Dispatch
OSU men's basketball
St. John ready to rumble all over again
Fans, band and a lively rivalry could really rock old arena
Monday, March 24, 2008 3:07 AM
By
Bob Baptist
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
Renee Sauer | Dispatch
Kosta Koufos and the Buckeyes take on Cal at St. John Arena.
Oh, the stories the walls of St. John Arena could tell. The ones still able to speak, that is.
Alan Major, an assistant coach for the Ohio State men's basketball team, was a student manager at Purdue in 1992 when the Boilermakers came in to play the No. 8-ranked Buckeyes.
"(Ohio State) went on a run, we had to call time out, the band was right by the baseline and started blaring
Hang On Sloopy. I remember it being one of the loudest sounds I ever heard in my life," Major said.
Another loud sound came in the locker room after Purdue lost 71-59.
"Coach (Gene) Keady was upset and gave it to (the players)," Major said. "Then he turned and threw a haymaker at the chalkboard and actually put a dent in it."
That might be the same locker room California occupies tonight when Ohio State goes retro for the second round of the National Invitation Tournament. The game will be played in 52-year-old St. John while the Buckeyes' current home, 10-year-old Value City Arena, plays host to a concert by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band.
Cont...