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NCSU Fans Loving Lowe, Pack's Playing NIT Game in Reynolds
Wildly loyal Wolfpack fans are loving it that Sidney Lowe comes back to coach this year's squad in the NIT on the court where he played for the 1983 NCAA championship team.
Posted — UpdatedRALEIGH, N.C. — NC State's post-season run continues Friday night on the court where coach Sidney Lowe’s 1983 team played their championship year. Fans see poetic justice.
The Wolfpack takes on Marist College at historic Reynolds Coliseum because of a scheduling conflict at the RBC Center. It’s a lot less space than the Pack is used to, and seating is limited. Even students are having trouble getting tickets.
Lowe got a hearty welcome when he came back to the building again Wednesday to do his weekly radio show after the Wolfpack defeated the Drexel Dragons on Tuesday on their home court in Philadelphia.
Outside, a group of students pitched tents and created what they called Loweville to wait for student tickets to go on sale Thursday morning.
The man who many say brought new life to Wolfpack basketball this year has memories of an earlier life of his own in Reynolds.
“It's always great to go back there, obviously, with all the history—my days there as a player and some of the accomplishments and the great players we've had to come through there,” Lowe said.
Lowe was one of the players who in 1983 won the NCAA Championship.
“The RBC Center is nice and everything, but you don't get the intimate atmosphere,” student Steve Gardner said.
A Josh Groban concert was already booked into the arena Friday night. So, university officials moved a gymnastics meet scheduled for Reynolds Coliseum to open the venue for the NIT basketball game.
Tickets to Reynolds sold out before they even went on sale to the public. Many fans tried to get in and failed.
“I think it's going to be a great crowd, actually, and I might still be able to find a ticket some kind of way. I'm still going to work on it,” said alumnus Chris Danehower.
NC State campus police said they're working on their own game plan—to be prepared for 9,000 people on campus and to look out for scalpers.
“We do a criminal history check, and if they got a past history, we make a physical arrest and take them down to the Wake County Jail—and take their money,” campus Chief Ton Younce said of scalpers.
The game against Marist starts at 9:30 Friday night. Younce said he'll meet with his officers Thursday morning to finalize their plan.
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