Wright admits coaching error

In a long article in the Philadelphia Daily News today, Villanova coach Jay Wright is quoted at length regarding his position at the helm of Villanova basketball.

Of particular interest to Let's Go Nova readers may be Wright's reference to his coaching decision in the West Virginia game to keep star forward Dante Cunningham on the bench in the first half with two fouls.

Wright actually praises Villanova's atmosphere of lesser scrutiny, and the fact that talk of the error died down quickly. How this is compatible with Wright's ostensible goal of striving for excellence is a little incomprehensible to me, but here is the quote:

We get plenty of attention. But you're not under the scrutiny every day. Like, 'Why didn't I play Dante Cunningham with two fouls in the West Virginia game in the first half?' Which I probably should have. But it didn't become a 2-day issue (emphasis added).

This quote demonstrates Wright's excellent understanding of public relations, possibly at the expense of his basketball knowledge and competitive edge. Is Wright correct about the public relations benefits of not being under a microscope like one would be in Lexington or Bloomington? Absolutely. But how does that help Villanova become a better basketball team? It sure is nice for Wright that his voicemail is not overflowing on Day Two of the Dante Cunningham Benching Scandal, but why brag about it?

Is Wright really that saying he is glad that the uproar over his mistakes dies down quickly, instead of saying that scrutiny over mistakes motivates him to make fewer of them?

For the record, Let's Go Nova was all over this issue, even a day after the game. In my review of the WVU loss, I wrote the following:

He got into minor foul trouble early on Friday, and his absence definitely cost the Wildcats dearly. But why did he have to sit so long? I think Wright was too cautious. Villanova was getting blown away with Dante on the bench. Dante picked up his second foul with 14 minutes to play in the first half, and didn't see the court for the rest of the half? Are you kidding me? That would have been ridiculous if we were winning, and it's patently absurd when the 'Cats are being blown out. Sitting Cunningham for the last 14 minutes of the first half might have cost Villanova the game. Oh, and by the way, Cunningham finished with just three fouls thanks to Wright's abundance of gutless caution.

It's nice that Wright admitted his mistake, but why does he think the issue is over, especially considering the NCAA and BET seeding ramifications this loss will most certainly have?

Wright also made what some may also consider to be a revealing statement: winning a national championship is not essential. Ever.

I don't need to win a national championship. Honestly, as long as these guys are graduating and I continue to get the enjoyment I do from the relationship with these guys, I would be fine . . .It wouldn't bother me one bit (emphasis added) [...] Our fans need a national championship. And I would love to do it for them. But for me, personally, I love where we are right now. I love what we're doing.

Gee, thanks, Jay.

Again, it's great that Wright cares more about the players graduating and running a clean program than winning at all costs. But why can't we have it both ways? It would be nice to have a coach who has a larger competitive drive. This is another reason I think Wright would be much better suited as a PR person than a head coach, but I digress.

Anyway, the full PDN article is definitely worth a read. I don't want to harp on only the negatives, as Wright said some good things in the interview. Those two quotes, however, struck me as being worthy of a bit more scrutiny.

'Nova fails road test at WVU

Villanova 72
West Virginia 93
(box score)

#13 Villanova: 20-5 (8-4 BE)
West Virginia: 17-8 (6-6 BE)


Villanova got knocked down to earth on Friday night with an absolute debacle of a performance against the hungry WVU Mountaineers.

The Wildcats got blown out of the building, and still lack any kind of quality road win. The loss will hurt Villanova's NCAA tournament seeding, as a top-three seed now seems out of reach. Only a four-seed would now, seemingly, give VIllanova a good chance at being slotted in one of the two Philadelphia pods by the selection committee as a location-preferred protected seed.

The loss also puts Villanova squarely on the outside, looking in at a double-bye at Madison Square Garden. The 'Cats can still get there with a little bit of luck, however.

Finally, the 'Cats will not enter the top-ten tomorrow, as many had hoped. On the other hand, West Virginia vastly improved its at-large chances with the win, which would help the Big East get 9 or 10 teams into the dance.

Villanova tried to mount furious comeback after furious comeback, but there was no Malcolm Grant on the bench to come ball out the Wildcats. Eventually they fell short and relented, leading to the blowout loss.

Congratulations to reader "nav" for most closely predicting the game's final score.

On to the player grades. "READ MORE" below for player performance grades and analysis.

• Corey Fisher (31 min)

  Well, at least Jay Wright seems to have gotten the memo that Fisher can play. Looks like he was the last one to read it. Fisher led the team in minutes, finally. Given the "extra" minutes, Fisher led the team in scoring, of course, but more important was that he seemed like the only Wildcat who remained aggressive and confident despite the scoreboard. Fisher took it to the rim, and maintained hustle on both ends of the court, creating havoc on defense and finishing fast breaks. He shot 6-10, but missed both his threes, to score 17. Fisher ran the point for 30 minutes in a 21-point loss, yet turned the ball over just once. Doesn't that tell you that maybe the reason for loss came from issues at other positions? If Fisher doesn't start at the point the rest of the season, barring injury, Jay Wright should go back to Hofstra. Fisher finished with 2 assists and 3 rebounds.
  Grade: A-
  
  

• Shane Clark (S, 29 min)

  This is my major problem with Jay Wright as a basketball coach: he is utterly reactionary. Just because Clark played very well the past two games does not make him a superstar worthy of 30 minutes of floor time when he is stinking up the joint. Does Wright have any sort of player-evaulation system aside from "go with what worked last time" and "go with the seniors"? It looks like he doesn't. And with Clark, those two philosophies proved to be a double-dose of failure as Wright insisted on leaving Clark on the court for long, unending stretches of offensive ineptitude. Clark found a nice little niche the prior two games by hustling and putting back misses. That's all well and good, but in measured doses. Against WVU, Clark's hands were where offensive possessions went to die. The numbers don't even tell the full story. Clark shot 2-5 from the field and 2-4 from the line, which is bad but not atrocious. The real problem, though, was the disruption of flow and rhythm on the offensive end. Clark doesn't seem to understand spacing, or where to pass, or when to dribble, or when to ball fake, or anything like that. On top of that, he moves S-L-O-W-L-Y. And the worst part of all was on the other end of the court. Clark allowed so many open jumpers, I lost count of them. He was slow to rotate on the perimeter, and often let penetrators drive right by him and past him. I swear I even saw him step out of the way a few times. None of this is really Clark's fault. I wouldn't have a major complaint if Wright kept him in for a few short stretches, reserving the major minutes except for when it was really working out. It wasn't working against WVU.
  Grade: D-
  
  

• Corey Stokes (29 min)

  Stokes tried to get it going, and even though he took 10 shots, I think he should be taking more. He shot 5-10, including a good 3-6 from the three, to score 15 points. He added 5 rebounds, but had 0 assists or steals, and committed 2 turnovers. What Stokes needs to work on is ballhandling and moving more quickly without the ball. The defense looked as well as it could have in a blowout.
  Grade: B




• Scottie Reynolds (S, 28 min)

  Reynolds just couldn't get his shot going. That's going to happen sometimes. He shot 3-11, including 1-5 from the three to score 12. If three or four of those misses had gone in, the Wildcats might have been in a different ball game. Reynolds did not handle the ball well against the Mountaineers. He passed for just 1 assist and turned the ball over 5 times. He had 0 steals, and fouled out with 5 personals. This might be the worst game Reynolds has played since arriving on the Main Line three years ago. Things will certainly get better for Reynolds, especially if Wright lets him play the rest of the season at the two guard.
  Grade: D+




• Dante Cunningham (S, 25 min)

  Despite Jay Wright's ridiculous, embarrassing lobbying for Dante to be Big East player of the year over the likes of much-better players like Jerel McNeal and Hasheem Thabeet, Cunningham is definitely in a minor slump lately. His rebounding is down a little, and he doesn't seem to be battling as aggressively for positioning down low. Cunningham, of course, remains one of Villanova's most important and best players. He got into minor foul trouble early on Friday, and his absence definitely cost the Wildcats dearly. But why did he have to sit so long? I think Wright was too cautious. Villanova was getting blown away with Dante on the bench. Dante picked up his second foul with 14 minutes to play in the first half, and didn't see the court for the rest of the half? Are you kidding me? That would have been ridiculous if we were winning, and it's patently absurd when the 'Cats are being blown out. Sitting Cunningham for the last 14 minutes of the first half might have cost Villanova the game. Oh, and by the way, Cunningham finished with just three fouls thanks to Wright's abundance of gutless caution. Cunningham shot 3-6 for 7 points, grabbed 6 rebounds, and turned the ball over 4 times.
  Grade: C-




• Dwayne Anderson (S, 19 min)

  It was good to see Anderson able to play after his injury earlier this week. He did, however, look a step slow. He shot 2-5 for 5 points, but missed all 3 of his three-point attempts. He did grab 6 rebounds and 2 steals in limited action.
  Grade: B-




• Reggie Redding (S, 19 min)

  Redding didn't have it Friday night, and probably shouldn't have played nearly 20 minutes. But the Wildcat bench is short, given the spate of recent transfers out of Villanova. Redding shot 1-3, had 4 rebounds, 1 turnover, 1 assist, and 1 steal.
  Grade: C-




• Antonio Pena (18 min)

  Pena was ineffective from the field (0-2) and perfect from the line (4-4). But ZERO rebounds in 18 minutes? Come on.
  Grade: D




• Incomplete grades: Frank Tchuisi (1 min).



• Did not play: Russell Wooten (CD), Jason Colenda (CD), Maurice Sutton (RS).

Red-hot 'Nova an underdog at WVU

#13 Villanova (20-4) at West Virginia (16-8)
9:00 p.m., 13 February 2009 at the WVU Coliseum

TV: ESPN

Line: WVU -4.5

Villanova, a winner of six in a row, travels to Morgantown, W.V. tonight to face a desperate Mountaineers team. Despite the Wildcats' recent success, especially on the offensive end, West Virginia is favored by a field goal. [Update: now 4.5]

This is an important game for Villanova, who could move into a virtual tie for a double-bye in the Big East tournament, and solidify its place in the national top ten. Villanova also lacks a real, quality road win, which will be an important factor in NCAA seeding.

The game is even more crucial for a West Virginia team that finds itself on the brink of missing the NCAA tournament. Despite being ranked #7 in the nation by KenPom, the Mountaineers have lost four of their last six games to fall below .500 in conference play.

All four of those losses, however, were to ranked teams, and West Virginia remains a dangerous opponent. KenPom predicts a 5-point Mountaineer victory, with only a 30 percent chance for a Villanova win.

The ever-expanding Villanova Blagosphere is amped up for this game. IBBW has a preview, as does VBTN. VUhoops' article has been up for literally days in anticipation. Nova News also gives his thoughts on the game. The returning Villanova Viewpoint blogger has yet to check in, but check back.

Take you shot at predicting the game's final score in the comment thread below. The closest guess wins a mention in the next post. If you'd like to win something a bit more substantial, like a Villanova folder from last year's tournament run, enter Let's Go Nova's tournament contest.

'Nova cruises past WVU

Villanova 78
West Virginia 56
(box score)

West Virginia: 18-8 (7-6 BE)
Villanova: 16-9 (6-7 BE, 3-1 B5)

Next game: vs. Connecticut, 02/23 at the Wachovia Center.


Villanova used a stifling defense paired with efficient shooting to blow out the West Virginia Mountaineers tonight in the Pavilion.

It was the second straight win for the Wildcats, who have won three of their last four contests after a disastrous five-game losing streak.

The win puts Villanova "on the bubble of the bubble of the bubble," before the Wildcats face three consecutive top-25 teams in Connecticut, Marquette, and Louisville.

Win two of those three, and take care of business against USF, and all of a sudden the Wildcats are on the bubble of the bubble.

One or two wins in Madison Square Garden would then place Villanova on the good side of the final bubble, the one for the NCAA Tournament.

Enough talk about bubbles, though. We are getting ahead of ourselves.

Villanova played an excellent game tonight at the Pavilion, and used season-best performances from Corey Stokes and Dwayne Anderson to put away the Mountaineers.

The Wildcat defense allowed the Mountaineers just a 35.6 percent shooting performance. West Virginia shot an atrocious 2-20 from the three, but several of those were missed open looks. If the Mountaineers could have drained those shots, the game would have been closer.

For more thoughts on the game, see the transcript of the live blog.

Congratulations to reader "Ja" for most closely predicting the game's final score.

Next up for the Wildcats is arguably the biggest game of the year, a home battle at the Wachovia Center against the UConn Huskies. Connecticut, winners of 10 straight, is the hottest teams in the Big East.

A win for the 13th-ranked Huskies would help them crack the top 10; a victory for Villanova would be the best entry on any NCAA resume the Wildcats would put forward next month.

On to the player grades. "READ MORE" below for player performance grades and analysis.

• Dwayne Anderson (S, 31 min)

  Anderson lit it up tonight in the first half. Dwayne notched the best scoring game of the season, sinking 5 of 7 three pointers to score 17 points, all in the first period. Anderson also played an excellent defensive game, coming up with a team-high 4 steals. He grabbed 3 rebounds, and had 2 assists, 1 block, and 1 turnover. Anderson showed excellent hustle, and proved he could knock down open shots. He still seems to have some difficulty creating shots for himself, but if Villanova can get this kind of performance from Anderson consistently, the future looks bright.
  Grade: A-




• Dante Cunningham (S, 22 min)

  Cunningham didn't dominate the paint, but he held his own. Dante shot an excellent 4-6 from the field to score 8 points, but he only managed to pick up 3 rebounds. He had 2 big blocks, 1 steal, and 1 turnover. It was a good game for Cunningham, but his rebounding could improve.
  Grade: B-




• Antonio Pena (S, 26 min)

  Pena just missed the double-double, scoring 10 points and grabbing a team-high 9 boards. He shot well, 3-5 from the field, and was a perfect 4-4 from the foul line. Pena dished out 3 assists, and had 1 turnover, block, and steal each. Pena's rebounding performance was excellent, and his inside presence seems to grow each game.
  Grade: B+





• Corey Fisher (S, 26 min)

  Fisher looked like a great point guard tonight despite shooting just 2-8 from the field. Fisher missed all 3 of his three point attempts, but was a perfect 5-5 from the stripe to finish with 9 points. He led the team in assists, with 6, and handled the ball reasonably well, turning the ball over 2 times. He still seems to have some problems with shot selection, and he is definitely better running in transition or taking the ball on breakdowns than on set plays, but Fisher is developing into a tough Big East point guard.
  Grade: B




• Corey Stokes (21 min)

  Stokes followed up a good performance against the Red Storm with another good game tonight. He scored a career-high 16 points on 5-12 shooting, including 3-8 from the three. Stokes has definitely improved his three-point shot recently in the season. Corey added 5 rebounds from the wing-guard position, and had 1 assist and no turnovers.
  Grade: B+





• Scottie Reynolds (S, 18 min)

  Reynolds struggled with early foul trouble and was held scoreless before heating up for 9 points in the second period. Reynolds only took 4 shots, making 2 of them, both three pointers. He shot well from the free-throw line, going 3-4. He had 1 turnover and did not notch a rebound, steal, or assist. It was definitely a below-average game for Reynolds, but it was good to see him get going in the second half. Reynolds will need to do more than this to defeat the surging UConn Huskies on Saturday; it's a good thing he dropped 40 on them the last times the two teams met, a year ago in Connecticut.
  Grade: C-




• Malcolm Grant (14 min)

  Despite baseless rumors to the contrary on the Interwebs, Malcolm Grant was dressed and ready to play for the Wildcats. While the announcers spewed the latest company line about Grant being relegated to the bench for size considerations, avid followers of the program know there has to be more to the story, though we may never find out exactly what. Grant did not play altogether well in his 14 minutes. He shot 0-2 from the field, and had 2 turnovers. The good news is that he looked good handling the ball otherwise, dishing out 2 nice assists. I'd like to see Grant get a more extended run so he can get into a scoring groove; maybe Connecticut will be his break-out game like it was for Reynolds last year.
  Grade: D+





• Shane Clark (14 min)

  Clark didn't look spectacular, but played one of his better games recently. The announcers mentioned that he'd been tested for mononucleosis in an effort to explain his mysterious fatigue. Clark did look less lethargic in the first half, and his offensive performance was a tad better than his past few debacles. Clark scored 4 points on 1-3 shooting, and dished out a respectable pair of assists. He also was able to get his hands on 3 rebounds. That said, he looked weak with the ball, and still cannot handle the ball with any efficiency. Clark committed 1 official turnover, but his 2 missed shots were so weak they were practically turnovers themselves. Clark's defense looked a step slow, as well. Still, his 14 minutes were a small step forward for the struggling junior captain, and hopefully he can continue to make progress.
  Grade: C-





• Reggie Redding (13 min)

  Redding managed 1 steal, 1 rebound, 1 assist, 1 missed shot, and 2 turnovers in a practically invisible run of 13 minutes. His defense was decent, however, and Redding is a noticeably better defender than many of Villanova's scoring guards. One just wishes that Redding could be a factor on offense, at least once.
  Grade: D+




• Casiem Drummond (10 min)

  Drummond had two big buckets on perfect 2-2 shooting, but was just 1-3 from the foul line. He only was able to grab 1 rebound in his 10 minutes. He also committed 2 turnovers. Drummond's ankle was said to be hurting, so you have to take this performance with a grain of salt/
  Grade: D+




• Incomplete grades: Jason Colenda (3 min), Frank Tchuisi (2 min)



• Did not play: None.

WVU wins NIT, bad t-shirts

Congratulations to the West Virginia Mountaineers, fellow members of the Big East, for winning the National Invitation Tournament in New York City on Thursday.

The Mountaineers beat Clemson of the ACC 78-73 in the NIT final at Madison Square Garden.

Though it's been argued that winning the NIT is like kissing your sister -- please, no Pittsnogle jokes -- the Mountaineers had to suffer a different kind of ignominy Thursday night when they donned the celebratory championship t-shirts, which were humorously misspelled.

The shirts, which were printed by the NIT, drop one of the more crucial letters in "West Virginia": the trailing "i."

Since this is a family blog, I won't go into the various debates on the correct pronunciation of "Virgina"; suffice it to say that in any case, even the winner of the Not Invited Tournament deserves better than that.

West Virginia game grades

        Villanova 56
#25 West Virginia 67
(box score)

West Virginia: 11-1 (12-1, 2-0 BE)
Villanova: 9-3 (10-3, 0-1 BE, 3-0 B5)

Next game: vs. DePaul, 01/06 @ The Pavilion.

Villanova began its conference play with this tough loss at West Virginia. The #25 Mountaineers were clearly the better team tonight, as they hit open shots at will, and confused the Wildcats with John Beilein's much-feared 1-3-1 zone.

It isn't often I'll say this, but Jay Wright looked out-coached in the first half. Villanova looked completely unprepared on defense and baffled on offense against the stifling Mountaineer D. West Virginia even shut down VU's in-bounds plays, and picked off one of the "long bombs of last resort" so familiar to Wildcats fans these past few years.

Villanova quickly fell behind, and despite a mini-comeback in the first half, the Wildcats trailed by 22 at halftime.

Jay made a fairly good adjustment in the second half, adding a full-court press on defense, and focusing inside more on offense. This allowed Villanova to cut the lead to 4 at the 5:19 mark before West Virginia eventually pulled away.

Still, when the chips were down, the Wildcats could not guard West Virginia's shooters. The 'Cats allowed Frank Young to hit a gratuitous 8 three-pointers, of which several were wide-open looks.

Also, when the lead was cut to 4, Villanova abandoned the methods that got it there. Gone was the full-court press, and instead of pounding the ball inside on offense, which had been working, the Wildcats jacked some ill-advised threes.

Villanova had 16 turnovers tonight, including far too many in the clutch minutes. All in all, it was not the Wildcats' night. They will need to play more disciplined if they hope to pull even in conference play on Saturday against DePaul.

I think the team is better than what we saw tonight. If not for the atrocious first half, we may well have won this game. Jay Wright, as usual, said it best tonight in his post-game comments:

I don't think we are a bad team. I think we're a really good team that looked bad tonight. The first half told the story. They executed really well. We were just living on the edge there.

Sage words, Jay.

Onto the player grades. Click "READ MORE" below for player performance grades and analysis.

• Curtis Sumpter (S, 35 min)

  It was a tale of two halves for Curtis, who was off in the first 20 minutes but spectacular in the second period. After going 2-7 from the field and committing 3 turnovers in the first half, Curtis came out of the locker room ready to go on a tear. He shot 7-11 in the second half, and had no turnovers. He seemed to score at will in the post against the undersized Mountaineers. Sumpter finished with 21 points, 7 rebounds, 3 turnovers, and 3 steals. It was an above-average night that was spoiled by a sloppy first half.
  Grade: B-




• Dante Cunningham (S, 28 min)

  Cunningham is probably the team's most consistent player. He plays very efficiently and makes few mistakes. This, however, is starting to become more and more an indication that he needs to step up and play a larger role. As our best pure post player, most athletic defender and floor-runner, and leader in FG percentage, I want more of the offense run through Dante. I don't know if this is a Jay Wright issue or a Dante issue, or both, but Dante needs to step up: he is one of the team's best players. Dante scored 7 tonight on 1-1 shooting, and led the team in rebounds with 8. He also added 2 steals and had no turnovers. Very efficient play, now get him the ball more.
  Grade: B-




• Scottie Reynolds (S, 27 min)

  The cliche would be to say that Scottie looked every bit like a freshman tonight. Reynolds seemed a little dazzled in his Big East debut, making several poor decisions with the ball and totaling 4 turnovers in the first half. His play improved dramatically in the second half, where he committed only 1 turnover. Scottie hit the boards well, pulling in 5 rebounds, and had 2 steals to go with his 7 points. He only dished out 1 assist, however. Reynolds can certainly do better.
  Grade: C-




• Will Sheridan (S, 30 min)

  It was a rough night for Will. He was a total liability on offense, unable to score or even advance the ball usefully. He led the team in turnovers, with an unconscionable 6, including several that killed our comeback in crunch time. How he managed 6 turnovers without any ball-handling responsibility is beyond me. Sheridan took bad shots, finishing 1-5 from the field and scoring 2 points. His 7 rebounds were not enough to make up for the fact that Villanova played 4-on-5 on offense whenever he was out there. The team simply played much better with different lineups, and the fact that Sheridan had to go 30 minutes on such an off night is a mistake by Jay Wright. There is no way Sheridan should have seen that much playing time. It may be time to take the red shirt off Antonio Pena, depending on the status of his knee. We need another offensive presence down low, and at this point Bump is not the answer. Sheridan should rotate in for defense, but I do not think he should start as we move into conference play.
  Grade: F




• Mike Nardi (S, 29 min)

  I did a double-take when I looked at the box score and saw that Nardi had no turnovers tonight. That may be true, but it doesn't mean he didn't make any mistakes handing the ball. Time and time again he dribbled the ball directly into WVU's double team, instead of making an easy pass. Nardi was also very off in shooting tonight, going 3-14, including an atrocious 1-9 from the three. A few of those were desperation heaves in the game's final moments, but he did not shoot well overall. Mike managed to score just 12 points on his 14 shots, and spent a good chunk of the second half on the bench with foul trouble. We will need better scoring from him. One bright spot: he led the team in assists with 4. Grade: C-




• Shane Clark (29 min)

  Shane played 29 minutes tonight, but did not really contribute very much. After stroking a three-pointer to give Villanova its first points of the game, he missed his next 6 shots, finishing 1-7 from the field. He was OK on the glass, with 5 rebounds, and did add 1 assist and steal each to go with his 1 turnover. It was just a mediocre night for Clark, though, as he did nothing of note in the second half.
  Grade: C-
  
  
  

• Dwayne Anderson (12 min)

  Aside from a really nice drive-and-dunk that the announcers cited as the textbook way to exploit the WVU zone, Anderson was largely ineffective.
  Grade: C-




• Bilal Benn (7 min)

  Benn looked solid in his 7 minutes. He should have played more. He had an assist, 2 rebounds, and no turnovers in his limited action, and scored 2 points on 1-1 shooting. More important, however, he did not make many mistakes and played good defense. Look for Benn to get some increased playing time against DePaul on Saturday.
  Grade:B-




• Incomplete grades: Reggie Redding(3 min).



• Did not play:
  Casiem Drummond (CD), Ross Condon (CD), Frank Tchuisi (CD), Andrew Ott (RS), Antonio Pena (knee, RS)

TV for tonight

Villanova's conference opener against #25 West Virginia will be televised tonight live for a lot of Wildcats fans.

The game is being produced by ESPN+ and was picked up by several local networks.

In Philadelphia, the game is being shown on WPHL, channel 17. In New York, you can find the game on the Fox Sports Net New York network. The game will also be aired by Comcast and Cox in several of their local areas throughout the Mid-Atlantic and South.

In short, check your local listings.

Boston residents, unfortunately, will be out of luck tonight, unless they have DirecTV with a sports package. If you're in Boston and want to see the 'Cats, try a sports bar with a satellite dish.