The halfcourt line issue: According to John Hunt . . .

[Greenblood]

From this morning, http://www.oregonlive.com/ducks/index.s ... wn_19.html has this:

" . . . you'll see a "line'' of about three feet in length at each side of halfcourt next season, according to a source familiar with the situation. It will not extend through the "O'' and the torii-style "Matt'' at midcourt, but it will be visible in everybody's periphery."

My very strong opinion is that they should have a very visible halfcourt line that everyone -- players, fans and TV viewers alike -- can easily see at Matt Court, just like every other court I've seen does. Call me an old fogey, but to me, a basic part of watching a basketball game -- that shouldn't even need to be discussed -- is seeing exactly where halfcourt is. My wife and I feel like we've "maybe" been able to see the halfcourt line at Matt on our HD TV in one or two games we've watched, but I don't think it should be a "Where's Waldo?" situation.

(Other than that, though, I really do love the Matt court.)

[greenyellow]

Even if that 3 foot line was there for Friday's game, I still think Young steps over it. He wasn't even looking to see where he was and just kept backing up until he was over it. If the line was such a problem, it would surely have caused more than 2 backcourt violations this season.

[woundedknees]

If anything, the advantage of the current configuration is that opposing teams have to be more aware of where they are on the court... The necessity to check the line more carefully means an open player could potentially be overlooked by the ball handler.

If the line is such a problem, logic suggests there should have also been at least a couple 10 second violations while bringing the ball up court during the season?

When Creighton was breaking the press, there certainly didn't seem to be any difficulty figuring how far the Blue Jays needed to go.

[ducksrock]

From this morning, http://www.oregonlive.com/ducks/index.s ... wn_19.html has this:

" . . . you'll see a "line'' of about three feet in length at each side of halfcourt next season, according to a source familiar with the situation. It will not extend through the "O'' and the torii-style "Matt'' at midcourt, but it will be visible in everybody's periphery."

My very strong opinion is that they should have a very visible halfcourt line that everyone -- players, fans and TV viewers alike -- can easily see at Matt Court, just like every other court I've seen does. Call me an old fogey, but to me, a basic part of watching a basketball game -- that shouldn't even need to be discussed -- is seeing exactly where halfcourt is. My wife and I feel like we've "maybe" been able to see the halfcourt line at Matt on our HD TV in one or two games we've watched, but I don't think it should be a "Where's Waldo?" situation.

(Other than that, though, I really do love the Matt court.)

OK, cant pass this one up...You are an old fogey....and this is coming from a 56 year old...

[ducksrock]

From this morning, http://www.oregonlive.com/ducks/index.s ... wn_19.html has this:

" . . . you'll see a "line'' of about three feet in length at each side of halfcourt next season, according to a source familiar with the situation. It will not extend through the "O'' and the torii-style "Matt'' at midcourt, but it will be visible in everybody's periphery."

My very strong opinion is that they should have a very visible halfcourt line that everyone -- players, fans and TV viewers alike -- can easily see at Matt Court, just like every other court I've seen does. Call me an old fogey, but to me, a basic part of watching a basketball game -- that shouldn't even need to be discussed -- is seeing exactly where halfcourt is. My wife and I feel like we've "maybe" been able to see the halfcourt line at Matt on our HD TV in one or two games we've watched, but I don't think it should be a "Where's Waldo?" situation.

(Other than that, though, I really do love the Matt court.)

[briarduck]

It sounds like the half-court line is a problem for other teams, and a few writers but it just won us a tournament...its clearly NOT a problem for us! Change nothing, our hostile crowd, great arena and now a half-court line the teams have to think about...why would we change it unless forced?

[UofDuck]

I see where you are coming from, but I disagree, I don't want there to be any excuses for victory and I don't buy into the line was the reason we won. As pointed out, the kid's eyes were up as he drifted back over the line and peripheral vision should have let him see the 20' bold "O" at his feet if that was the case. However, it somewhat cheapens the win to a small degree in a lot of people's eyes which takes a little away from the sweetness of victory for the kids/fans.

[greenyellow]

I see where you are coming from, but I disagree, I don't want there to be any excuses for victory and I don't buy into the line was the reason we won. As pointed out, the kid's eyes were up as he drifted back over the line and peripheral vision should have let him see the 20' bold "O" at his feet if that was the case. However, somewhat cheapens the win to a small degree in a lot of people's eyes which takes a little away from the sweetness of victory for the kids/fans.

To me, the only people trying to cheapen it are the op-ed writers for the R-G and Oregonian. It really hasn't played that big of a role in games so shouldn't be fussed about too much.

[UofDuck]

I see where you are coming from, but I disagree, I don't want there to be any excuses for victory and I don't buy into the line was the reason we won. As pointed out, the kid's eyes were up as he drifted back over the line and peripheral vision should have let him see the 20' bold "O" at his feet if that was the case. However, somewhat cheapens the win to a small degree in a lot of people's eyes which takes a little away from the sweetness of victory for the kids/fans.

To me, the only people trying to cheapen it are the op-ed writers for the R-G and Oregonian. It really hasn't played that big of a role in games so shouldn't be fussed about too much.

Add Beaver fans, Husky fans, Creighton fans... to your list. All I'm saying is why mess with having to explain/defend a victory when a little bolder line removes the issue all together. That is what BSU has to do all the time with their blue field and they hate having to do it - even if they LOVE their field. Our court is different enough to get attention, however the lack of a visual line is somewhat sketchy in my opinion.

I honestly hear where you're coming from - the old Boston Garden soft spots on the floor and the Big Green monster....etc. But a painted line on the wood is a little different in my book.

[Boom]

There's really no good reason to not have a distinct half court line.

As a fan/viewer.... I would like to be able to see were exactly the line is.... especially with how much we press/trap.

I've only been to one game at Matt Court. I was behind the basket around the middle of the lower bowl seating and I had a hard time seeing the line. I imagine it's a lot easier to see from the side, but from that vantage it was difficult and that was my only complaint from what was otherwise an exceptional seat.

A pretty easy fix would be to simply color it green...

[Elduderino]

There's really no good reason to not have a distinct half court line.

As a fan/viewer.... I would like to be able to see were exactly the line is.... especially with how much we press/trap.

I've only been to one game at Matt Court. I was behind the basket around the middle of the lower bowl seating and I had a hard time seeing the line. I imagine it's a lot easier to see from the side, but from that vantage it was difficult and that was my only complaint from what was otherwise an exceptional seat.

A pretty easy fix would be to simply color it green...

Yeah I tend to agree with this ^^

[maxduck]

All the other lines important to the game (the key, three point line, out of bounds) are quite visible. They should do the same with the center line.

[Duck07]

Opponents who whine about the half-court line are probably also the same ones who think we should have to wait for the defense to get ready in football. If the ncaa creates a rule where we need a more visible line than it will be changed. Until then, I care for what they think of our floor about as much as I care what they think about our uniforms, which is to say I don't.

[duckfan22]

Opponents who whine about the half-court line are probably also the same ones who think we should have to wait for the defense to get ready in football. If the ncaa creates a rule where we need a more visible line than it will be changed. Until then, I care for what they think of our floor about as much as I care what they think about our uniforms, which is to say I don't.

+1

[Greenblood]

For me, I care little about how Creighton lost or what opponents in general think of our court. I just happen to not think it's too much to ask to be able to clearly see the halfcourt line, like on every other college or pro basketball court I've ever seen. Yeah, a green stripe would be nice.