San Diego State's Viejas Arena "was about two-thirds full" at the tip of last night's game against Wyoming, and students "showed up in equally small numbers as Saturday, when an 80-game regular-season sellout streak ended," according to Mark Zeigler of the SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE. Around 700 students on Saturday "failed to collect free tickets" (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 2/1). The student no-shows for both games means that about 30% of the 2,500 student tickets "currently have no takers." It has been "seven seasons since all student tickets were not claimed for a conference home game with school in session." SDSU last year "ended a six-year run of NCAA Tournament appearances," and this year sits at 12-9 overall and at 4-5 in MWC play. After last season, when the overall no-show rate among students was between 10-15%, SDSU Exec Associate AD/External Relations Steve Schnall "opted against the nuclear alternative -- shrinking the student section to accommodate the nearly 1,000 people on the season-ticket wait list." That remains a "tricky proposition," as the Associated Students of SDSU built Viejas Arena and "technically rent it to the athletic department for games." Part of the contract "carves out the 2,500-seat allocation to students, who pay a $180 athletic fee each semester." The temptation is "selling another 500 season tickets to the general public, particularly in the lower level areas near the visiting bench currently occupied by students," which "could generate an additional $500,000 for a cash-strapped athletic department." Schnall for now is noncommittal but did say SDSU is "not going to turn a blind eye to what’s been happening" (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 1/31).
ENOUGH IS ENOUGH: MWC Commissioner Craig Thompson in a Jan. 15 memo to the league's members "highlighted the league’s concern that the perception of the conference had become 'nothing short of embarrassing'" this basketball season. In Albuquerque, Geoff Grammer noted in "referencing the high number of technical fouls being called, ejections, on-court brawls, postgame shouting matches and even some incidents of interaction with fans," Thompson "told his membership 'enough is enough.'" The memo "made clear the league will have a 'zero tolerance' policy moving forward on unsportsmanlike behavior" (ALBUQUERQUE JOURNAL, 1/30).
