Monday, March 21, 2011

Marquette: Sweet 16

Congratulations, Marquette! Sweet 16!

From Sports Illustrated:

The Buzz is a dance, but it cannot be choreographed. The Buzz is well-documented, but it cannot be done on cue. It is a series of movements so spontaneous, and so nakedly joyous, that its eponymous performer is not even conscious of his own actions when the spirit strikes. "You can tell by watching my performance," Buzz Williams said, his voice long hoarse, "that I have no idea that I'm doing it. Or that I know what to do when I'm doing it."

But if The Buzz -- so named by Williams' star forward, Jimmy Butler -- is anything, it is predictable. And Sunday night, after 11th-seeded Marquette upset No. 2 Syracuse, 66-62, it took only the post-game handshake line for it to be unleashed in an epic hail of high-steps and arm pumps that quickly darkened the pink dress shirt beneath Williams' gray suit.

"It only makes it worse when he has all of our energy to surround him," Butler said in the tunnel after the game. "I'm so glad we could do it for him. I'm so glad we could do it for ourselves."

The Buzz is a beautiful thing.


The Golden Eagles will play No. 2 seed North Carolina (28-7) in the East regional semifinals Friday in Newark, N.J.

Marquette, known then as the Warriors, beat North Carolina to win the national championship in 1977.

At Marquette, there's always a link to the '77 team and its treasured coach, Al McGuire. Where most teams have a logo or a letter on the jersey, Marquette has "AL" at the neck.

Williams, Marquette's emotional coach, broke into a delirious celebration. He hugged his players, ran to press row and pounded the table. He pumped his fists toward the fans, then brushed past media to get to the seats and gave his wife and family kisses and a long, heartfelt embrace.

His beet-red face couldn't stop smiling as fans chanted his name and broke into the traditional "We are (clap-clap) Marquette!" cheer.

No comments: