Attendance tide rising for UM men

The attendance tide is turning for University of Maine men’s basketball, and while coach John Giannini isn’t really playing “I-told-you-so,” neither is he very surprised.

An actual turnstile count isn’t available for games this season, but Saturday’s announced crowd of 3,895 – based on the same tickets-issued figure the NCAA accepts as official – ranks second on the all-time men’s list for an on-campus basketball game.

Ironically, the crowd actually may have been larger than the record-setting throng.

The record is a promotion-inflated 3,962 tickets issued for last season’s Maine-Northeastern game on Feb. 14. In reality, only 3,043 people walked through the turnstiles for that game.

“We’ve known the recruiting and roster situation that we had to build upon, and we knew that until we built upon it, we wouldn’t have the kind of atmosphere that we wanted,” Giannini said after the Bears routed Hartford 90-65.

With the Bears sporting a 5-2 overall record and perfect 2-0 America East mark, that building process is bearing fruit.

“Across the country, and Maine is no exception, when people win and put an exciting team out there, people come out [to watch],” Giannini said. “And we knew that this year those things would happen. So we’re really pleased with it, and we’re excited about it, but quite frankly, we expected it.”

Topping the men’s “home” attendance list is a Cumberland County Civic Center contest against Marquette during the 1978-79 season, when an estimated 7,800 fans showed up.

The next three largest attendance figures were set at games at Bangor Auditorium.

The Bears drew 5,300 for a 1980-81 game against DePaul, an estimated 5,000 in 1985-86 against Boston College, and 4,587 for a 1990-91 outing against Connecticut.

Hartford coach Paul Brazeau said when one league team draws a good crowd, that turns into a positive for the entire conference.

Brazeau also pointed at another big factor for increased interest in the Bears: the transfer of homegrown star Andy Bedard.

“Andy being here I think is special for the state,” Brazeau said.