The Wolf Pack basketball team has developed a joke when it comes to its relatively poor attendance despite a 15-3 record.
With the end-of-the season WAC Tournament being held at neutral site in Las Vegas in March, the attendance there is expected to be poor.
So, the Wolf Pack players are pretty confident they'll be able to play well during that WAC Tournament in front of meager crowds. After all, they're getting a lot of practice at it during home games this season.
"We always joke around that it kind of helps us for later on when we play those neutral-game sites," said senior forward Dario Hunt, who leads the Wolf Pack in a home game against Fresno State on Saturday.
Still, the Wolf Pack's sagging attendance clearly stings the players. Nevada is averaging only 3,892 fans per home game this season -- its lowest this century -- including a season-low 3,407 fans in its win over Nebraska-Omaha on Tuesday (less than a third of Lawlor Events Center's capacity).
The Pack players have grown weary of questions about attendance because they can't control how many fans come out to see them play. Even a 12-game winning streak hasn't helped.
Hunt was asked after the win over Nebraska-Omaha how important it was to get fans back into Lawlor as the Wolf Pack tries to win its first WAC championship since the 2007-08 season.
"It doesn't really matter to us either way," Hunt said. "Clearly, we want our fans to be here. We want them to support us because I think we're doing a lot of good things. But if they're not here, we can't really think too much about it. We still have to come out and play. If they want to come out here, we're going to be here. They know our schedule. We're going to be out, and we're still going to be playing the basketball that we play."
The attendance issue remains puzzling.
The Wolf Pack's attendance is down 16 percent from last season, when the program suffered its first losing season in a decade. Only two of the Nevada's 11 home games this season have surpassed the average attendance of 4,628 fans in 2010-11.
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Despite an uptick in its level of play, the attendance has dropped. A so-so slate of non-conference home games hasn't helped.
Perhaps more confounding is the fact the Wolf Pack sold almost 6,500 season tickets this season. Yet, the average attendance of 3,892 fans is well below that.
"We'd love to have them out here," said senior forward Olek Czyz, who played for Duke in front of the Cameron Crazies, the Blue Devils' famed student section. "If they don't show up, we'll just try to keep winning. The goals don't change for us. If they show up, it's nice. If they don't, I understand."
The Wolf Pack lost a big chunk of fans between the 2008-09 and 2009-10 seasons when the athletic department announced its controversial re-seating plan for season-ticket holders. That plan was ultimately scrapped, with officials citing the downtrodden economy, but Nevada lost more than 2,700 season-ticket holders in the process.
Nevada has tried to boost the attendance with the implementation of free ticket giveaways for youth basketball, cheer and dance teams for two games this season. But the attendance woes, which have a direct correlation to the financial solvency of the athletic department, have continued to plague the Wolf Pack.
Coach David Carter said he's tried to make sure his players don't worry about the attendance.
"I just tell the kids all the time, 'You just have to play the game,'" Carter said. "Things you can't control you can't worry about. We can't worry about who's at the game, how many people are at the game. If we average 4,000 fans or 5,000, if we're fortunate enough to go to the postseason, we'll only get 5,000 tickets for them. We won't get 10,000 tickets for the people who haven't been here. We'll leave it at that."
The poor attendance has developed as an interesting subplot this season. The main storyline, of course, has been the Wolf Pack's improved play.
"The crowd makes a difference, but the team makes a difference, too," Carter said. "It's about how hard you play at home and the mental preparation for the game. We haven't had fans all (year) and we're 15-3, so I think we're OK."
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