Jan. 30, 2008
Hoyas Travel to the Mecca of College Basketball
I have been thinking about my trip to Madison Square Garden, the Mecca of College Basketball where it all began. I can still hear the former voice of the Garden, John Condon welcoming us to MSG: "The World's Most Famous Arena."
This past weekend I was with other Hoyas at the Leavey Center attending Georgetown's Leadership weekend. I attended an awards dinner on Friday evening seeing fellow HHC blogger Mike Karam receive the William Gaston Award in honor of his outstanding service to Georgetown. Congratulations Mike! I also took a bus ride to Morgantown, West Virginia to see us play the Mountaineers. WVU is an outstanding team having a tremendous number of three point shooters. Jessie Sapp continued his late game heroics stepping up to lead the Hoyas to victory with a big time three point shot leaving only 6.2 seconds left. After a time out, the Mountaineers got the ball to a baseline layup drive only to be blocked by Patrick Ewing, Jr. It was an incredible defensive effort, reminiscent of his legendary father. In all my years attending Hoya games I have never seen an opposing crowd so stunned. We made the fast trip back to Georgetown shortly after the end of the game.
Tonight we play another difficult Big East road game. For everyone following college basketball this year we know that on any given night anyone can be defeated. I still am not used to calling St. Johns the "Red Storm." We will need big performances from everyone including Jessie Sapp who is from Harlem, New York.
I refer to New York as my second home, and I always enjoy returning to the Garden. It prepares me ready for my yearly trip to the Big East Tournament in March. I have been hearing that the present Garden will be moved to the end of the James Farley Post Office/Farley Annex at 33rd Street and Ninth Avenue. The new Garden would remain home to the Knicks and Rangers, and would include luxury sky boxes, wide concourses with stores and restaurants, better sight lines for basketball and hockey, a museum and Hall of Fame. After the current Garden is torn down, it will be replaced by a new Penn Station that will be restored to its original glory.
The present Garden is the fourth version of Madison Square Garden. The first two Gardens were located at the Northeast corner of Madison Park at Madison Avenue and 26th Street where its name was derived. The site was formerly occupied by the passenger depot of the New York and Harlem Railroad. In 1871 the Railroad moved to Grand Central Station on 42nd Street and the Garden was taken over by P.T. Barnum and converted to Gilmore's Garden, an open air arena named after Patrick Gilmore whose most famous composition was "When Johnny Comes Marching Home Again." The Mecca of College Basketball hosted its first college basketball game in 1934 between Notre Dame and NYU. It was the site of the first televised basketball game in 1940 between Fordham University and the University of Pittsburgh. The third Garden was built in 1925 by boxing promoter Tex Rickard at 50th Street and 8th Avenue. Mr. Rickard also built the Boston Madison Square Garden in 1928 whose name was later clipped to the Boston Garden. The present MSG was built in 1968 and has been the home of the Big East Tournament, and the site of many famous events like Ali-Frazier I. I still get chills seeing all of the retired New York Knicks including #33 Patrick Ewing. Madison Square Garden cannot be matched for its atmosphere in the heart of New York City the city that never sleeps. I can hear Sinatra's famous song and the chants of "Hoya Saxa" every time I approach the World's Most Famous Arena. While Georgetown-Syracuse may be the greatest rivalry in Eastern Basketball, and Duke-UNC arguably the greatest rivalry in College Basketball, I would argue that for a short time in 1984-85, the rivalry between GU and St. John's during the Patrick Ewing - Chris Mullins days has never been equaled for its intensity and regional nature, i.e. New York City basketball vs. D.C. basketball. Please watch the game and cheer for the Hoyas:
If you are in New York and are attending the game we would love to see you at our Hoya Hoop Club Pregame Event:
St. Johns Pre-game
Hoya Hoop Club & Class of 2003
Mustang Harry's
352 Seventh Ave
New York, NY 10001
Join up with other Hoyas fans in New York for a pre-game party before the Hoyas take on St. Johns. Appetizers courtesy of the Hoya Hoop Club and the Class of 2003. Please RSVP to hoyasunlimited@georgetown.edu
Can't make it to Madison Square Garden? Catch the game with other Hoya Fans at these locations.
Hoya Hoop Club Town Hall Game Watch
Town Hall
2118 Wisconsin Ave NW
Washington, DC 20004
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Game Watch
Smith's Restaurant and Lounge
39-41 S. 19th St.
Philadelphia, PA 19103
For more information on attending this game watch, please contact Lana Donahue
San Francisco, California Game Watch
The Bus Stop
1901 Union St
San Francisco, CA 94123
Phone: (415) 567-6905
For more information contact Drew McGowan
Los Angeles Game Watch
Sharkeez
3801 Highland Ave
Manhattan Beach, CA
For more information on attending this game watch, contact Art Yoon
Club of Chicago Game Watch
Gamekeepers
345 W. Armitage
Chicago, IL 60614
For more information on attending this game watch, contact Jeff Goldstein
Charleston, South Carolina Gamewatch
George's Sports Bar & Grille
1300 Savannah Hwy
Charleston, SC 29407
(843) 763-0605
For more information on attending this game, contact Kathleen Flynn
New York Game Watch
The Village Pourhouse
64 Third Avenue
New York, NY 10003
For more information on attending this game watch, contact Joseph Gerics
We also have a brunch for our former players this weekend before the Seton Hall game:
Hoya Hoop Club Brunch: Honoring Men's Basketball Alumni
Saturday, February 2, 2008 @ 10am
Dewar's 12 @ the Verizon Center
F Street Entrance, 2nd Floor
Come out and meet Hoya basketball alumni before the Hoyas take on the Seton Hall Pirates. The cost is $20 per person. To make your reservations, please email hoyasunlimited@georgetown.edu. Space is limited and reservations will be taken on a first-come, first-served basis.
Lastly, we have the Hall of Fame dinner this Saturday where Reggie Williams and former AD Joe Lang amongst others will be inducted into the Georgetown Hall of Fame:
The 19th Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony and Dinner
Saturday 6pm, February 2, 2008
Leavey Center Ballroom
Georgetown University
Come celebrate with other Hoyas as the Georgetown University Alumni Association and Hoyas Unlimited honor 2008 Georgetown Hall of Fame inductees Kevin G. King '85 (Track & Field), Joseph C. Lang (Athletic Director), Paul A. Murphy '85 (Lacrosse), Marianne E. Sullivan '87 (Field Hockey), Catherine J. Taylor '89 (Volleyball) and Reginald Williams '87 (Basketball).
Tickets are $100 per person. Please RSVP to Hoyas Unlimited at hoyasunlimited@georgetown.edu or 202-687-7159 by January 18th.
Finally, as we play in the Garden I hear echoes of the Georgetown Generations. I will look for Daily News sports writer Mike Lupica at the game and think of his wonderful article after the Georgetown win against Carolina last year: "Hail the Georgetown Generations:"
I hope to see many fellow New Yorkers and Hoyas at the Garden!
Hoya Saxa!
We are Georgetown!
Dr. Thomas A. Wong (C'82)
Proud Member of Generation Ewing
