Reviling in the Madness

Team Harvard...living up to its theme song

I am bleary-eyed, mascara-smeared, slightly-nauseous, definitely hungover....and I couldn't be happier!
Why you might ask?  And it is a fair question, but the answer is simple.  Harvard won last night.  My alma matter took it to a 3 seed and won its first ever postseason basketball game.  And I watched and loved every single minute of it.  

People were for sure confused to see a rowdy Varsity Letter Sweater decked group cheering their lungs out for Harvard...but we showed them that Ivy Leaguers enjoy March Madness as well.  I love the fact that I got to experience my school succeeding in the national spotlight in athletics.  People are completely jaded by the NCAA, and trust me I understand.  Things like the fact Texas A&M can make millions of dollars off of the Johnny Football brand, while the kid who is actually doing the work to create the legend gets nothing, and the fact that teams are constantly money-grabbing by jumping conferences but then telling us they truly care about the student part of student athletes...well it's hard to take the NCAA seriously.  But nights like last night are what college sports are all about.

Harvard got to wear Cinderella's slipper for a night (yes, even though Harvard is pretentious and elitist, it still gets to play the underdog...at least when it comes to sports), but they weren't the only one who gave their fans something to root for.  Davidson was 1 second away from an upset, while Southern almost became the first 16 seed in history to defeat a one seed.  And you could tell how much these games meant to these players.  They aren't going to be going pro, at least most of them aren't.  They are playing because they love to play and because they want to put on a show in front of a larger crowd then they've ever experienced.  And that is what makes March Madness the single greatest event in sports.  Out-of-nowhere's become heroes, sure things lose in the first round and small schools knock off their neighboring school bullies.

Last night was the first time that I got to cheer on an upset that involved a school I had a personal connection to.  And it was one of my favorite sports nights.  Sitting in a bar from 8pm to ensure I secured a table for the 10pm game...having a group of friends get together to cheer on their team no one picked to win the game...then not moving from my seat till 2:30am, as we just didn't want the night or the celebration to end...what more can you ask for? 

Well...I know what I'm asking for.  For Harvard to stay Cinderella for one more game...for Arizona not to strike midnight on this magical season...basically, I'm asking for a little more Madness.  That's all.

Photo for posterity to prove Harvard was ahead at one point...who knew they were actually going to end up ahead at end of game as well!