Yes, although that was just for one single game involving two teams.
yale vs harvard playoff in 2015 was an awesome atmosphere.
my guess is this informs amaker.
So was the Penn vs Harvard championship game in 2018. The Palestra was every bit as loud as it was when I was a student.
I was led to believe that at the menās head coach level there were three votes in favor of the Palestra as a permanent site for the tournament: Steve Donahue, Mike Martin (a former Penn assistant coach) and Tommy Amaker. According to what I was told, Tommy Amaker was a very passionate supporter of the Palestra even in the immediate aftermath of Harvard losing the 2018 tournament final to Penn, at the Palestra. I do not know what the vote was among the womenās coaches or what happened at the vote of the athletic directors.
While I think the Prudential Center in Newark and the Total Mortgage Arena in Bridgeport would be the best neutral site locations, I would defer to Mr. Kent (āRutgersā), who has better current sources than I do, as to the current attitude of the athletic directors and the league office regarding the cost issues.
Iām probably in the minority, but I like the campus rotation. As others have said, it makes planning for it (well in advance) much easier.
Iām on the west coast and attended the last three (Princeton, NYC, and Providence)ā¦ made a long weekend trip out of each while visiting family in NJ and CT. I booked my trip to Ithaca a few weeks agoā¦ my only hesitation about Ithaca and Hanover is the potential for snow storms in mid-March, which would make travel challenging.
Its going to be freakishly warm in Ithaca this weekend which makes my think a snowstorm is coming for the tournament!
Doubt Tommy would vote for Palestra today and have to come back in two weeks for rubber match with Penn. He was not happy last night leaving to get back on a long bus ride back to Boston. Home court definately had an impact for Penn last night in second half. Penn did go 6-1 at home this year.
As Cornellās home record this season was less than sensational, there should be less bitching about unfair advantages. But there wonāt.
Amaker advocated for the Palestra even after losing there to Penn as the 1-seed. Heās the only coach in the league to actually try to put the Ivy leagueās interests first as opposed to his own programās benefit.
Yup, i was there and the crowd willed darnell forman to a 32 point half and penn held on to win with the crowd going crazy