The George M. Holmes Convocation Center opened to a sold-out crowd.
    On Nov. 17, 2000, the Appalachian State University men’s basketball team hosted the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Despite the inevitable 99-69 loss to the Tar Heels, all 8,325 seats in the new arena were filled.
    For the remainder of the convocation center’s inaugural season, attendance levels at home men’s basketball games dwindled. The second highest fan showing was 2,909 against East Tennessee State University.
    The 2001-2002 season wasn’t much better for Appalachian, even with the Athletic Department and Student Government Association’s creation of a Basketball Task Force to help combat low attendance.
    To say the least, attendance levels have been an area of concern for head coach Houston Fancher and his staff.
    But as the 2002-2003 season got underway late in November, 2,133 fans showed up for the season opener against Mars Hill College.
    With the largest crowd since the UNC-CH game, 3,443 fans showed up to support Appalachian in its triple over-time win over the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.
    The recent surge in basketball attendance is no fluke; it is the result of new attempts by Fancher and his staff to bring Appalachian students to the games.
    “I love the way [the students] support the football team; I think it’s super,” Fancher said. “I want to try and make [basketball games] that type of event for them.”
    The most noticeable result is the large number of clubs and Greek students at the games with posters and signs supporting certain players.
    Clubs and Greek organizations now have the opportunity to “adopt” a player on the team and support that player through out the season as part of the Adopt-an-App program.
    Prior to the start of the season, Fancher and members of his staff attended Greek meetings and urged the students to take part in the program.
    Thus far, the Adopt-an-App program seems to be working very well. While the participating organizations amount to only a small percentage of the Appalachian population, their support should help attendance overall.
    To entice the remainder of campus to support the team, Fancher and his staff have been visiting on-campus cafeterias and W. H. Plemmons Student Union on game days to personally invite students to the game.
    Fancher said he feels it is a more informal and personal way to invite the students to the games instead of sending flyers to Appalachian State post office boxes or e-mails.
    The increased initiative of Fancher and his staff to increase attendance seems promising.
    With the Adopt-an-App program and the personal invitations, basketball attendance should rise throughout the season.