Sometimes you have to give things some time.

If I’ve learned anything in my college years (what a loaded statement), it’s that patience is the key to making things bearable.

Take the Ohio Valley Conference as an example.

At the start of the basketball season, the OVC wasn’t in my top two choices for sporting events with the word “valley” involved.

Number one is the All-Valley Karate Tournament where a young Daniel Russo shocked the world by defying the evil Cobra Kai dojo. And a close second is the very heated Bayside-Valley rivalry that extended to fringe athletic events like Screech taking on a Russian chess prodigy without his lucky red beret.

But with a single game left in the OVC schedule, I’m ready to elevate the conference to number two on my “Valley” list. (Sorry, nothing beats the All-Valley Karate Tournament and the best line in cinematic history, “Get him a body bag, YEAAAHHH!”)

The OVC is a small, mid-major conference, which might fool some sports fans into thinking the talent is thin.

But some of the conference’s top players have transferred from Massachusetts (Tennessee Tech’s Willie Jenkins, the conference’s likely player of the year), Mississippi (Murray State guard Trey Pearson) and Cincinnati (Tennessee State center Rod Flowers).

And the style of OVC basketball is tailored to the teams, which, for the most part, are generally very athletic. The teams that can’t run-and-jump with the athletic OVC teams make up for the lack of athleticism by shooting.

But this wasn’t easy to notice before actively following the OVC.

The conference was kind of like a girl who, on first glance, doesn’t make you feel all tingly on the inside. But after seeing her time and time again, she starts to grow on you.

You notice that she’s got great eyes, a great body or a fun, irresistible personality.

Then it hits you like a train, and you’re smitten.

Take all of the sexual undertones out of that example, and it aptly describes my relationship with the OVC.

With the conference tournament approaching next week, I expect my boyish crush on the OVC to blossom into a full-blown torrid love affair.

My hopes are high, and now it’s up to the conference’s teams to come through and put out – with exciting year-end games.

And don’t worry about mowing my lawn if you develop a crush on the OVC, too.

There’s plenty of it to go around.

Dan Woike, a senior journalism major, would like to ask the OVC if it wants to go to the prom with him. Email him at [email protected] with suggestions on a romantic and creative way to pop the question.