After Wright State pulled off one of its biggest road nonconference wins in years last Thursday at Belmont, you would have thought the Raiders would have been in a hurry to get back to Fairborn as three players faced finals less than 12 hours after the conclusion of the game.
However, the Raiders had to take care of a long-running tradition first. Wright State’s travel party returned to Fairborn last Friday at 4 a.m. happy about the win and having full stomachs.
Following last week’s win at Belmont, Donlon had the team bus stop at Krystal in Nashville for milkshakes.
Wright State head coach Billy Donlon started the tradition when he was an assistant at UNC-Wilmington under then head coach Brad Brownell. When the duo came to Wright State in 2006, so did a tradition of taking the team to get postgame milkshakes and ice cream after road wins.
“What else would you stop for after a win?” Donlon said.
Definitely not broccoli according to Donlon.
“We had really long bus rides (at UNCW) and I think the average time we got home with how the league was shaped then was 3 a.m.,” Donlon said. “And guys had 8 a.m. classes.
“We would be on the bus and we had a big win somewhere to cement a top-two finish with a chance to win the league. I think it was at VCU so that was a five-hour drive.”
The win prompted Donlon to request an unscheduled stop before returning to Wilmington.
“I remember being on the bus and saying, ‘Coach, let’s get some ice cream, man.’ Back then, I was 28, I was like my daughter. When she wants something, she is never like impolite, but she is relentless when she wants something. It was like every 15 minutes, coach was like, ‘I don’t think so.’ ‘Coach, there is a McDonalds right here, let’s go get a sundae, let’s go get a milkshake.’ Finally, I just wore him down and we got them for the whole team and the guys loved it and then we made it our thing.”
When Wright State takes the road Thursday, the Raiders hope to be leaving Cullowhee, NC with a win and milkshakes the same way they did last week.
“It is really good, the guys love it. Any extra juice you can find in any game, a road game or a home game, you’re going to find it,” Donlon said. “I think what is good about the milkshake thing is you have guys who come in every year who have never experienced it before so you will have a handful of guys who will think its pretty good. It hasn’t gotten old around here.”
What is the most popular milkshake on the team? According to Donlon, a lot of the guys enjoy the Oreo milkshake at Chick-Fil-A.
An important part of Wright State’s win at Belmont last week was the Raiders’ ability to grab offensive rebounds. WSU had six offensive rebounds off 10 missed shots in the second half. The Raiders turned those six missed shots into 10 second-chance points.
In Sunday’s home win versus Miami, WSU only had one offensive rebound.
“We send the same amount (of players to the offensive glass) every time, it is just a question of whether the guys who are supposed to go whether they go or not,” Donlon said. “It is just a philosophical thing. I don’t want us giving up points in transition. I don’t care what anyone says, if you don’t get the offensive rebound and you play against anyone who is good in transition, you are going to give up baskets in transition.”
Western Carolina is a team that can get back on transition. Last season, WCU scored 77 on Wright State in an 85-77 win by the Raiders.
