Through The Eyes of a Maniac

It's 6 p.m. on a Thursday night in the Walter Pyramid. Tip-off for a men's basketball game is about an hour away, and except for the visiting players warming up on the court, and a few Long Beach State marketing officials preparing for the game, the Pyramid is nearly empty. Not even the Walters themselves have made it inside of their Pyramid to take their courtside seats. But there is one area that is already sardine packed.That area is home to the Monson Maniacs - the loudest, most energetic, intelligent and obnoxious student section in the Big West Conference. If this description sounds a bit familiar, it is because I too am a Maniac, cheering my lungs out, bouncing up and down and living and dying by every move our beloved Beach basketball team makes.

Our goal as Monson Maniacs is clear: to make the Pyramid a hostile atmosphere for opposing teams to play. An intimidating home court is one of the most important parts of being successful in college basketball.

"I think the Monson Maniacs have been fantastic," said second year head coach and namesake of the student section, Dan Monson. "I think it's been a great student section, and our players really appreciate it. Winning at home is so important and that all starts with the student atmosphere."

The close proximity of the students makes for the highest interaction between them and the players on the court. When we yell, the players hear it. It is that moment when an opposing player acknowledges what we have said - either by laughing, giving a defiant shake of their head to us students or my personal favorite, doing what we have commanded, such as tucking their jersey in, which has occurred on multiple occasions this season - that gives us the most satisfaction. Once we know we are in a player's head, they are done for. I don't have the actual statistics, but after an opposing player has shot an air ball, each subsequent time they touch the ball, we remind them. Rarely, if ever, do these players shoot again for the rest of the contest. Talk about changing a game.

But like all things, with great power comes great responsibility. This means practicing our craft. We don't expect guard Larry Anderson to be able to throw down massive dunks after he has been asleep all day, and in turn we can't think that the Monson Maniacs can be an intimidating force without training our vocal chords for optimal yelling capacity. The team practices everyday, and I feel it is our duty as Maniacs to do the same.

I also find it helpful to begin to speak in a similar way to the chants that will be used during the game. If we are going to be saying, "Let's Go -- Long Beach" during the game, we should be saying "Let's make dinner" during our everyday conversations. It's all about preparation.

Speaking of preparation, another important part of being a Maniac is knowing your enemy. The Monson Maniacs need to know who is coming into the Pyramid. If a player has just come off of an arrest because of a shoplifting incident at Best Buy, I want a copy of the police report in my hands before the game starts.

While this might sound like a lot of work to the average fan, the most important part about being a Monson Maniac is having fun. My fellow students who are reading this still have time to join the Maniacs as we will undoubtedly take over the Anaheim Convention Center during the Big West Tournament.

So throw on this year's Monson Maniac tee, get some LB basketball shorts and a sweatband and get ready to yell your lungs out. With your support and a solid performance by our young team, we could be dancing again this March.