Bellevue
- Jan 26, 2020
- 6 min read
Bellevue Bruins (14-6, 4-0) vs. Viterbo V-Hawks (9-9, 3-2)
Friday, January 24, 2020 @ 7:30 PM
Bellevue, NE
Gordon Lozier Athletic Center
THE SCHOOL
Bellevue University is a private university in Bellevue, Nebraska. Founded in 1966, Bellevue has an enrollment of 9,621 students and an endowment of $83.7 million. With nearly 10,000 students, Bellevue is the largest university in the state outside of the University of Nebraska system. However, around 80% of their students are over age 24. Bellevue University's primary aim is adult education, and it seems to be the premier place for non-traditional students in Nebraska.
The Bruins compete in the North Star Athletic Association (NSAA) in Division II of the NAIA. They came into the season with pretty high aspirations but lost some games they shouldn't have early on. They've responded well in conference season though, and they're undefeated against NSAA opponents.
Viterbo University is a private Catholic University in La Crosse, Wisconsin. The V-Hawks also compete in the North Star Athletic Association.
THE TOWN
I intended on going to Bellevue last week but that game got snowed out. So I waited a week. After getting out of Lincoln, I drove east on I-80 for about forty-five miles. The town was then four or five miles past that, and it took just over an hour to get there. I got a sandwich at a bahn mi shop about a minute away from campus and made my way to the game.
With a population of over 50,000, Bellevue is the third-largest city in Nebraska. Functionally, it's a suburb of Omaha, though Bellevue is the oldest continuous settlement in the state. Driving through Bellevue feels like driving through a lot of suburbs - cookie-cutter neighborhoods, lots of chain restaurants, seems pretty family-friendly. If you've been to a city's suburb before, you can imagine what Bellevue is like.
Bellevue University is clearly a commuter school. All the school buildings are clustered in one spot with parking lots forming a semicircle around them. The basketball gym is right in the middle of this cluster, so it was kind of difficult or me to find. Bellevue University was created in the mid-1960s and they haven't made a whole lot of changes since then, so campus has a cool, old-school feel. I liked it.
If I had to describe the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center in one word, it would be: compact. You enter into a lobby with concessions, restrooms, and a couple of offices, like any arena. But when you enter the gymnasium, things get tight. There are bleachers on just one side of the gym and they only go seven rows up. Between the sideline and the first row, there's maybe three feet of space, so if you're sitting on the first row you're basically in the game. There are two little sets of bleachers behind each baseline, but those are for students and can only comfortably fit like twenty people. And those are maybe even closer to the action. I don't think I can adequately describe just how small this place feels, but don't think that's a bad thing. Sure, this makes it get a little stuffy and I was constantly concerned I might get hit with the ball, but it created an intimate atmosphere where the fans were just as much a part of the game as the players. I got to hear the player and coach chatter, the small space created an eruption of noise when the crowd cheered, and one fan consistently high-fived players as they ran down the court. The Gordon Lozier Athletic Center was a unique place to catch a game. Nebraska Christian College (who I saw last) plays some of their games here.
THE GAME
This weekend was Bellevue's homecoming weekend. For some reason, that meant admission was free, so I can save my five dollars for some other time. I walked in to the gym and - not wanting to have my feet run over - sat on the third row. To my right sat a group of Viterbo fans that came all the way from Wisconsin, I suppose. To my left sat a woman I eventually figured out was the head coach's wife with their two small children. I estimate there were between a hundred and a hundred thirty people in the stands. In this gym, that feels like kind of a lot.
Like most schools, Bellevue provided paper rosters you could pick up at the front. Looking through this, I noticed something surprising: ten of Bellevue's sixteen players are from California. Most of them are from the Bay Area; they've got one from San Francisco, one from Oakland, and one from Stockton. I looked up their coach and he used to coach at a school in Fresno, so that explains some of it. It's his first year as Bellevue's head coach though, so it surely can't explain all of it. For some reason, this primarily adult university just outside of Omaha has a basketball pipeline to California.
Bellevue had something that's been missing from all the other NAIA schools I've seen: a mascot! I don't know what this fella's name is, but he's a pretty cool bear. Because of Gordon Lozier Athletic Center's small space, he couldn't interact too much so he just... kinda... stood there. Sometimes he clapped when the Bruins did something well, but he mostly just stood and watched because he'd have to walk onto the court to interact with the crowd. And bears aren't allowed to play organized basketball.
Both these teams like to run and they let me know immediately. While the score was only 6-4 Viterbo five minutes in, guys from both teams were running up down the court and taking quick threes on most of their possessions. Adding to the atmosphere of the building was Bellevue's bench. They acted as de facto cheerleaders for the players on their court by having little cheers and counting down every time the shot clock got under 15. Anyway, the pace continued and became a back-and-forth affair with Bellevue taking the lead (12-11) with ten minutes left and Viterbo taking it back (19-18) with 6:19 remaining. With five minutes on the clock, the Bruins took a 23-22 lead and the highlight play of my project so far occurred. Bellevue's #2, Niamey Harris, floated the ball from past the three-point arc. #4, 6'7" Isaiah Bates, sprinted, jumped, caught the ball midair, and converted a two-handed slam dunk to complete the alley-oop jam. Overall, there aren't a lot of dunks in non-NCAA Division I basketball, but this was quite impressive. Niamey Harris then showed off some of his other skills by swerving through defenders for two straight driving layups. Harris was clearly a high-IQ player who led the pace for the Bruins. He finished with 17 points, 4 assists, and 6 rebounds. Because of his solid play in the last few minutes of the first half, Bellevue entered halftime up 35-27.
Halftime only consisted of music over the PA system. Nothing interesting. Boo.
The fast pace continued in the second half as both teams shot three-point shot after three-point shot. Viterbo mounted a comeback and, with 11:15 left, the V-Hawks trailed by only one point. They couldn't quite get any closer though, and Bellevue led 52-48 halfway through the second half. The next portion of the game consisted of a lot of pushing and shoving down near the rim by both teams. But instead of calling fouls on these obvious aggressions, the referees insisted on calling soft, ticky-tack, hand-checking fouls around the three-point line. Fans of both teams got agitated. With five minutes left, Bellevue led 64-58. The Bruins kept getting good three-point looks that could have put the game away, but they kept being just off. With 1:30 remaining, Bellevue still led by six (68-62), and both teams missed crucial baskets. Finally, with twenty-four seconds on the clock, Viterbo hit a free throw to end the scoring drought and bring the deficit to five. After an intentional foul with seventeen seconds left, Bellevue went 1/2 from the line after an intentional foul and the lead grew to six. The V-Hawks then drew up a good play to get an open three, but it took way too long. They got a great shot that went in, but just three seconds remained in a three point game. Bellevue inbounded the ball, immediately got fouled and #10, Conner Dukes, made both free throws to end the game. The Viterbo fans sitting next to me were rather disappointed.
Final: Bellevue 71, Viterbo 66
You can see Bellevue's current logo at the top of the page. It's an alright logo - nothing too special but not obviously bad. I really wish they still had their old logo as their primary, though. (It is still their midcourt logo). I like this one for two reasons: 1) It's kind of corny. It's clearly old and looks hand-drawn. It's from an era when team brands weren't as sleek or cultivated as they are now, and I think it's an excellent example of this. 2) What's it doing with its lip? Is it frustrated? Is it chewing tobacco? No one knows. The point is - if someone started a petition to bring back the old Bruin logo, I'd sign.
Next Up: Concordia University
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