It’s the newest established permanent ersatz basketball game in Lawrence.
“It’s unlike anything else,” says Kansas sports information director Doug Vance. “It’s happening.”
It’s “Late Night with Larry Brown” for the third go-round, and it’s proof you don’t have to stage a basketball game per se in Allen Fieldhouse in order to draw a crowd.
Kansas’ first basketball practice session packs ’em in, too, thank you. That much was proven last year when KU officials were astonished to see 13,000 fans, about 2,000 under capacity, show up for Late Night II
“I sure didn’t think it’d be as big as it was,” admits Richard Konzem, director of KU’s Williams Fund and a man who works closely with ticket distribution.
Of course, Konzem and the KU ticket office don’t have to worry about pasteboards for this event. Admission is free even though it costs the athletic department as much money – at least a couple of thousand dollars – to open the doors as it does for a regular game.
Perhaps inevitably, some consideration was given, now that Late Night has evolved into a mid-October monster, to establishing an admission price.
“We talked about it,” Konzem said. “We were thinking about suing the money as a benefit for the non-revenue sports, but we decided not to because it came up too late. It had already been promoted as being free.”
In other words, don’t be surprised if future Late Nights have a price tag, especially if a full house is expected which, by the way, is the prediction for tonight.
“I think it’ll be full,” Konzem said. “I know the Kansas City alumni group has chartered two buses to come over, and I know people are coming from Hutchinson and Salina.”
And, of course, an untold number of KU students will show up because, in effect, you cannot be a KU student and put yourself in a position where you have to tell your friends and relatives you were not there. Equally important, you MUST purchase a “Late Night” T-shirt as evidence of your attendance.
If you’re really into the spirit of the occasion, you’ve already entered the pre-judging for the celebrity look-alike contest that will feature such prizes as airline tickets, electronic and video equipment and – wouldn’t you know it – pizza coupons.
Apparently, it doesn’t matter which celebrity you resemble although the sponsors were sending out early signals for folks resembling Ollie North, Fawn Hall, Norm Stewart and Dick Vitale.
It’s ironic a call would go out for Vitale look-alikes because the nation’s most unabashed college basketball freak will be just 25 away attending NAIA champion Washburn’s inaugural version of Late Night.
“They’re springing up all over the country,” says Vance. “Kentucky is the first one I was aware of. They’ve been doing it for eight years. They call theirs Midnight Madness. They draw 12,000, but they hold it in their old gym on campus, not in (23,000-seat) Rupp Arena.”
Kansas officials advise an early arrival tonight with the open-seating policy. Doors open at 9:30 p.m. with the band entertainment scheduled to begin at 10:45 p.m.
Finally at 12:01 a.m. – one minute after college basketball teams can legally begin pre-season practice – the Jayhawks will play an intrasquad game for about an hour.
“I’m not sure the scrimmage is the attraction,” Vance says. “I’m sure everybody wants to see the team, but they can see them work out every afternoon. The event is the thing.”
It has to be…I mean, what else can you call something in Lawrence that features a Norm Stewart look-alike contest?
