For those gathered in the Nutter Center Wednesday evening, the buzz in the arena was akin to a major conference contest for the men’s basketball team. No men were on the court (other than a pair of the referees) and this was not a conference game. Wednesday’s game was for 937 bragging rights.
There was a jolt the Nutter Center rarely if ever occurs for a women’s basketball game. The annual contest between Wright State and Dayton has been lopsided over the years with the Flyers winning 36 of 40 meetings against the Raiders. But both teams were coming off NCAA Tournament seasons and the tilt was more of analogous to a title match than a warm-up.
While Wright State got off to a slow start, when the Raiders got going late in the first half, this was a bout worth watching. Too bad all Billy Donlon’s team could do was watch from the stands.
A crowd of nearly 1,600 gathered in the Nutter Center Wednesday evening. Yes, many were dressed in red and blue. But a sizeable number of WSU fans managed to make it into the arena as well. There were chants of “Lets Go Flyers” quickly drowned out by the band and cheerleaders yelling “Lets Go Raiders.” The crowd was believed to be the largest in over a decade since UConn came to the Nutter Center.
This is why the WSU and UD women shouldn’t be the only programs to keep the Gem City Jam alive. There is clearly a connection between playing WSU and UD. UD fans could have just as easily gone to see their men’s team play in Oxford this evening versus Miami. Instead, hundreds made the drive up I-675 to see their women’s team play WSU.
I get asked all the time why the men’s teams don’t play each other. I know Billy Donlon has said he wants to play the game. Fans at UD want to play the game. But sometimes economics dictate who plays who. Maybe there is an issue of dollar and cents. There could be other reasons as well. The game hasn’t been played in over 17 years and I question whether a contest between UD and WSU will be played in the next 17 years.
WSU women’s basketball head coach Mike Bradbury didn’t think this game had any extra meaning. He does not want to call it a rivalry until WSU is competitive in the series. But his counterpart at Dayton saw things differently.
“I thought it was a great environment and fun for the kids to play in the environment,” Dayton head coach Jim Jabir said. “I was really happy with the support we got. There was a lot of our fans here and that was great. I thought that helped us down the stretch.”
WSU leading scorer Tay’ler Mingo agreed with Jabir.
“There was some trashing talking back and forth,” Mingo said. “It was fun.”
There is clearly a rivalry between our schools. It goes beyond basketball or athletics. It is public versus private school. Middle class versus upper class. Modern versus traditional. Commuter versus residential. The two universities are vastly different in some ways but there are things that two universities can come together on.
Both universities pride themselves on revitalizing the Miami Valley. Both schools are looking for ways to reach out to the community. What better way to unite (or divide) our community than getting our two men’s basketball teams together for a game.
Look at how Ohio State and Michigan can unite behind causes like the Red Cross. The two schools have an annual blood drive and compete against each other on which school can donate the most blood. You don’t think WSU and UD could organize something similar?
Let’s hope the powers that be can figure out a way to make this game happen, at least once in the near future.
