Students share excitement for basketball season

The United Supermarkets Arena will fill with eager and spirited basketball fans ready for the men’s team to impress once again.

James Blanton, a senior accounting major from Plano, said he loves basketball season because of the environment inside the arena. With seating over 15,000 people, Blanton said the noise and echoes inside can sometimes feel more electric than Jones AT&T Stadium.

When ESPN’s College Gameday visited Lubbock on Feb. 24 for the ranked matchup against Kansas, Blanton camped outside and stayed overnight. He said he hopes College Gameday makes an appearance again and encourages every student to take the opportunity and be part of the school pride.

“It’s an experience I’ll always remember,” he said, “and a time I’ll never forget.”

Blanton said the basketball team’s previous success has come from their coach, Chris Beard. From working with players he never has before – freshman and transfers – Blanton said he is excited to see what Beard can do with the team.

“[Beard] is a role model and a leader, and I think he can really change a team,” Blanton said. “I think we’re all expecting high things from him and hopefully he can deliver.”

As a graduate in December, Blanton said he still plans on traveling from Dallas to attend any weekend home basketball games.

From growing up in Lubbock, Wes Law, a junior advertising major, said he has always been a big fan of the team. Even though they have been viewed as an underdog, Law said Tech basketball has been becoming a consistent talking piece in the media.

“I want our team to be great. I want success,” Law said. “Outside of that, just solidifying Texas Tech as something that is a household name for people.”

Although the team was placed seventh in Big 12 preseason rankings, Law said he thinks the team was ranked low because most of the experienced players graduated. However, he said the team is going to prove everybody wrong.

“I know a lot of people aren’t really expecting much out of our team,” Law said. “I really think they’re going to be as good, if not better, this year than they were last year. That’s kind of a big statement, but I think we lost experience, and we replaced that experience with extra talent.”

With viewing the games last year, Law said he expects shooting guard Jarrett Culver to lead the way for the team.

After being acknowledged on SportsCenter for the student section, he said the athletics department decided to put a name in the works for the student section. The leaders, him included, will create chants, wear costumes and use props to make the student section as noticeable as possible, Law said.

“The students at Tech have always been crazy and disruptive in any sport,” Law said, “and that plays a much bigger role in basketball when the section can be just a few feet away from the other team.”

Even though Shelbie Rhodes, a freshman journalism major from Little Elm, has never been to a Tech basketball game, she said she has watched them for years. With being a big sports fan, Rhodes said she has so much anticipation for the season.

“I’m excited to wait in the long lines to get in the games. I’m excited to intimidate other schools with our student section. I’m just overall excited for our boys to show out and keep our name on the map,” she said.

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