Wednesday, January 19, 2000
UC, XU, Miami nearly unbeatable at home
Woe to those who visit Cincinnati
BY JOHN FAY
The Cincinnati Enquirer
When Memphis comes to the Shoemaker Center tonight to play the University of Cincinnati, the Tigers will have to contend not only with college basketball's No.1 team. They also have to contend with one of the biggest factors in sports: the home-court advantage.
UC has won 39 straight games at the Shoe. But that may be only the second-toughest place to play in town.
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HOME SWEET HOME
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Top Division I home-court winning streaks:
1. Utah 45
2. Duke 43
3. Cincinnati 39
4. Weber State 30
5. Auburn 25
6. Xavier 24
7. Michigan State 21
8. Alcorn State 20
8. Hofstra 20
10. George Mason 17
10. Louisiana Tech 17
Home record since Jan. 1, 1990:
• UK 130-9 .935
• UC 144-18 .889
• Xavier 127-16 .888
• Miami 114-16 .877
• Ohio State 110-48 .696
Home record in current arena:
• Ohio State 22-2 .917
• UK 310-35 .899
• UC 147-19 .886
• Xavier 229-73 .758
• Miami 295-92 .762
Home win streaks
• UC: 39 in a row, third-longest streak in the nation
• Xavier: 24 in a row, seventh-longest streak in the nation
• Kentucky: 13 in a row
• Miami: 2 in a row (but earlier this year had a streak of 17 victories — 10th-longest in the nation — broken).
• Ohio State: 8 in a row
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“The Shoe is difficult,” Miami coach Charlie Coles said. “But the Gardens is the most difficult. It's because of the building. I remember playing there as a (Miami) player. Oh God, is it a hard place to play.”
Cincinnati Gardens is where Xavier has won 24 straight. It's also where UC suffered its only loss this season.
Millett Hall, where Coles' RedHawks play, is no trip to the playground, either. The RedHawks have won 66 of their last 72 at Millett.
That doesn't rank with UC's streak in the Shoe, which is the nation's third-longest, or Xavier's streak in the Gardens, which is the nation's seventh-longest.
But over the last 10 years, the Shoe, the Gardens and Millett all rate about the same, which is to say visiting teams have virtually no chance of winning.
Consider:
• Since Jan.1, 1990, UC has an .889 winning percentage at home, Xavier .888 and Miami .877.
Kentucky has won 13 straight games in Rupp Arena and has a .935 winning percentage there in the 1990s. Ohio State has lost only twice in two seasons at the Schottenstein Center.
Nothing points to the advantage of the home court more than the results of games within the so-called Miami Valley Conference. No home team has lost this season:
• Xavier beat UC at the Gardens.
• Miami beat Xavier at Millett Hall.
• Dayton beat Xavier and Miami at UD Arena.
What makes playing at home so magical in college basketball?
“The people sit right on top of you,” UC coach Bob Huggins said. “The crowd is so much closer than in other sports. It makes a big difference.”
Xavier coach Skip Prosser sees the home court as college basketball's great equalizer.
“Part of it is the scholarship limit has been reduced,” he said. “You have more parity. Every little edge is big. Unless one team is clearly superior, the home court is going to be a factor.”
That's been the story of Xavier's season. The Muskies are 7-0 in the Gardens, 2-1 on neu tral courts and 2-3 on opponents' home floors.
“At home, everyone is cheering for you,” XU guard Alvin Brown said. “It picks you up. It makes you play harder.”
The crowd can have as big an effect on the players it is cheering against.
“When the crowd is against you, it's hard to hear,” UC freshman DerMarr Johnson said. “It gets frustrating. It's easier to get down when you're on the road.”
There are, of course, other factors than cheers and boos. Travel is probably the biggest.
“Travel takes you out of your routine,” Huggins said. “Guys are used to a routine, doing certain things at certain times. Class, practice, study table, dinner. Being on the road takes them out of that.
“That's a big part of it. You can get out of the groove on the road.”
There is also the familiarity with the floor, rims and so forth.
“It helps your shooting when you know the rims,” UC forward Ryan Fletcher said.
But that is not a huge factor with XU; the Muskies don't often practice at the Gardens.
“It's more a home-crowd advantage,” Prosser said, “not so much a home-court advantage. But our fans are great.”
Prosser worries about losing some of the edge next season, when the Muskies move into their new Cintas Center on campus.
“I do worry about it,” he said. “But you can't do much about it. We're not going to play another year in the Gardens.”
The Muskies will leave a building where they are 48-2 the last four seasons and 208-24 (.897) since making it their home court in 1983.
But buildings aren't the sole key to “home” advantages. UC had a 90-game home winning streak between 1957 and '64, with 72 victories at its on-cam pus Armory Fieldhouse and 18 at the Gardens.
When you have a strong, confident team, home-court pride leads to a big home-court advantage.
That's why UC's streak will be on the players' minds when they take the court tonight.
“You always want to protect your home court,” Fletcher said. “It's something you take pride in. You don't think about the number (of games in the streak), but you don't want to lose on your home court.”
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