New court design released

[BMoreX]

http://img.tapatalk.com/d/14/08/01/uty7yju6.jpg

[kyxu]

Not mad about it.

[paulxu]

I did however like this little note in the news release:


The silhouette will be located on the side of the floor opposite of the team benches and will provide the city with exposure during each of this season's 16 home men's basketball games that will be televised nationally on FOX networks.

South Carolina is still in the nation. We might secede before basketball season...but maybe not.

[GoMuskies]

It's fine. If you could somehow get the view at night from the "cut in the hill" onto the court, that would be great. Otherwise, I personally don't find Cincinnati's skyline to be notable enough that I would want to put it on the court. But it isn't bad.

[bleedXblue]

Not crazy about it. I think they could have done much better. But, its just a floor.

[Masterofreality]

Love it. Period.

[XU-PA]

very cool, I'm a fan of it

[kyxu]

I mean, it could be way worse, like an homage to vinereal disease, so the cut-out of the city skyline is hardly a bad thing. Perspective.

[Always Learning]

Wondering how it will look on HD TV during the game? I'm sure the geeks made sure it shows well.
Having said/asked that, I see the "selling" of Cincinnati, but why not sell our campus. The right artwork
that included Cintas, the Grotto, the staircase to the campus etc would be really neat.

[DC Muskie]

Meh.

[Porkopolis]

I like it, if for no other reason than it is already irritating my Bearcat friends.

[nuts4xu]

I am not underwhelmed...

I am not overwhelmed....

I am just whelmed...it's fine. It's ok, but could have been better. It isn't that bad or that great.

[JTG]

Wondering how it will look on HD TV during the game? I'm sure the geeks made sure it shows well.
Having said/asked that, I see the "selling" of Cincinnati, but why not sell our campus. The right artwork
that included Cintas, the Grotto, the staircase to the campus etc would be really neat.

This.....i dont give a rats ass about Cincinnati...show the campus..its not the U of Cincinnati its XAVIER

[paulxu]

There was a nice picture of Schmidt on the 1831 fundraiser I got in the mail today.

[xu82]

Not a huge fan. It's not Oregon's court, but being somewhat less than hideous is not a big win in my opinion. I like a clean looking court and that's not quite clean enough to me. For half the fans an upside down skyline is just clutter.

[paulxu]

Where'd the mid-court jump circle go?

[XUGRAD80]

This.....i dont give a rats ass about Cincinnati...show the campus..its not the U of Cincinnati its XAVIER


XAVIER is THE University of Cincinnati.....:swordfight:

[Titanxman04]

Would have liked to see more of a motto with Xavier. Like"creating men and women for others..." something that sells the school, its attitude, and separates itself from other programs...

[XUOHTX]

I don't think the Roebling bridge is in the right place.

[XU 87]

Not a huge fan. It's not Oregon's court, but being somewhat less than hideous is not a big win in my opinion. I like a clean looking court and that's not quite clean enough to me. For half the fans an upside down skyline is just clutter.

I agree. I like a clean court. This is too busy.

And it's not like the average fan is going to recognize Cincinnati's skyline.

[DC Muskie]

Would have liked to see more of a motto with Xavier. Like"creating men and women for others..." something that sells the school, its attitude, and separates itself from other programs...

I like this idea. We could have put something like:

F This White Club!
We got Thugs in that locker room (that could be really confusing to people especially if we play WVA WHICH I WOULD TOTALLY BE AGAINST!)
Or even just...
Musketeers

[Masterofreality]

Reps.

How about all of those? It's like tats.

Add in traffic cones.

[PMI]

The more I think about it the more I hate this court. Yea, I know, it's just a court and it's not the end of the world, but I would think we are above such a dumb gimmick as a distracting court illustration of any kind. If this is my biggest complaint of the 2014-15 season, I'll take it, but I really hope this is a one year mistake. It just looks cheesy and stupid to me, plain and simple. And I can just hear all the stupid puns coming from when Blueitt or Myles or JP bury a really deep three... Just go with a clean court with a big fat ass X in the middle. Maybe throw a couple running musketeers on the baseline if you want something more. The Cincinnati skyline? This is a total fail in my opinion.

[BMoreX]

I like it just because it'll piss off UC fans.

[xeus]

Booooo.

[xeus]

The more I think about it the more I hate this court. Yea, I know, it's just a court and it's not the end of the world, but I would think we are above such a dumb gimmick as a distracting court illustration of any kind. If this is my biggest complaint of the 2014-15 season, I'll take it, but I really hope this is a one year mistake. It just looks cheesy and stupid to me, plain and simple. And I can just hear all the stupid puns coming from when Blueitt or Myles or JP bury a really deep three... Just go with a clean court with a big fat ass X in the middle. Maybe throw a couple running musketeers on the baseline if you want something more. The Cincinnati skyline? This is a total fail in my opinion.

That's the unabridged version of my short story "Booooo".

[xu82]

The more I think about it the more I hate this court. Yea, I know, it's just a court and it's not the end of the world, but I would think we are above such a dumb gimmick as a distracting court illustration of any kind. If this is my biggest complaint of the 2014-15 season, I'll take it, but I really hope this is a one year mistake. It just looks cheesy and stupid to me, plain and simple. And I can just hear all the stupid puns coming from when Blueitt or Myles or JP bury a really deep three... Just go with a clean court with a big fat ass X in the middle. Maybe throw a couple running musketeers on the baseline if you want something more. The Cincinnati skyline? This is a total fail in my opinion.

I think this focuses more on building the brand. Don't add a lot of clutter. If you catch part of a game on TV, what do you want remembered? Don't try too hard.

[blueblood]

So now it will be literally correct when Byron and Joe get excited by a long Myles Davis three and shout "HE MADE THAT ONE FROM DOWNTOWN!" :)

I'd have to see it in person, but I like the concept. Big East logo is all blue, big X in center of court, XAVIER on ends. Looks just fine to me.

[BMoreX]

So now it will be literally correct when Byron and Joe get excited by a long Myles Davis three and shout "HE MADE THAT ONE FROM DOWNTOWN!" :)

I'd have to see it in person, but I like the concept. Big East logo is all blue, big X in center of court, XAVIER on ends. Looks just fine to me.

Yeah, the big, somewhat overlooked positive is making the Big East logo all navy instead of navy and red.

[Xu Red Dogg]

Continues to help answer the age old question... "Where is Xavier?" I'm sure from a recruiting angle... Both basketball wise and university wise, this was a consideration. At the very least it says to a 14-17 year old viewer on FS1 "XAVIER IS IN A BIG CITY." Not Louisiana. Not Dayton.

If it makes the jobs of the stakeholders at Xavier easier, I'd be fine with a map of Europe on our floor. Or a watermelon. Or a silhouette of Bob Huggins.

[Kahns Krazy]

I don't think the Roebling bridge is in the right place.

I noticed the same thing. A little artistic license, I guess.

I have to agree with the "meh", but I'll hold off on bashing it until I see it in person. I didn't feel like the court was the part of Cintas that needed attention, but I guess it is the part on TV. I think we should have gone bright blue across the whole floor like Boise State's football field. That would build a brand. Or made the floor the exact color of the ball so you couldn't see shit if you were watching on tv. Or solid black. That would be cool. Or all glass with the student section under the floor.

Now that I think about it, this floor is pretty lame.

[Xaveriana]

Very disappointed with the floor. The contest was a farce. This is the same court that kicked off the contest posted by Mario. Of course I am biased, but I prefer my submission.

1474

[Milhouse]

Absolutely love this!

I'll allow UC to have the floor back when sell more season tickets than us.....

[chowertime]

Love it. When I was there, the city of Cincinnati was my campus. Couldn't be happier with this. Cincy has a very very respectable skyline, especially from this angle. Side note: No PBS. Too funny. Go Niners!

[Xville]

is it just me or has this been the longest off-season ever? Yet, we still have about three months until the first exhibition game...I don't know if it is just because of all of the unknowns that are entering the rotation and the excitement that corresponds to that or what but man this is taking forever. I can't wait to debate about the impact of our freshmen vs whether a court design is up to our standards or not.

[xu82]

Continues to help answer the age old question... "Where is Xavier?" I'm sure from a recruiting angle... Both basketball wise and university wise, this was a consideration. At the very least it says to a 14-17 year old viewer on FS1 "XAVIER IS IN A BIG CITY." Not Louisiana. Not Dayton.

If it makes the jobs of the stakeholders at Xavier easier, I'd be fine with a map of Europe on our floor. Or a watermelon. Or a silhouette of Bob Huggins.
Is this redundant on purpose or just a coincidence? How would we tell the difference?
But I agree, I can tolerate it if it really does help recruiting. (What choice do I have?)

[X-man]

is it just me or has this been the longest off-season ever? Yet, we still have about three months until the first exhibition game...I don't know if it is just because of all of the unknowns that are entering the rotation and the excitement that corresponds to that or what but man this is taking forever. I can't wait to debate about the impact of our freshmen vs whether a court design is up to our standards or not.

Shhhhh! This is the first off-season in a while when there hasn't been some kind of negative news. Don't upset the applecart!

[xubrew]

I like how it's pretty much drawn to scale. Most of the buildings downtown aren't all that much taller than the bridge.

We have teams in NYC, Philly, DC and Chicago, yet we're the only ones with a skyline on the floor. There is something nostalgically Big East about it, even though no one in any version of the conference has ever done it before. At least, not that I know of.

[GrimeTime]

It's not that I don't like the design, so much as it's already been done over and over. (Memphis, GW, etc) We're just doing a "me too!" and that's not what Xavier Basketball is about, imho. This was decided by the administration, and not by submissions from the contest, clearly.

I would have much preferred a huge shadow Musketeer, or something else to promote the school as many above have suggested.

chowertime, I also noticed the absence of PBS in the image! Ha! Like, "We want you to think of Cincinnati, but don't think of the Bengals!"

[GoMuskies]

At the very least it says to a 14-17 year old viewer on FS1 "XAVIER IS IN A BIG CITY." Not Louisiana.

I'm not sure the average 14-17 year old would look at this and have any idea where Xavier is located. They may be just as likely to guess New Orleans as they are to guess Cincinnati.

[PMI]

is it just me or has this been the longest off-season ever? Yet, we still have about three months until the first exhibition game...I don't know if it is just because of all of the unknowns that are entering the rotation and the excitement that corresponds to that or what but man this is taking forever. I can't wait to debate about the impact of our freshmen vs whether a court design is up to our standards or not.

I hope it's just you, because this has (knock on wood) been by far the best offseason we've had in years. Offseasons of recent past have been more centered around having our best player expelled from school, recruits not showing up or being ineligible, coaches or ADs leaving, etc. If the worst we have to deal with is the program making a terrible court choice, let's count our blessings.


I'm not sure the average 14-17 year old would look at this and have any idea where Xavier is located. They may be just as likely to guess New Orleans as they are to guess Cincinnati.

No question. If you took away the rest of the court and just showed the skyline to a hundred random people, I'm not sure many people outside of Cincinnati would be able to tell you what they were looking at. I see no point or upside in cluttering our court up with a distraction just to show the relatively unidentifiable skyline of the city our school is in.

[casualfan]

I really dislike this for a lot of the reasons mentioned already.

To me it looks like they got caught between a traditional clean design and wanting to do something fun.

I'm hopeful it won't look as bad on TV as I think it may.

[Mel Cooley XU'81]

I like it.

I'll like it even more when we hang up a 60 game winning streak on it.

[muskiefan82]

They should have just gone with a map of the United States with the X where Cincinnati is.

1475

[bjf123]

That's the unabridged version of my short story "Booooo".

+1

[blobfan]

I like it just because it'll piss off UC fans.
Ditto.

... I'd be fine with a map of Europe on our floor. Or a watermelon. Or a silhouette of Bob Huggins.


Is this redundant on purpose or just a coincidence? How would we tell the difference?
...
One is green striped while the other is red. DUH!

I'm ok with it. With courts I only get excited if they are REALLY bad, like being so orange it throws off the color balance of the cameras or advertising a communicable disease.

[Cannonball]

This design was very strategic. The city helps sell Xavier and it will be talked about at each broadcast.

[KFX]

Not sure why we are shilling for the city of Cincinnati. I like a clean design.

[KFX]

[QUOTE=Cannonball;457494]This design was very strategic. The city helps sell Xavier and it will be talked about at each broadcast.[/QUOT

the city probably sells UC too.

[RealDeal]

It can't be interpreted to represent an STD, so there's that.

[powerofX]

I'm neutral on it. I like the fact that the BE logo is blue and not any red. As for the city outline...it's already been done. GW did it and buildings like the washington monument and capitol at least are recognizable as DC. Memphis did it and just like this cincy one, you'd be hard pressed for somebody to recognize the skyline...with the small exception of the pyramid. Oh well...no biggie either way. The big X is our brand!

[Cannonball]

Yes, but it's on UC's jersey. Nationally, many general college ball fans and high school prospects don't know where X is located. The added discussion during broadcasts will help inform those who do not.

[THRILLHOUSE]

I'm indifferent. Figured they would go this direction when Mario originally tweeted about it. But I will give it some bonus points since as others pointed out, it will irritate some bearcat fans.

[xubrew]

This design was very strategic. The city helps sell Xavier and it will be talked about at each broadcast.

That may be the thinking.

The reality is probably that it will be mentioned during a few of the broadcasts, and will be forgotten by the audience ninety seconds later.

It's official. Crazy floors are now a fad. A fad I'm not particularly fond of. I must admit that I did like Kahn's idea of putting the student section under a glass floor. Now THAT would be a talking point.

[PMI]

This design was very strategic. The city helps sell Xavier and it will be talked about at each broadcast.

Exactly what is the great strategy in reminding people that Xavier is in Cincinnati? If that's such an advantage, maybe we should go back to being Xavier (OH). Whether you like the look is obviously a matter of taste, but I don't buy that that's a great strategy. There are really only a couple/few skylines in the country that are universally recognizable, and Cincinnati doesn't make that list. I think the reason behind it was solely based on gimmick and trying to look cool, and I think it's a miserable failure in that regard. We already had one of the best looking clean looks in a giant X. Nobody else had that. We aren't some directional school that needed this gimmick. We'd be much better off aggressively marketing the X in my opinion, and maybe throw in a running musketeer somewhere just because it looks good.

[xubrew]

If that is the strategy, which it may very well be, here is the problem......

Look at this floor. It's UC Bakersfield. There is literally nothing else to talk about but the floor because otherwise there just isn't anything interesting about their team. Yet, when you watch them play, the announcers still hardly ever mention the floor....

http://www.gorunners.com/ViewArticle.dbml?ATCLID=639747

They won't spend any time talking about Xavier's floor either. It will simply look like another floor that's way crazier looking than what is necessary.

[Masterofreality]

Obviously some like it, (me) some don't. There is no wrong answer because it's opinion.

But I think it looks cool, Blackburn Review thinks it's cool, and I'm glad we're pissing off SucKS fans, all the better. We've been pissing them off for the last 30 years anyway.

[Xu Red Dogg]

Exactly what is the great strategy in reminding people that Xavier is in Cincinnati? If that's such an advantage, maybe we should go back to being Xavier (OH). Whether you like the look is obviously a matter of taste, but I don't buy that that's a great strategy. There are really only a couple/few skylines in the country that are universally recognizable, and Cincinnati doesn't make that list. I think the reason behind it was solely based on gimmick and trying to look cool, and I think it's a miserable failure in that regard. We already had one of the best looking clean looks in a giant X. Nobody else had that. We aren't some directional school that needed this gimmick. We'd be much better off aggressively marketing the X in my opinion, and maybe throw in a running musketeer somewhere just because it looks good.

Big cities have big companies.
Big companies hire college graduates.
College graduates at one point makes a college decision.
Xavier wants to put itself in a position to BE that choice.

It doesn't matter what buildings are recognizable. The message is that Xavier is in a major metropolitan area.

SEC/BIG10 schools sell the "college town" angle. BIG EAST schools sell the big city angle.

[Xtemporaneous]

I'm trying to find the pissed off UC fans anyone have a thread to share?

As for the buildings on the floor I LOVE the concept and the Cincy skyline is growing on me but you're looking at it two dimensionally on your computer screen (straight on). I printed out the floor today and placed roughly where a TV camera would shoot the floor from. The buildings look puny. They aren't pronounced enough. Also there's GABP but no Paul Brown Stadium. Nor are the other icons there (music hall, museum center). Hell the Museum Center was the inspiration for the Hall of Justice on Superfriends. How can you leave that out?

Here's another idea with the buildings and the icons. This one gets my approval with a more realistic skyline minus the blue stained three-point arc - https://twitter.com/jordanbramel/status/467007941825273856/photo/1

[Pablo's Brother]

At least it is not VD related. Would have preferred a silhouette of Dana's - where most fans got their education while going to XU.

[casualfan]

I'm trying to find the pissed off UC fans anyone have a thread to share?

As for the buildings on the floor I LOVE the concept and the Cincy skyline is growing on me but you're looking at it two dimensionally on your computer screen (straight on). I printed out the floor today and placed roughly where a TV camera would shoot the floor from. The buildings look puny. They aren't pronounced enough. Also there's GABP but no Paul Brown Stadium. Nor are the other icons there (music hall, museum center). Hell the Museum Center was the inspiration for the Hall of Justice on Superfriends. How can you leave that out?

Here's another idea with the buildings and the icons. This one gets my approval with a more realistic skyline minus the blue stained three-point arc - https://twitter.com/jordanbramel/status/467007941825273856/photo/1

I've checked all the UC boards I know of and haven't seen it mentioned. I would say any reaction by uc fans is being overstated.

I'm also hopeful we get to a point where people don't go looking for uc fans opinions on every little thing we do.

It's a bit ridiculous that a move can't be made without people immediately wondering how uc fans feel about it.

I can assure you 99% of their fans won't care about our court until 2015 until they play on it. Why our fans are so obsessed with using their opinion (one that as far as I can tell doesn't exist) as a sort of barometer for the move is beyond me.

If we're gonna be a big boy program let's start acting like it.

[sirthought]

I have always thought Cincinnati has a world-class skyline. There are few cities I've been to with a better looking skyline.

However, this design is simply way too busy to enjoy watching a game played. The court design should be about symmetry and clean sports branding. I get that they wanted to communicate we're in a big city, but it's ultimately more distracting than it will ever be a mental footnote about where Xavier is.

It's not the fail that is UD's new logo IMO, but I don't see this one lasting very long. It's discouraging they spent all this money on it, when they had just updated the court last year. They should have kept that, but changed out the BigEast logos.

[xubrew]

I've checked all the UC boards I know of and haven't seen it mentioned. I would say any reaction by uc fans is being overstated.

I'm also hopeful we get to a point where people don't go looking for uc fans opinions on every little thing we do.

It's a bit ridiculous that a move can't be made without people immediately wondering how uc fans feel about it.

I can assure you 99% of their fans won't care about our court until 2015 until they play on it. Why our fans are so obsessed with using their opinion (one that as far as I can tell doesn't exist) as a sort of barometer for the move is beyond me.

If we're gonna be a big boy program let's start acting like it.

What about annoying the Memphis fans?? The two floors aren't identical, but they're close enough to where one could claim we kinda copied their design.

I'm going to go out on a limb and say that most people didn't spend a whole lot of time analyzing Memphis's floor last year. I'm sure everyone saw Memphis play at some point, but most probably weren't impacted in any way by the design on their court...which looks a lot like ours.

.....and that's the point. People who say this is great because it will let people know where Xavier is, and send the message that we're in a big metropolitan area, and that it will be a talking point for every televised game, are completely overestimating the importance of what a team's floor looks like.

I agree with everyone else that thinks it's too busy. I'm not losing any sleep over it by any means, but I like for courts to look like courts. Seemingly just about everyone now feels the need to turn their court into some sort of crazy colorful art project. I don't know if this is Boise State's fault or not, but I kind of liked it better when we just had regular clean looking courts. If the Reds were to decide they wanted to play on a red field, it would be ridiculous. That's how I'm starting to feel about a lot of these courts. By no means are we the only one, but we're now part of the trend.

[Xaveriana]

This court design should help us attract an arena football team. This court is way too busy, not symmetrical and passé.

Prediction: court only lasts one season (will not play well on tv). This is the only positive I see.

:thumbsdown: :thumbsdown: :thumbsdown:

[danaandvictory]

I bet in person the contrast between the natural and skyline portions of the floor will be less dramatic than in the mockup. Compare the mockups of OSU's state of Ohio outline to the actual floor.

[Porkopolis]

I've checked all the UC boards I know of and haven't seen it mentioned. I would say any reaction by uc fans is being overstated.

I'm also hopeful we get to a point where people don't go looking for uc fans opinions on every little thing we do.

It's a bit ridiculous that a move can't be made without people immediately wondering how uc fans feel about it.

I can assure you 99% of their fans won't care about our court until 2015 until they play on it. Why our fans are so obsessed with using their opinion (one that as far as I can tell doesn't exist) as a sort of barometer for the move is beyond me.

If we're gonna be a big boy program let's start acting like it.

I ask this in all seriousness, do you live in Cincinnati? Because if you do I don't see how you wouldn't care what they think. Almost everyone I work with is a UC grad and anything that Xavier does is immediately a source of conversation when they talk to me about sports. They think they own this city and I enjoy reminding them that they don't.

[RedsX11]

This is absolutely perfect. Its what I have wanted the second that I first saw the court at Oregon a few years back.

Embrace change. They put a logo on ND's field for the first time this season and everyone is just telling me to get over that. So I have the same advice to you guys on the court lol. Give it a chance to see it in person/on tv. I think you will be pleasantly surprised.

[casualfan]

I ask this in all seriousness, do you live in Cincinnati? Because if you do I don't see how you wouldn't care what they think. Almost everyone I work with is a UC grad and anything that Xavier does is immediately a source of conversation when they talk to me about sports. They think they own this city and I enjoy reminding them that they don't.

Yep. Born and raised. I couldn't give two shits what UC fans think of our program. We are, or at least I thought we were, past the point of playing the role of little brother.

I'm on vaca and asked a few diehard UC fans their opinion on the court since this apparently has their blood boiling.

One response was "pretty cool". Another was "one of the worst I've ever seen"

When asked if they cared about use of the Cincy skyline citing the convo going on here one guy couldn't stop laughing and the other was absolutely mystified why X fans would care what he thought about it.

His response was very similar to mine in that he couldn't grasp, given the state of the program, why X fans are still so wrapped up in how UC fans feel about what we do.

[Porkopolis]

Yep. Born and raised. I couldn't give two shits what UC fans think of our program. We are, or at least I thought we were, past the point of playing the role of little brother.

I'm on vaca and asked a few diehard UC fans their opinion on the court since this apparently has their blood boiling.

One response was "pretty cool". Another was "one of the worst I've ever seen"

When asked if they cared about use of the Cincy skyline citing the convo going on here one guy couldn't stop laughing and the other was absolutely mystified why X fans would care what he thought about it.

His response was very similar to mine in that he couldn't grasp, given the state of the program, why X fans are still so wrapped up in how UC fans feel about what we do.
Perhaps I just deal with a more obnoxious brand of UC fans, because they have brought it up. That's really the only thing I can think of. But I'll drop it here because I really don't feel like arguing with X fans.

[casualfan]

Perhaps I just deal with a more obnoxious brand of UC fans, because they have brought it up. That's really the only thing I can think of. But I'll drop it here because I really don't feel like arguing with X fans.


I don't know what there is to argue about. If UC fans are as up in arms as some of you want us to believe surely it'd be being discussed on one of their message boards.

From what I can tell that's not the case.

Then again maybe you've managed to surround yourself with the rare brand of obnoxious college sports fans that avoid message boards at a 100% clip?

I just find it hard to believe that this brand of fan exists 100% outside the realm of the Internet.

Anyway, that's all really besides the point I'm trying to make. I'm mostly just miffed why anyone cares what UC fans think of our court.

[Porkopolis]

Then again maybe you've managed to surround yourself with the rare brand of obnoxious college sports fans that avoid message boards at a 100% clip?



Edit: nm. I said I'd drop it so I'm going to.

[Caveat]

The court, like everything else, is about selling kids on the school. They walk into Cintas and see the big X and the city they'll be representing / living in for the next 4 years of their lives. It's all part of branding the school and creating identity for these kids. To that end, I believe it'll be an incredibly effective design.

[Xavier]

I don't know what there is to argue about. If UC fans are as up in arms as some of you want us to believe surely it'd be being discussed on one of their message boards.

From what I can tell that's not the case.

Then again maybe you've managed to surround yourself with the rare brand of obnoxious college sports fans that avoid message boards at a 100% clip?

I just find it hard to believe that this brand of fan exists 100% outside the realm of the Internet.

Anyway, that's all really besides the point I'm trying to make. I'm mostly just miffed why anyone cares what UC fans think of our court.

Guess you don't have twitter. They were pretty upset about it on twitter. The majority of fans 25 and under will go to twitter before a message board. Not saying you are out of touch just wanted to point that out. I don't think anyone is happy the court is the skyline just because it makes some UC fans upset. I think it's a slightly added bonus and nothing more.

[PMI]

The bottom line for me is that it is tacky, distracting and unoriginal. Pissing off a few UC fans is great but I'd rather do that by beating their ass on the court. Preferably on a basketball court over some cheesy art project.

[xubrew]

Just paint "UC SUCKS" across the base of the floor. That should do the trick.

PMI is right. I agree that it is tacky and distracting, but that's just my opinion. There is no arguing the fact that it is unoriginal. First of all, there won't be much discussion about it on TV and not many people will take that much notice of it because that's just not the kind of thing people take notice of and discuss. But, a few people will. And you know what those people will say?? "Hey, they copied Memphis!"

http://www.gotigersgo.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/062713aad.html

[Milhouse]

The few UC fans that talked to me about said they wish UC had done it first, but that was about it.

[GoMuskies]

I think the Memphis one is worse. That bridge just dominates the "skyline" portion of the court.

[Mel Cooley XU'81]

The skyline illuminates with LED strobes and everybody gets free coneys when XU scores 100 points.

You're welcome.

[xu82]

The skyline illuminates with LED strobes and everybody gets free coneys when XU scores 100 points.

You're welcome.

Free coneys? Sign me up!

[American X]

A silhouette of the skyline is fine. They just went with the wrong skyline:


http://m.zipscene.com/custom/gold-star-chili/d/menu/thumb/3_way_018_8in.jpg

[XUOHTX]

We could have left it alone and just done this:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_6iOlYfE4ro

[Jumpy]

This design could be VERY cool if they make it look 3D using forced perspective (like sidewalk art) when it is viewable on TV. It would look like shit in person, but it would be very cool on TV:

1477

[sirthought]

We could have left it alone and just done this:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_6iOlYfE4ro

Public reps for finding this. That is totally awesome in my book. It's kind of like the image mapping they did for Lumenocity, only it's a crazier type of video projection.

[GIMMFD]

I work at Xavier and go into Cintas, so I'll snap some pics while it's being completed so everyone on the board can get a feel for it, they just started buffering the court and getting work done on it, so hopefully in the next couple weeks it'll look cool!!

[xumuskies08]

What I like...
The darker border. I've always liked when the out of bounds areas are a different color. More contrast and helps the area of play stand out more IMO.
The all blue Big East logos. Having the weird splash of red in there last year was dumb.

What I don't like...
The skyline. Ugh. Only on TV will it look like it's intended. Most everyone in the arena will have an awkward, skewed view of it. Also, how many people will even be able to recognize the Cincinnati skyline from any other?

The Oregon/GW/Memphis floors all look awful whenever I see them on TV. Hopefully this one doesn't come out too bad but I have a bad feeling it will. I loved the simplicity of the floor over the last several seasons. This is a definite step back, though.

[xukeith]

I am not a fan. If they wanted to be original, put a profile of a Skyline cheese coney. I am a traditionalist.

Still not sure why I was banned from MM. Glad to read and see cooler poster prevail!

[RedsX11]

Going to go out on a limb and say that redoing the court design is probably a little cheaper than the lighting the Cavs use to achieve that.

I only remember us doing something like that, at maybe 10% the scale, for a Crosstown game when I was doing my undergrad.

[XUOHTX]

I asked Mario on twitter about the projection system. This was his response:

Mario Mercurio ‏@MarioMercurio Aug 4
@fleckd we've discussed it. Incredibly expensive! Basically same technology as Lumenocity. Multiple projector system.

[THRILLHOUSE]

XUAthletics just tweeted this pic of the court progress:

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/BudFqC0IYAAnW7w.jpg

[PMI]

XUAthletics just tweeted this pic of the court progress:

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/BudFqC0IYAAnW7w.jpg

I wouldn't call it progress personally... Man I hate this court already.

[XUOHTX]

For you haters: It could be worse.

http://i.cdn.turner.com/drp/nba/hornets/sites/default/files/styles/main_gallery_photo__480_tall/public/160426_court_13.jpg?itok=jKtCVdrw

[bigdiggins]

This design could be VERY cool if they make it look 3D using forced perspective (like sidewalk art) when it is viewable on TV. It would look like shit in person, but it would be very cool on TV:

1477

Like the baseline logos at the Big East tournament that I kept thinking guys would trip over every time they were heading out of bounds.

[X-band '01]

For you haters: It could be worse.

http://i.cdn.turner.com/drp/nba/hornets/sites/default/files/styles/main_gallery_photo__480_tall/public/160426_court_13.jpg?itok=jKtCVdrw

What's wrong with that? Children of the 90s are rejoicing as we speak.

[Xaveriana]

I wouldn't call it progress personally... Man I hate this court already.

Amen Brother! This needs to go. Hopefully it will only be here for one season.

[XUOHTX]

What's wrong with that? Children of the 90s are rejoicing as we speak.

I was 8-17 in the 90's and I am not rejoicing. The super busy honeycomb floor is no bueno. But, to each his own.

[GoMuskies]

I think I'd be okay with Charlotte's floor if they skipped the Buzz City logo.

[casualfan]

Looks even worse than I thought it would.

At least in the picture Mario posted you could tell where one building ended and another began.

What I'm looking at in that picture just looks like a massive blob.

[RedsX11]

Looks even worse than I thought it would.

At least in the picture Mario posted you could tell where one building ended and another began.

What I'm looking at in that picture just looks like a massive blob.

Yes that is clearly the final product. They won't do anything further :yawn:

[West is Best]

I don't get the hate. The school needs to embrace the city more, and this a cool way to do so. This is best thing X has done since we put X's on the uniform shorts.

[Masterofreality]

I don't get the hate. The school needs to embrace the city more, and this a cool way to do so. This is best thing X has done since we put X's on the uniform shorts.

Agree. And the first game we'll have a chance to see it is the Cavs/Pacers game. Sweet.

[DC Muskie]

We "need to embrace the city more?" What the heck does that even mean?

[waggy]

We "need to embrace the city more?" What the heck does that even mean?

A hint that X needs to gain marketshare in its hometown?

[DC Muskie]

A hint that X needs to gain marketshare in its hometown?

I certainly hope not.

[waggy]

I certainly hope not.


It's not a stretch of the imagination for me, but I've always been an easy mark for conspiracy theorists.

[paulxu]

We "need to embrace the city more?" What the heck does that even mean?

Love your local prosecutor?

[PMI]

I don't get the hate. The school needs to embrace the city more, and this a cool way to do so. This is best thing X has done since we put X's on the uniform shorts.

I actually think, if anything, Xavier needs to do the opposite. Xavier is in the Big East now and is using that, among other things, to garner a stronger presence in more areas. Xavier has come a very long way from being an all male commuter school. Furthermore, we've used basketball as a means to grow the university and the exposure of the school. What Xavier needs to embrace is the "X." It's a letter that is unique to us and only us on the division 1 level, and by its very nature it's a marketable letter. It should be the main, if not the sole focus of the image of Xavier basketball in my opinion, although I have no problem with throwing a running muskie in there too. We don't need to flaunt the fact that the school is located at the very edge of the bottom of that skyline. And we also shouldn't feel the need to throw in some fresh (read: copied) idea in order to generate buzz. The idea that we would need this gimmick is embarrassing. I don't know if any of those are truly the motivations behind the court, but it's entirely unnecessary to even create a situation where this kind of ambiguity exists, and one that is inevitably polarizing among Xavier fans and beyond. The whole thing is a fail with whatever deeper message they may intend to send with it.

But all of that aside, it just looks so tacky and stupid and these courts have no place in basketball. In my opinion.

[Tardy Turtle]

This design is irretrievably stupid.

I award it no points and may God have mercy on its soul.

[JTG]

I don't get the hate. The school needs to embrace the city more, and this a cool way to do so. This is best thing X has done since we put X's on the uniform shorts.

That blue ducktape X on white shorts looks like shit. The short for the trip to Brazil are much better.

[West is Best]

I actually think, if anything, Xavier needs to do the opposite. Xavier is in the Big East now and is using that, among other things, to garner a stronger presence in more areas. Xavier has come a very long way from being an all male commuter school. Furthermore, we've used basketball as a means to grow the university and the exposure of the school. What Xavier needs to embrace is the "X." It's a letter that is unique to us and only us on the division 1 level, and by its very nature it's a marketable letter.

Sesame Street would love it: "This basketball team has been brought to you by the letter X"

I dunno, personally I've had enough of "Xpect the unXpected" and every other possible X cliche that has been bandied about. The city skyline fits the Big East's common thread of private schools in big cities. I think it sells Xavier as more than just a college town, but a place students can actually find jobs in after graduation (depending on your major).

Plus, it partially answers the age-old question "Where is Xavier located?" And court designs, loud as they may be, really aren't as distracting from the actions as old-school "purists" claim they are.

[Xaveriana]

I actually think, if anything, Xavier needs to do the opposite. Xavier is in the Big East now and is using that, among other things, to garner a stronger presence in more areas. Xavier has come a very long way from being an all male commuter school. Furthermore, we've used basketball as a means to grow the university and the exposure of the school. What Xavier needs to embrace is the "X." It's a letter that is unique to us and only us on the division 1 level, and by its very nature it's a marketable letter. It should be the main, if not the sole focus of the image of Xavier basketball in my opinion, although I have no problem with throwing a running muskie in there too. We don't need to flaunt the fact that the school is located at the very edge of the bottom of that skyline. And we also shouldn't feel the need to throw in some fresh (read: copied) idea in order to generate buzz. The idea that we would need this gimmick is embarrassing. I don't know if any of those are truly the motivations behind the court, but it's entirely unnecessary to even create a situation where this kind of ambiguity exists, and one that is inevitably polarizing among Xavier fans and beyond. The whole thing is a fail with whatever deeper message they may intend to send with it.

But all of that aside, it just looks so tacky and stupid and these courts have no place in basketball. In my opinion.

Agree PMI. I tried to go bold with the X logo.
https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7437/14186730752_c65b980388.jpg

[BMoreX]

Update:

Looks like the X is the same size, Big East in blue.

http://img.tapatalk.com/d/14/08/13/e3e4edaj.jpg

[Backyard Champ]

I love it. The city isn't over bearing, and the first thing you notice is the big X.

[DC Muskie]

ugh. That looks terrible.

The real question though, are the guys who run this site going to update the court on the main page? Because the current picture features the A10. I hope they don't don't.

Frankly the guys who run this site (and do a great job I might add) should just ignore the previous sentence. Forget I wrote it. Where's the delete button?

[xu82]

Still missing the center jump circle - more clutter. Looking for less clutter, personally.

[Titanxman04]

Love that Big East is in all blue. I hated that there was red on our court last season. Made me sick. I just pooped my pants a little from thinking about it. Terrible.

I'm not a huge fan of the city, but it could be worse.

[ammtd34]

Still missing the center jump circle - more clutter. Looking for less clutter, personally.

Lots of courts don't actually have a circle.

[PMI]

I agree the all blue Big East logo was much needed. One step forward and about 99 steps back.

[xudash]

I just had a look at it live in the Cintas Center.

I am a big believer in the understated approach; an elegant "X" in the middle of the court, etc.

Having noted that, looking down at the floor from the conference center, this new design simply is not overpowering. It truly isn't gaudy.

The one thing that helps save it, if you will, is that the tone of the skyline comes out of the existing surrounding perimeter of the floor - matching varnish.

I don't know how adamant is the marketing strategy behind this, but I would guess that we will be back to what we are used to in a couple of years. In the meantime, we will at least not have achieved Oregon ugly.

[Pete Delkus]

I see there is a little bump out where the basketball stanchions will sit. I am sure Pacer fans appreciate this aspect.

[Titanxman04]

I agree the all blue Big East logo was much needed. One step forward and about 99 steps back.

That sounds like my career. Ha

[XU-XHI]

Looks good. Damn proud of X. Damn proud of my city. Bring on the season!

[XUOHTX]

Agree. And the first game we'll have a chance to see it is the Cavs/Pacers game. Sweet.

I was wondering if that would be the case or if they will have another generic NBA floor. We won't have NBA 3-point lines painted on this floor so that would need to temporarily added.

[TUclutch]

I don't get the hate. I think the court looks awesome with the additions. Also, Not all courts have a jump circle. Why is that necessary?

[Pete Delkus]

I love the City of Cincinnati.

However, when some of us think of Xavier Basketball and what it represents, Cincinnati is not in the top 3 or so... I bet there are a good amount of students who over their first few years on campus didn't even make it downtown!!! Xavier's campus had all they needed, the downtown skyline didn't play part with the love affair.

That's why I think there is a mixed reaction.

[Titanxman04]

I love the City of Cincinnati.

However, when some of us think of Xavier Basketball and what it represents, Cincinnati is not in the top 3 or so... I bet there are a good amount of students who over their first few years on campus didn't even make it downtown!!! Xavier's campus had all they needed, the downtown skyline didn't play part with the love affair.

That's why I think there is a mixed reaction.

I mentioned it at the beginning and I would like to restate my idea. We're a Jesuit institution. Basketball is the primary sporting attraction for the school. I would have loved to have written opposite of "Cintas", "...Creating Men and Women for Others."

Just something to sell the UNIVERSITY and not really the city. People will watch Xavier nationally for the coming years on Fox Sports 1. Why not advertise the university as something more than just a basketball program? Why not advertise it as something more than a typical school? There are only 40 some Jesuit universities in the country. None of them, as far as I know, care to throw their root son the court. Why not? I figured that if Xavier is all about following through on their mission - alongside the Jesuits - they should really try to sell it.

[PMI]

I love the City of Cincinnati.

However, when some of us think of Xavier Basketball and what it represents, Cincinnati is not in the top 3 or so... I bet there are a good amount of students who over their first few years on campus didn't even make it downtown!!! Xavier's campus had all they needed, the downtown skyline didn't play part with the love affair.

That's why I think there is a mixed reaction.

I think this is a part of it. I've noticed that the vast majority of my Cincinnati-grown friends like the court. But associating XU basketball with the city is never the first thing that comes to my mind.

That and the fact that it just looks so unbearably stupid.

[UnCaged]

I think this is a part of it. I've noticed that the vast majority of my Cincinnati-grown friends like the court. But associating XU basketball with the city is never the first thing that comes to my mind.

That and the fact that it just looks so unbearably stupid.

Words taken from out of my head...some just don't like it, I dont' get why people can't understand that. Of course, it's probably those who wear camo as an everyday option or love anything with glitter on it.

[waggy]

Lap dancers should not wear glitter.

That's all I got to say about that.

[PMI]

Words taken from out of my head...some just don't like it, I dont' get why people can't understand that. Of course, it's probably those who wear camo as an everyday option or love anything with glitter on it.

Exactly. It's just a matter of personal preference. Some people think it's cool or innovative. In fact, it's downright unoriginal, but people can like whatever they want. I don't dislike it for the Cinci skyline in and of itself. If the Wizards ruined their court by sticking a distracting outline of DC on it, I'd hate it too. It sucks because it's in the way and it looks bad.

[blobfan]

Lap dancers should not wear glitter.

That's all I got to say about that.
Uh oh. Did you get caught doing something you shouldn't?

[PMI]

Uh oh. Did you get caught doing something you shouldn't?

Nah, lap dancers are a sin, and that's not how waggy roles.

[waggy]

Uh oh. Did you get caught doing something you shouldn't?


Noooo silly. One of my calls was to a school, and I had to go into the 1st grade classroom, and a bunch of 1st graders were hugging me.

Women are so suspicious.

[paulxu]

and I had to go into the 1st grade classroom, and a bunch of 1st graders were hugging me.

This is a different problem altogether.

[blobfan]

Noooo silly. One of my calls was to a school, and I had to go into the 1st grade classroom, and a bunch of 1st graders were hugging me.

Women are so suspicious.

Why were you looking for lap dancers in a 1st grade classroom?

[PMI]

Noooo silly. One of my calls was to a school, and I had to go into the 1st grade classroom, and a bunch of 1st graders were hugging me.

Women are so suspicious.

Well this certainly took a strange turn...

[DC Muskie]

Glitter is the worst. Especially on birthday cards.

[blobfan]

Glitter is the worst. Especially on birthday cards.

You know, there are a lot of options for trunk organization these days. You might check out some of those products so the stripper glitter doesn't get on your birthday cards.

[DC Muskie]

You know, there are a lot of options for trunk organization these days. You might check out some of those products so the stripper glitter doesn't get on your birthday cards.

That's why God invented bed sheets and garbage bags.

[blobfan]

That's why God invented bed sheets and garbage bags.

Obviously that's not working if the glitter is still getting on your birthday cards!! Don't shun modern inventions.

[XUOHTX]

Glitter is the worst. Especially on birthday cards.

So you are saying you wouldn't have liked this design better?

http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f385/DFleck/glitter-court_zpsa4926953.gif

[DC Muskie]

So you are saying you wouldn't have liked this design better?

http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f385/DFleck/glitter-court_zpsa4926953.gif

Yeah, not really. All of the glitter would be all over the court by warmups.

Glitter was also a terrible movie.

[bigdiggins]

Yeah, not really. All of the glitter would be all over the court by warmups.

Glitter was also a terrible movie.

Gary Glitter had a good song.

[xu82]

Lap dancers should not wear glitter.

That's all I got to say about that.
Thank you, Forrest.
:-)

[xu82]

So you are saying you wouldn't have liked this design better?

http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f385/DFleck/glitter-court_zpsa4926953.gif

That might just get Elton John to a basketball game... if it were giant sunglasses night.

[xudash]

That might just get Elton John to a basketball game... if it were giant sunglasses night.

Damn thing immediately reminded me of Bewitched.

[xu82]

Damn, that's perfect!
I doubt Elton John had the same fascination with Elizabeth Montgomery that I did.

[xu82]

Theme song won't stop in my head now!

[XUOHTX]

I was wondering if that would be the case or if they will have another generic NBA floor. We won't have NBA 3-point lines painted on this floor so that would need to temporarily added.

Mario confirmed, the new court will be used for the NBA exhibition game.

[xudash]

Theme song won't stop in my head now!

Crap. Now I've got it playing over and over again.

Darren.

Dagwood.

Durwood.

Durweed.

Endora is almost exactly like my mother-in-law, except my mother-in-law is more satanical and less witchy.

[BandAid]

I like the glitter court. It's original.

[xumuskies08]

I don't get the hate. I think the court looks awesome with the additions. Also, Not all courts have a jump circle. Why is that necessary?

All courts have a center jump circle. It may not be very noticeable, but it's there.

[Masterofreality]

From "Big East Coast Bias" on SB Nation:

"The Cintas Center has a good reputation as being loud and the configuration allows the feeling of the fans being right on the court in most spots of the arena. Plus it's cool that they are now putting the Cincinnati skyline on the court. Eat your heart out Bearcat fans! - Mike Hopkins"

[vee4xu]

Possibly, the skyline is just a place holder until the next idea comes along, in this "paint-your-court-to-make-a-statement" environment in which we find ourselves. I think that all of the court painting going on across the country is hokey and hopefully is a fad that will soon fade.

[vee4xu]

Crap. Now I've got it playing over and over again.

Darren.

Dagwood.

Durwood.

Durweed.

Endora is almost exactly like my mother-in-law, except my mother-in-law is more satanical and less witchy.

And hopeful neither she, nor your bride read posts on this board. :nudgewink:

[paulxu]

I wonder if our X would have been on this list without the Skyline?

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/11666278/top-10-court-designs-college-basketball

[xu82]

I wonder if our X would have been on this list without the Skyline?

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/11666278/top-10-court-designs-college-basketball

That's a nice group of courts - and nothing hokey. All pretty classic. ( aka no skylines or extraneous crap.)

[muskienick]

That's a nice group of courts - and nothing hokey. All pretty classic and bland. ( aka no skylines or extraneous crap.)

My addition. I guess sometimes "bland" is better.

[xu82]

My addition. I guess sometimes "bland" is better.

I'm sure there's another list out there somewhere with the Oregon court on it. We're somewhere in between which is fine I guess..... as long as we win! I'd go with a tie die court if we had to do it to win.

[Ledgewood]

An issue I have with these skylines on the courts is that no one outside of the cities will really know what city it is. I mean, unless you have a really unique look to your town, they all just look like a cluster of buildings to everyone. I know I am fighting a losing battle, but I think cleaner classic designs just look better with uniforms, logos, courts, etc. I loved when my Cavs went to a cleaner look on their new uniforms, but now we have a dumb gaudy court design with a skyline as well and a whole bunch of blue for some reason.

I would have loved to see blue paint with the same X in the middle. Was such a good look for so many years.

[xudash]

I agree with everyone who believes that the classic look - a more minimalist floor featuring mainly an "X" in the middle of the court with no other graphics - is the best, most elegant way to go.

Having noted that, I firmly believe the following:

1. To the extent Xavier embedded the Cincy Skyline into our court, they did it in a subtle enough fashion where it isn't overpowering; and

2. There isn't much to worry about with all this, as I liken it to the disco fad - that came and went, and it hasn't come back since.

Unless there is something going on in the state-of-the-art marketing department that is truly news to me, I just don't see this lasting; I see it running its course and Xavier reverting back to the traditional look sooner than later.

[RealDeal]

Omg on that foul call on stain.

[MADXSTER]

Reynolds bumped into Stain. Stain never touched the guy with the body or hand.