Despite loss, Saint Peter's March Madness heroics was the story that united us all
PHILADELPHIA – Saint Peter’s fought, Shaheen Holloway coached and the crowd roared right to the disappointing end of the storybook run.
And given what we’ve all seen over the past 10 days, that’s exactly what you expected from a team that united us all.
Even though Cinderella won’t be going from Broad Street to Bourbon Street for the Final Four, it can’t take away from a run that captivated the country and brought together the state and region behind an underdog for the ages.
It seemed like it would never end, at least not before a trip to New Orleans for March Madness’ most improbable upstart ever, the first 15th seed to advance to the Elite Eight. But North Carolina had other plans, with the Tar Heels opening up a 21-point first half lead en route to a 69-49 victory at the Wells Fargo Center.
But Saint Peter’s was the story we all needed right now. A feel good tale that transcended sports. And the tiny school from Jersey City proved it belonged right to the end. After going down 27 points in the second half, the Peacocks got it under 20 at one point, but simply had nothing left.
This was our story. A team that’s New Jersey tough, Jersey City strong, a product of the tri-state area and forged along Kennedy Boulevard. A group of young athletes that united the area. No matter what your allegiance, you backed the Peacocks.
“That a group of guys came in there, no one gave a chance to, no one believed in except the people in that locker room and in our program, and made history,” said Holloway of his lasting memory of this team. “They shocked the world. We’ve got guys that are going to be remembered for this, they can tell their kids and grandkids.”
Clock struck midnight for Cinderella
It was historic, something that will be talked about for generations. The first team seeded higher than No. 12 to reach the Elite Eight, and the first team from the area to reach at least the Sweet 16 since Seton Hall in 2000, despite a humble NCAA Tournament pedigree and a roster full of underrecruited players.
All along the narrative was been about what the Peacock’s couldn’t do. How they didn’t have enough size or speed, and lacked the requisite experience and program history to succeed on such a stage.
That eventually morphed into what they could do. How their withering defense can bring the highest-powered offense to its knees. And how players no one else wanted can use the chip on their shoulder to outplay blue-chip recruits.
Against the Tar Heels, March Madness royalty, the Peacocks looked like they’d finally run out of gas.
“It was sadness. We expected to win this game,” forward KC Ndefo said. “We didn’t compete as well as we were supposed to. This is a brotherhood, and we love all of our brothers so we stayed together through all of it. There was definitely emotions in the locker room and sadness.”
Slow start
It was the worst-case scenario for the Peacocks, who got plenty of good looks but simply couldn’t convert, hitting just four of their first 20 shots from the floor. Meanwhile, North Carolina forward Brady Manek was having his way inside, scoring 10 early points as the Tar Heels raced out to a 24-9 lead .
Saint Peter’s trailed by 19 at the half, and after the deficit swelled to 27 points, the Peacocks battled back getting it under 20 points on a Daryl Banks III three-pointer. But North Carolina was simply too good on this day.
“I didn’t really recognize my team the first 10 minutes of the game,” Holloway said. “I thought we came out a little slow, a little timid. Give those guys credit, they kind of jumped on us early. I thought we had a good gameplan. I don’t know, it was as a bad team today.”
It was a tremendous run. From the stunning victory over blue-blood Kentucky, to snapping Murray State’s 21-game winning streak in the second round to their historic win over Big Ten-power Purdue in the Sweet 16, this team was destiny’s darling, defined by its nose-defense as its calling card.
There were so many layers to this story. From the small budget program with the undersized, underrecruited roster, to Doug Edert’s moustache and Holloway’s future, while carrying the mantle for mid-major programs everywhere.
"Obviously we were emotional at first because we’re all competitors and we expected to wint he game," guard DAryl Banks III said. "It didn’t go our way, though, but coach told us to keep our head high because we didn something no one has ever done before so we are going to walk out of here withour heads high.”
They were trying to enter uncharted NCAA territory, and would have been the first team seeded worse than No. 11 having previously reached the Final Four, with George Mason, VCU, Loyola-Chicago and UCLA all having made it as 11 seeds.
The Peacocks emerged from the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference crucible, which began heating up when Holloway arrived four years ago, and reached yet another level when Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino showed up at Iona two seasons ago. And after an ultra-competitive 2021-22 season, what emerged was a really good Saint Peter’s team.
The clock may have finally struck midnight for Cinderella. But Saint Peter’s the right story for the right time.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Saint Peter's March Madness heroics was the story that united us all
