Syracuse Basketball: Attendance vs. UNCG- Possibly Lowest Ever in Carrier Dome

Syracuse attendance at the NIT- UNC Greensboro game last night was guessed to be one of the lowest ever in Carrier Dome History. Inside the Loud House examines the possible factors.

Syracuse Basketball suffered a loss Wednesday night, but it wasn’t on the court. The Orange took care of business against the UNC Greensboro Spartans, 90-77, but the fans didn’t. The crowd at the Carrier dome is guessed to be one of SU’s lowest ever.

Syracuse attendance for the game was 4,288, according to Syracuse.com. If that number sounds low, it is. Since there are no records kept on the Carrier Dome lowest attendance for basketball games there is no real way to know for sure. However, it is believed to be the lowest ever since the Carrier Dome opened in 1980.

So why the low turnout for the Syracuse Basketball NIT game? Well here’s a few guesses:

1) The Obvious: It’s Cold Outside, but Boy is it Warm Inside (at Home):

You may have heard of it if you lived in or around Syracuse, or maybe if you live anywhere in New York State. Winter Storm Stella left a heck of a lot of snow and cold temperatures to CNY.

Being in Georgia myself where it was a not-so balmy 41 degrees, I checked out how my hometown was doing. The local weather at the time read 18 degrees, with a wind gust of 14 mph, and a wind chill temp of 3 degrees. Brrrrrrrrrrrr.

I mean it was plenty chilly here, but in New York it figured it must be freezing right now. I mean, I lived there 17 years or so, so I remember, but still…. Gives me the chills just thinking about it.

So, here’s my guess on what went down. Syracuse fans wanted to avoid the bad slick roads full of snow and ice, and low temperatures. Do I blame them? Not one bit. As much as I love SU, walking from the parking garage or taking a bus from Skytop in those conditions doesn’t sound especially fun. Anyone who goes to Skytop knows what I’m talking about.

So watching in the warmth and comfort of your own home on ESPN2 sounds like a pretty nice way to go. You can still cheer and have a good time from there. It doesn’t make you any less of a fan, it just means you want to stay safe and stay warm.

2) The NIT is a HUGE Disappointment Compared to the NCAA Tournament:

I could go on and on about how we’re all disappointed that Syracuse missed out on the Big Dance. However, that’s backwards thinking. We need to move forward and play for what we can win.

The NIT is where we were placed, which makes the NIT Championship our goal.

Its possible some fans didn’t show because of this disappointment. If that was your main reason over the weather, then shame on you! I know its a let down, but true fans stick with the team through thick and thin.

The team needs your support and they are just as disappointed as we were to see they missed out on the NCAA’s. It’s not fair for you as the fan to just abandon them just because you’re upset with the selection committees choice. SU did their best to get in and fell short. It is what it is. So I certainly hope this wasn’t your reason for staying home.

3) You were Tired or Lazy

Hey, we’ve all been there. Wednesday was hump day, and most people start waning come Wednesday. They’re ready for the week to be over. I know I’ve been there. So if you stayed home because you were tired or lazy I totally get that. As long as you were watching the game and cheering from your couch, I know your heart was at least in the right place. If that’s the case attendance was higher, it just didn’t show up in the stands.

4) You Were Out of Town: SU Students were on Break

If this was the case as for why you weren’t there, that’s totally okay too. Even if I was a student on campus who had to stay there over break for some reason, I would be tempted to stay in and stay warm too. Even though the Dome really isn’t that far away, I would probably still go being the big Syracuse fan I am, but I would still be tempted to stay in. Being out of town though does make it really hard though, so if this was you, its cool; just make the next one. Okay?

Next: Syracuse Basketball: Final Four Team VS NIT Team – Which Starting 5 Was Better?

Either way, we know that Syracuse Basketball games don’t get low attendance often. We have a great fan base and a great SU student body, so we usually have great turnouts at games. I expect attendance will be much higher next game and that this game was just a fluke. Let’s hope so.