Tuesday, March 24, 2009

"I'm Sad"

Tonight Kristi Toliver spoke for all of us when she was asked at the post-game press conference how she felt about having just played her final game at Comcast Center. "I'm sad," she replied. And that sadness was shared by the more than 10,000 fans in attendance, who not only saw KT's final home game, but Marissa Coleman's as well.

Of course, this evening's game wasn't all sad. Quite the opposite. For the fans -- and obviously the players and coaches -- a decisive win that advances you to the Sweet Sixteen was . . . well, sweet! And Marissa and Kristi made a point of leaving Comcast with a bang. Rissa scored 18 points and grabbed a career high 18 rebounds! KT added 17 points . . . and, as she proudly pointed out at the press conference, she also had 2 boards! LOL! Though the Utes had a couple of prolific scorers of their own, the Terps simply had more weapons, including Dee Liles, who, like Marissa, had a double-double (12 points and an astonishing 17 boards), plus strong supporting performances from several other teammates.

With a little over two minutes left in the game, as the two seniors left the floor and headed to the bench, they were honored with a thundering, standing ovation by the five-figure crowd. It was a bittersweet moment. We all knew that during the past four years, we had witnessed something very, very special. And though it was a week night, scores of fans stayed after the game and gathered around the TV monitors to watch and listen to the press conference. We saw many a teary eye as the seniors talked about what it was like to play their last home game. When Kristi said, "I'm sad," you could hear a collective sigh from the fans watching.

Fortunately for them -- and for us, Terps fans -- while it was the seniors' final home game, it was definitely not their final college game. Their victory over Utah tonight, 71-56, sends Maryland, as we said, to the Sweet Sixteen in Raleigh on Saturday, where they will play Vanderbilt, the SEC Tournament Champions.

And so, for the second time in three weeks, the Red Sea will once again flow down I-95 to North Carolina, and (we expect) turn the RBC Center into another Comcast South. For now, though, we are still reflecting on the joy -- and privilege -- of having watched two seniors whose record at Comcast (North) in four years was an unbelievable 65 and 3, without so much as a single home loss in the last two years! It may be a long time until we see anything like that again. So, yes, we are happy tonight, but we are also, like Kristi, a bit sad.

Good night . . .sea see you in Raleigh!

Photo Credit: DC BasketCases

11 Comments:

At 10:02 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Is there a place where fans are meeting before driving down?

 
At 10:37 AM, Blogger posting-up said...

Either the crowd count was off on Sunday, or last night. On Sunday the report was 10,000+, and last night I thought I heard 10,065. But the place was much more crowded last night -- traffic and parking were so much worse than usual. I was betting we had closer to 12,000 in the arena.

In any event, it was TERRIFIC to have the Student Section there, and in such good voice! I know the team will miss the great home environment, but I wish the Red Sea well on the Raleigh trip.

 
At 2:54 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I am excited to be part of the "Red Sea" - me and 2 friends are driving to Raleigh for the games. Go Terps!

It was great to have the students there last night - I love their energy and remember when I used to be one of them! They make me feel younger, particularly when they get me (& others) to join in some of their more outrageous (and amusing) chants!

And, it must be said, I am sad that I won't get to see KT & MC on the Comcast floor again, but I'm so glad they came to MD. Thanks ladies!

 
At 3:39 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Great game last night! Nice way for KT and MC to finish out their home games. Thanks to both for so many wonderful memories. GO TERPS!!

With March Madness going on and the Terps doing so well, the BCs are forgiven for not mentioning Trudi Lacey joining the Mystics coaching staff. It seems like a good move, but I'd love to hear your take on it.

 
At 3:54 PM, Blogger BasketCases said...

Dear Anonymous,

We saw the Trudi Lacey announcement the other day but you are right: we decided not to interrupt the excitement of March Madness to discuss a Mystics coaching change.

Thanks for the forgiveness! :-)

-- BC

 
At 4:27 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Great game and great atmosphere. I also feel the attendance was underreported. The traffic after the game was horrible!

On to Comcast South = RBC Center

I found a link to an interesting article regarding the women's NCAA Tournament and why it's not more popular.

http://msn.foxsports.com/wcbk/story/9378926/Give-the-women-a-chance-to-succeed?MSNHPHMA

I agree with a few of his points. First, I think the women's tournament suffers immeasurably because it gets overshadowed by the men's tournament. People can only watch so much basketball in March. So often they have to decide either to follow the men's tournament or the women's.

 
At 4:30 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I also will be in Raleigh. I have to admit, I do not enjoy the scheduling for the women's tournament. I think the Saturday/Tuesday format inconveniences a lot of fans, especially those who have to work! lol

 
At 7:59 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Oh, by the way, you reported the score as 71-55. Actually it was 71-56 but who's counting? Great job with the blog though. The pizza pic from the previous post makes me hungry every time.

I'd also like to commend the Utah fans, band, and dance team. They are a team I would love to cheer for if they weren't playing the Terps.

 
At 8:09 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I wish the Mystics could pick up either Marissa or Kristi, or some other former Terps.

It's been a privilege to be able to watch these two talented women the past four years. They personify class both on and off the court.

They will pass the torch of success to the next class of incoming Terps.

We'll never forget the memories of the "shot" against Duke, the national championships, and both of your stirring passion for the game.

Thank you Kristi and Marissa.

 
At 8:50 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Sorry for my poor English. I meant national championship. But I hope we can make it plural this year!

 
At 7:39 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Marissa made espn's no. 4 top play of the week, hope the link works.

http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=4014293

 

Post a Comment

<< Home