These are the questions ISU fans are asking as the college basketball season reaches the halfway point. With the exception of the Boston College, Kansas and Oklahoma games, Hilton has become one of the quieter places for men’s basketball in the Big 12.

I have been to all but one of the ISU men’s home games, missing only the first exhibition game, and I have yet to see Cyclone fans filling up to the roof what was one of the most feared places to play in all of college hoops.

Granted the Cyclones played a very soft pre-Big 12 schedule, if you are a true fan of this team, as I consider myself, then you would be out there cheering every time the Cyclones hit the court. Even if you don’t care enough to watch them play against the Arkansas Pine-Bluffs of the world, there are still several reasons to go to the game.

Is there anyone, besides the referees, who doesn’t love watching Larry Eustachy run up and down his sideline, and even on to the court every now and then? If you didn’t know better, there would be a lot of times where Larry appears to be playing a little zone defense.

Everybody loves seeing themselves on TV. During every timeout, if you are sitting close enough, you have your chance, even if it is only seen by the people in the stadium. Of course, there is always the chance of getting on television too, when ESPN or ESPN Plus is in the house.

And where else can you find Larry’s Clones, Vroman’s Homies or a bunch of Skog-Aholics?

During a timeout in the second half, there are the challenging shoe shuffles on the video screen. Sadly, during many of the games this season, the results of the shuffle drew the loudest cheers.

And finally the biggest reason: When there are enough people, the building can be loud. When it was sold out for “WWF Monday Night Raw,” I never would have believed that a Marcus Fizer dunk or a Jake Sullivan three-pointer would ever stand a chance of matching the decibel level that Hilton reached when The Rock hit the ring or Stone Cold Steve Austin cracked a couple of beers for the crowd.

This past weekend against Oklahoma, it came close to reaching that same volume, and you could tell it made a difference. But it just wasn’t enough to help the team pull out a victory, partly because the building wasn’t full.

This season, the student sections were relocated to straight behind the baskets, all the way up to the top row of the balcony. Why don’t the students get to sit close to the action all the way around the court?

Look at the top programs in the country and see where their students sit. There isn’t a week that goes by that you can’t see a Duke home game, and look where their students are, all along the court. That is why Duke doesn’t lose at home.

At Hilton, both sides of the court are lined with alumni, donors and supporters of the university who enjoy the comfort of their seat way too much to stand up and clap without the guidance of the fight song. They could serve their purpose just as well sitting in the parquet or balcony.

Another issue I have with student seating is the fact that there isn’t any during holiday breaks. I have season tickets, but if there is no class, then I have to pay $20 to sit in the section that I have tickets for.

I showed them though. There were enough empty seats during the break that I paid $5 for the balcony seats, and about five minutes into the game, I was able to sit in the fifth row down on the floor.

I’m such a rebel.

Many of us do stay in Ames during much of the break, so just set aside a couple of arena circle or parquet sections. It’s not like they are going to sell out anyway.

Then there is the band. Where do I start? You either love them or you hate them. Although they can be repetitive and annoying, they do bring a unique characteristic to the environment. I ran into one of the players from Binghamton, Nick Billings, after their game against the Cyclones, and he told me that the band was his favorite part of playing at Hilton because it was something different.

This past Sunday, I attended my first women’s basketball game. I have to admit, I was impressed.

There were more than 9,000 fans at the game, with several becoming very vocal at the questionable officiating. I’ve always heard that the ISU women competed with the men for putting the most butts in the seats, and now I believe it.

Right now the men are on a losing streak while battling through one of the toughest conference schedules in recent memory, unless of course you remember the football schedule. Look at the men’s record though: 10-4. Any way you look at it, it’s still a good record, especially with the win at Iowa.

If you are a season ticket holder, student or otherwise, remember, you’ve already paid for your ticket, so you might as well go.

The men are drawing a season average of 11,285 people for home games, meaning they are also averaging about 3,000 empty seats as well.

That’s a lot of people. It could also be a lot of MAGIC.

Rick Kerr is a senior in journalism and mass communication from Des Moines