

The next possible reason is the students feel removed from the action where they currently sit. It has been well documented that the students were switched from sitting near mid-court two years ago, when the center opened, to the corner sections last season. The reason was said to be that the people sitting behind the student section complained they were unable to see because the students stood the whole game.

I can understand this. People who want to sit and enjoy the game should be allowed to. But I think the answer to this problem lies in The Breslin Center. Their students are right on the floor surrounding the court. But, they have the top two rows closed off in the student section. This enables the people sitting directly behind the students to see the action even if the students are standing.

The first year the center was open this is how the student section was set up but the administrators were against this because it forced them to close off seats they would normally be able to sell. But right now, there are plenty of empty seats in the center and closing off a few won't hurt.

There has only been one Penn State home game with more than 10,000 people in attendance this season. I've faced bigger crowds trying to get out of Willard Building on a Tuesday afternoon.

I'm not asking everyone to flood the center because that's not my job. I just wanted all of you to know that college basketball is alive and well and living in East Lansing.