MajorDad wrote:so luke , as a UW guy, do you really beileve there is a UW / Illinois rivalry? or a UW / MSU rivalry? or are you just throwing those out for the sake of arguing? Do you really get pumped up when UW plays ILL? Did you get pumped up more playing MSU this year or Purdue? or do you get pumped up for every tough game UW plays? if you say every tough game, then you never really had a rivalry with any team. All you had was a tough game on your schedule. purdue could have 20 losses, but if they beat IU, Painter keeps his job. if Purdue wins 20 games but consistantly loses to IU, Painter gets fired. Keady found that out. he didn't really retire on his terms.
let's face it. there are not very many true rivalries in Big ten basketball. The Big ten doesn't have a Duke/USC or a kansas/Kansas St. Memphis and tennesee is not a true rivalry match as much as tenn/florida is. kentucky /Louisville is a rivalry. UW and marquette is a rivalry.
I don't believe a guy from UW can truely speak about Illinois or MSU without having lived in either state or even knowing anybody from either state or school. Tough games do not make rivalries. Purdue and UW are not rivals despite the fact Purdue owns UW inside Mackey Arena. purdue and butler are not rivals- never have been - although a purdue / Butler game would be a good game and close game between two good teams. I doubt UW would ever think of UW green bay or UWM as a rival although both schools could have given UW a good run for your money.
I never said the IU /Purdue basketball rivalry was on the same level as the Mich/OSu football rivalry was. I said it's as big as far as big ten basketball goes. I guess it's kind of obvious very few of you have ever attended an IU / Purdue game. even when both teams are bad, it's still an intense game worth going to.
I guess the term rivalry is lost on the younger generation. You have no clue what a rivalry really is other than what ESPN tells you on rivalry week.
Reed, the fact that you think you know more just because you've lived in Indiana and experienced both schools somehow makes me laugh. Keep spewing it though....