Tuesday, November 17, 2009

I'm a College Basketball Broadcaster

The first Mount Saint Mary game was last night, as the men's team traveled (three hours) to Stony Brook University.

Damn you Long Island traffic! It only took just over two to get back to Newburgh.

Anyway although the team got pasted 87-53, it was a good night. The team sort-of kind-of got used to me and I think they're cool with having me around. Head coach Ryan Kadlubowski is a good guy, and was very giving with making me feel welcome.

The broadcast went pretty smoothly, but I was less than thrilled with my own performance. I felt caked in rust from having not called a game in over a year and a half.

Right before airtime there was a slight serge of nerves, then a sense of pride that always hits during the National Anthem. That's my last moment to pause, reflect, and collect myself.

My only knock on Stony Brook was that they didn't have internet access for us. Anything else would be a nit-pick. Otherwise it was a first-class operation, with stat monitors (not expecting to see those anywhere else), big information packs, and so on. Very well run.

I enjoyed some laughs with the players, and Christine Baker is a top-flight analyst in the making. I have to admit that I wish I had taken notes all day. THAT would have made for a funny blog post.

Most of all, the boss sent me a text and an email raving about our performance. That's what I like. It's so rare.

So I'll take it. It wasn't great, nor was it pretty good. It was good and that means it will get better.

The next broadcast is a double-header on Wednesday, before I go away for the weekend. A long, potentially lonely birthday weekend away from my son.

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