Rams Ready to Perform for the Crowd
Stevens' homecoming made better with NIT fans in attendance
Mike Brohard
The crowd won’t be huge, but there will be one.
With UNT Coliseum – known affectionately on the University of North Texas campus as the Super Pit -- allowing for 25 percent capacity for the NIT, it equates to about 2,450 patrons in the stands when Colorado State takes on Buffalo on Friday night at 5 p.m. And a good portion of that group will be cheering loud and proud for one of their own.
CSU sophomore point guard Isaiah Stevens, who hails from Allen, Texas, less than an hour’s drive away. And one of them is positive he’ll be able to hear her.
“I think so,” said his mother, Pat. “I teach PE and I’m a coach myself, so yes, he will hear me.”
Moms. Ya gotta love ‘em.
You definitely miss them when they aren’t around, and for Isaiah, he hasn’t seen his family in person since he left this summer to return to campus. He expects just knowing they are up there in the crowd will be a lift all on its own.
Not just him. Other families are taking advantage of the opportunity to attend.
“We’ve been on the road for a long time here, playing in a lot of tough games against a lot of great opponents,” Isaiah said. “Sometimes you can maybe sometimes get a little tired, a little fatigued. Hopefully seeing the families come back and bring that extra energy in an environment like the NIT will hopefully be a lighter that some guys need. Especially for myself. I feel like it’s just going to be a great environment for everybody to be a part of.”
Reaching the postseason was a gift for a Colorado State team which has consistently climbed the ladder in the three years since head coach Niko Medved moved into the big office. Last year, the Rams had qualified for a postseason tournament, but the pandemic took that away.
This year, while in the postseason, it wasn’t the bracket any of them hoped to reach, making each day since Sunday’s NCAA Tournament selection show a chance to get over the disappointment and move toward looking forward to playing another team – in this instance, Buffalo – continue their season and chase a trophy.
Considering all teams and players around the country have missed this year, getting a chance to do so in front of fans is a definite added bonus.
“I think it is. It’s interesting. Nobody can hide from the heartbreak that happened on Sunday and what that feels like,” Medved said. “But man, I really feel that everyday that’s gone by that it’s really starting to keep turning to more excitement of playing somebody else. I think that’s the other side, when you realize that I’m going to get to go out tomorrow, play on national television, I’m going to have some family and friends and fans there cheering me on, I think that adds a whole other level of excitement to what’s going on here.”
I hope we can hear the families cheering, and be as loud and proud as you can, because, again, we haven’t had that all year. I think that’s going to be awesome.Niko Medved
Yep, it’s been a different world. For instance, when Medved walks the halls of the team hotel, he’s seeing players and coaches from other teams in the tournament, including Buffalo. The Bulls are a major difference, too, and that’s of primary concern at the moment.
They play with a tempo the Rams have yet to face this year, ranking 11th in that category. Add to the mix they are second nationally in offensive rebounds per game (14.88), led by Josh Mballa, who pulls down 4.33 by himself.
This is a formidable opponent, and Thursday morning’s practice gave Medved the feeling his team was really getting locked in to the opportunities which await the team Friday, and with a win, the following week.
And if they need a push, the Rams just may get it from the crowd. Medved knows the ticket allotment has already been sold out, but he’s not sure of the mix. He figures some of it is just local basketball fans wanting to see the game live again. There will be some from other teams. But he also knows there will be green and gold in the mix.
Quite a bit, actually, and not just Pat, either.
“She is the best, and we’ve got great families. That’s a great thing,” Medved said. “I hope we can hear the families cheering, and be as loud and proud as you can, because, again, we haven’t had that all year. I think that’s going to be awesome. One of our former player’s fathers, Stuart Creason’s father, Warren, he’s loud and he said, ‘don’t mind me, I’m going to be loud and obnoxious.’ I said, well, that’s great. We haven’t had that all year, so be loud and obnoxious.”
Knowing his family is there, Isaiah said he’ll definitely walk to the court and find where they are at, if just for comfort. Once the ball is tipped, he won’t look up again. He’ll have to help steer the Colorado State offense through the pace of play, knowing when to accelerate and when to find the breaks.
That’s his job.
And when it’s done, he’ll find them again. And that may be the hard part of a great thing.
His mom is going to want to give him a hug.
“I have played that through my mind already,” Pat said. “I know it’s going to be hard, so the next thing I will do -- which he hates -- is seeing me come with my phone, because I’m always taking pictures. I tell him I have to have the memories; you’ll thank me later. I will definitely at least do a selfie with him in the background or something.
“But that’s going to be hard. I’ll just have to give an air hug, but I definitely understand.”
If not for the pandemic, Pat would have seen her son play quite often this season. She’s spent 25 years teaching and coaching at Schimelpfenig Middle School in Plano, Texas, and in May, she’s going to retire. She would have taken days off from work to go see her son play, but that wasn’t possible.
Each time, she would have wanted to take a photo. Each time, Isaiah was likely to roll his eyes.
This day will be different. Her son is coming back home to play for the first time in college. And he’d love that hug, too. Or the chance to sit with his family – his father, Barry, and his brother, Barrington, will be there, too -- in the stands and talk, face-to-face, not screen-to-screen via FaceTime.
He’s so happy about it, when – not if -- mom has her phone ready for the selfie, he’s ready to smile.
“For sure,” he said. “We haven’t had one in a while. It will definitely be worth it.”
It will definitely be a memory to cherish.