written by Mike Unger
6:45 a.m. - College kids aren't generally thought of as morning people, but right about now, I guarantee you each of the players is jumping right out of bed without even dreaming of hitting the snooze button or grabbing 10 more minutes of shut-eye. After a week of hype unlike any other this team has known, these guys are ready to get back out on the court.
Breakfast is scheduled for 7:15, and two hours later the bus will depart for the arena. I'll try to update the blog from the BJCC once before the game, possibly at halftime, and definitely after the game. A reminder: you can watch the Eagles for free at NCAAsports.com/mmod.
Taking you up to tipoff is a short story about Bryce Simon. I hope everyone enjoys what should be one heck of a Friday.
Yesterday afternoon, while his teammates prepared for the game of their lives, junior forward Simon was at the Y, a 10-minute walk from the team hotel, working on his upper body with strength and conditioning coach Jason Riddell. When the horn sounds in a few hours and his teammates take to the court to make history, Simon will be watching from the bench.
With about two minutes left in the Patriot League semifinals against Army, Simon felt a pain in his knee unlike anything he'd ever experienced before.
"It wasn't a sprained knee. I was kind of worried right away."
As Coach Jones announced at a news conference on Monday, Simon's ACL was torn, his season over. A key player this year, Simon missed the Patriot League final, and won't be available for the NCAA Tournament. The golden era of AU basketball goes on without him.
"It was tough. I've never had to watch a game from the sidelines like that before. I tried to support the guys as much as I could. We still have a lot to play for, and they're great teammates and great guys."
Simon has refused to pout or pity himself, and he called the win over Colgate "one of the best feelings I've ever felt, even though I wasn't out there."
He's taken it upon himself to personally tutor his replacement, freshman Nick Hendra.
"I just try to give whatever advice I can. Nick hasn't got a chance to play a whole lot this year, but now he's playing a big role and playing well, so any kind of tips I can give I try. Whatever I can do to give us a little edge."
"I tell him to stay calm. Play hard and not do too much. Play within himself and he'll be fine. He's a great player, he really is, he's probably one of, if not the most talented kid on the team. He's young right now and still learning. As long as he stays calm and doesn't try to do too much he can really help us out."
Even from the sideline, Simon's assists continue to be invaluable.
9:45 a.m. - It wasn't easy for Bill Mason to make it to Birmingham, but there was no way he was going to miss this. At a breakfast reception for alumni this morning at the Sheraton across the street from the BJCC, he mingled with generations of Eagles fans over eggs, bacon, sausage, and hash browns. Mason, 63, arrived last night after boarding a plane in his home of Tucson, Arizona, at 10 in the morning Pacific time.
"I flew from Tucson to Dallas, then to Huntsville [Alabama]. It was about a 90-minute drive from there. I got in at 8:30 last night."
Mason played ball for AU from 1962-1966, and his teams generally took quite a beating, he's really reveling in the current team's success.
As is Adam Hirschfield, '99. The Clevelander flew to D.C. last week for the Colgate game, and hopped on a plane again yesterday.
"It's taking up all my time and money," he said of following the Eagles. Don't buy it - he's happy as a clam.
Less than two hours before tipoff, the streets outside the arena are starting to come alive. There's a guy out front reading the Bible out loud- to no one in particular - and ticket scalpers are starting to make their rounds. I'll try and check back in right before the tip, but if I can't, I'll be back after the game.
I'll leave you with Mason's thoughts on the game.
"Tennessee is one of the two or three best teams I've seen in the country. But anything can happen, and last night [in the Duke game] it almost did. Any team can beat any team. Let Tennessee come in fat, dumb, and happy, and let's see what happens."
12 p.m. - UT leads 29-22 at the half, but overall, AU played very well. They were poised in breaking the press (for the most part), and Garrison Carr hit some big shots. UT asserted itself toward the end to build up the lead, but this game is anything but over.
The atmosphere inside the BJCC was electric even 45 minutes before tipoff. The students and the band arrived early and began chanting and cheering (Don't Stop Believing was a favorite) as if there was five minutes left in the game. Clawed and the cheerleaders did their thing, undeterred by the first playing of "Rocky Top" at 10:36 am. The arena, which looks about three quarters filled, is mostly orange, but AU's section (directly across from the AU bench) is loud and spirited. Most everyone has been standing the whole game. Overall it was a solid 20 minutes for AU.
12:40 p.m. - Absolute pandemonium! Garrison Carr just hit back to back threes to tie the game with 11 minutes left. The crowd is deafening; this is one great ballgame.
1 p.m. - This is what these guys have dreamed of their wholes lives. They've played an amazing game, and with 3:46 remaining, they trail by just six. The impossible suddenly doesn't seem so impossible.
1:30 p.m. - This fantastic basketball game just ended with AU on the short side of a 72-57 decision that was much, much closer than the score indicates. The team left it all on the floor - you couldn't have asked anything more from them. With 30 seconds left, Coach Jones emptied the bench, even putting in Bryce Simon, who simply stood in front of the bench. When the final horn sounded, the AU crowd stood and delivered a heartfelt ovation, showing their appreciation for a magical season no one will soon forget. The players and coaches returned the favor, saluting a fan base that never stopped believing. I'll post post-game comments as soon as I get them.
2 p.m. - Comments from Jeff Jones postgame press conference.
"We're disappointed with the outcome but I certainly couldn't be any more proud of the team. As they have all year long, they battled. It wasn't pretty, but we scrapped and pushed Tennessee pretty hard there for the most part of the game. Tennessee proved why they're such an outstanding team. Ultimately they wore us down. It was a great challenge for our team, I thought our guys stepped up to the challenge, but unfortunately we weren't quite up top it."
"I think it's been a great time. As I reflect back, it's not just the last couple weeks. I think that's when folks started noticing and we started reaping some of the rewards from the fruits of the players' labor. As I told them in the locker room after the game, I'm disappointed that we lost the game, but I'm more disappointed that the journey for this particular team is over. They've been a joy to coach, and to see them as well as the entire American University community get their moment in the sun has really been a great time and a special time."
Garrison Carr
"When we were making our run I really felt like the crowd was behind us. At that moment we had an opportunity to control the game, but Tennessee came right back down and knocked a three down. They played like the No. 2 seed and the No. 1 team in the nation."
Brian Gilmore
"We knew even if we did get a lead that Tennessee was a great team. They would be able to sustain any efforts we made. We had our opportunities, we missed some layups and some open shots, Tennessee's a great team and they capitalized on the other end."
Remarks from Tennessee coach Bruce Pearl and two UT players.
Bruce Pearl
"Congratulations to American University, they represented themselves and the Patriot League extremely well. They made shots, particularly Carr, was just spectacular. They played with great energy, particularly on the offensive boards. They bothered us early with our offensive their offensive rebounding. I think we were able to turn them over. I thought without our pressure defense, we might have been in a similar position as Duke last night with Belmont."
"I thought they came in confident, knowing they could play with us. I think American came here to win the game. I think watching Belmont last night had to be encouraging for them."
"I think maybe in the last 10 minutes or so, American might have gotten a little tired. They might have gotten a little fatigued. We played a lot more guys than they did."
"They had great energy on the offensive boards. They do that all year long. They got a pretty good idea when Carr's going to shoot the ball. Because you have to have your bigs out there doubling him, when shots are taking place your inside guys are not inside their guys. It's really more of a race to the ball."
JaJuan Smith called AU "a great defensive team."
Tyler Smith on AU:
"Going against Carr was like going against another Chris [Lofton] out there. That was a great team, they came out and gave a great effort."
3 p.m. - The team watched the first half of the Butler-South Alabama game (all Bulldogs) from the stands, their viewing frequently disrupted by fans thanking and congratulating them. They boarded the bus minutes ago, and are headed to lunch then back to the hotel. The plan is to fly home tomorrow at 10, which would put us back on campus around 2. We all need a little time to decompress, so check back for one final blog entry later tonight.
5:15 p.m. - The realization that this season has come to a close is beginning to set in. AU's season ended with a loss - the same fate that will befall 63 other college basketball teams who made it to the sport's summit - but this journey was anything but a failure. AU proved their mettle in December, when they defeated Maryland for the first time in more than 80 years, then thrilled fans by clinching their first-ever berth in the NCAA Tournament. That's a lot of very important firsts. Hopefully they've laid the foundation for many return trips to the dance, because as Eagles fans in Washington, Birmingham, and throughout the country can attest, the past seven days have been one helluva ride.
Thanks to everyone who checked out this blog. It was blast writing it, I hope you enjoyed reading it. We'll have to do it again next year.
-Mike
