NSU's got the wins, so where are all the fans?

NORFOLK, Virginia  -- Late in the second half of Norfolk State's 81-62 win over Northern Arizona on Dec. 19, point guard Jamel Fuentes dribbled on the wing as the shot clock dwindled.

"Eight, seven, six..." teammate D'Shon Taylor said from the paint before Fuentes drove the lane and drew a bailout foul.

That Taylor helped Fuentes with a countdown wasn't unusual. That it was easy to hear throughout 4,500-seat Echols Hall during a Division I basketball game wasn't as unusual as NSU's players, coaches and administrators would like.

A perhaps generously announced crowd of 473 watched the Spartans win that night, the atmosphere a cacophony of shouting coaches, all-too-clear P.A. announcements and squeaking sneakers.

Contrast that to last Saturday, when 4,953 packed the deafening arena for NSU's 63-60 victory over MEAC rival Hampton - traditionally and, usually by far, the Spartans' biggest draw.

As NSU's attendance has fluctuated wildly in recent years, its athletic department has worked to find ways to create more nights like Saturday.

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