In 2004 I attended an admit weekend for Duke's business school (FU-qua). I watched them play their game vs. the UCONNvicts from inside Cameron Indoor Stadium. I was amazed to see such passionate and diehard fans. There were probably 3,000 kids packed into their stadium. The game was preceded with a message from Coach K asking fans not to "burn too much stuff down if Duke should win." When Duke lost, I saw numerous fans crying and thrashing around on the floor. As a huge hoops fan, I've probably seen hundreds of games on TV of the Cameron Crazies going nuts, and in person they certainly didn't disappoint. Needless to say, I was impressed.

On Monday, I watched the game in Pauley Pavilion. Honestly, the UCLA fans put the Cameron Crazies to shame. Not only were there at least three times as many people there, they were all louder and more passionate that their Duke counterparties. There were more people in face paint, more people in hoops gear, and more people living and dying with each shot. Another glaring difference came when the lights were turned down and all of the championship banners were lit up. There were a few more in Pauley than in Cameron (like 8). From fans with homemade Roll jerseys to "Lorenzo Mata has a posse" t-shirts, the UCLA crowd was more imaginative and proud than any fans I've ever seen. Lastly, when the final horn sounded our fans didn't thrash on the floor, but rather stood and applauded their team. While there were a few teary eyes in the building (myself included), our fans were appreciative rather than disappointed. I am not only proud of our team but our fans.

As a UCLA undergrad during the Lavin era, I witnessed dwindling crowds in the student section and less and less pride in the program. Monday night's game has totally replaced the visions of an empty student section watching CSUN dance on the UCLA logo at center court. It's pretty clear that our program is on par with any other school in the country, and I think that our fans are there too. Anyone who thought that Howland wouldn't be a hit in "tinsel town" ought to take a look at how many people filled the seats on Monday to just to watch a giant tv.