Then there were two
It’s blue blood vs. new blood as North Carolina and Gonzaga head to NCAA National Championship Game
It will be blue blood vs. new blood in the national championship game. North Carolina royalty, with five titles to its name, will compete for its sixth against upstart Gonzaga, which made its first-ever Final Four appearance in Glendale on Saturday.
And if the two nail-biter semifinals are any indication, the championship game will make the Valley’s first-ever NCAA Final Four one for the ages.
Phoenix and Glendale were bustling with Final Four fandom on Saturday, nearly exploding as the two teams clinched spots in the NCAA National Championship Game.
Saturday was monumental for Arizona in more ways than one: Two games brought a deluge of fans to the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, which was equipped to hold its largest capacity ever; and Grammy Award-winning duo the Chainsmokers drew so many people to the March Madness Music Festival in downtown Phoenix that its gates were closed before they even took the stage.
Gonzaga, a small, private school tucked away in Spokane, Washington, has built itself into a national basketball powerhouse over the past 15 years. But this is the school’s firstever trip to the men’s basketball championship game. Gonzaga could also become the first school without a football program to win the men’s basketball championship since 1977.
North Carolina is on a revenge tour after losing to Villanova on a last-second shot in the 2016 men’s basketball title game. Coach Roy Williams has had some health problems, and the school is still under the cloud of an academic scandal that is being investigated by the NCAA.
First game’s rousing finale
During the neck-and-neck game between Gonzaga and South Carolina, fans from both sides of the court volleyed between explosive cheers and stunned silence. The only force dominating the court and its surroundings was raw emotion.
Free throws during the game’s final moments brought not only cheers, but screams. Then the buzzer went off. The game was over. Gonzaga won. Gonzaga fans in the student section erupted into cheers, jumping up and down in group hugs. One Gonzaga student wept with happiness.
Some South Carolina fans remained strong, chanting “U-S-C” as their players left the court with lowered heads. Not everyone was as resilient. One fan wrapped his arm around his friend’s shoulder, though the gesture couldn’t remove the grimace from his friend’s face. Others patted each other on the back as they made their way out of the stadium.
Outside the stadium, the nearby McFadden’s Restaurant and Saloon was the “home of the Zags” and an outpost for anyone who wanted to be close to the game without paying hundreds or even thousands of dollars to get in.
“You don’t have to go to the game to feel the camaraderie,” said Ricardo Gomez, who flew with his wife from Colorado to watch the game in a bar outside the stadium. Neither Ricardo nor his wife went to Gonzaga, but their son, Derrick, graduated from there a few years ago. He flew in from Seattle to meet them.
They were decked out in Zag gear — Ricardo’s face was painted entirely blue and red. Whenever a Gonzaga shot went up, the whole family threw their hands in the air. If it hit the net, they were the loudest cheers in the bar.
When Gonzaga dropped two free throws, a buzzer sounded through every TV in the bar and somebody shot confetti in the air. As the clock ticked down, McFadden’s turned into a victory party: Mom held Derrick, who held Ricardo, who high-fived anybody he could find. The hug broke, and Derrick held his hands on his head.
“I’ve never seen anything like this.”
As soon as his South Carolina Gamecocks won a spot in the Final Four, Wes Davis decided to go with them. The tickets cost too much and the flight from Greenville, South Carolina, didn’t land until 10:45 p.m. Friday, but he came anyway.
“All for the Cocks,” he said. He’d traveled to see the football team play in bowl games, but South Carolina had never been in the Final Four. He needed to see it.
“The one complaint I have is the stadium,” Davis said, walking away from University of Phoenix Stadium right after the loss.
He said his seat was so far from the court he could barely see the game. Not only was he high in the rafters, but he ended up on the wrong side of the building: The court was built closer to one side of the stands, and he was on the opposite, he said.
A typical basketball arena seats about 20,000 or fewer. For these games, University of Phoenix Stadium set its largest capacity ever, at 76,000. Then the Gamecocks lost. So Davis left, and decided to sell his ticket to Monday’s national championship. He said he’d find some other way to spend the next couple days.
Gratitude for the locale
Jim Pittman who flew from Issoquah, Washington — a Seattle suburb — said he simply chose a team he liked and bought one of their shirts. That team was South Carolina — not Gonzaga.
While his team lost, Pittman didn’t share the gloom hovering over his fellow USC fans. Pittman had bought a three-game ticket, and was staying until the end regardless of who came out on top.
The Phoenix area’s weather also helped Pittman’s spirits remain bright.
“How can you not with the weather?” was his response when asked if he was enjoying the area. Being from the Seattle area, Pittman said he rarely got to enjoy the sunshine and planned on taking full advantage of the drier weather during his time in the Valley.
Roller coaster of emotions
North Carolina’s fans shifted across the emotional spectrum in a game ending in missed free throws and lucky saves. The Tar Heels bellowed in ecstasy and disbelief as the clock ran down to zero. The missed free throws were demoralizing, but ultimately weren’t enough to keep victory out of reach.
Lisa Griffith, who traveled from West Linn, Oregon, said she was sad to get so close with the Ducks and then lose.
“I don’t think that losing this one game is going to taint the season, but when you get this far, though — to not get to the championship is always disappointing,” she said. “But the season was amazing, so yeah, I’m really proud of the Ducks.”
But she said now she’s ready to cheer on Gonzaga.
“We’re Oregon fans, but we’re Pacific Northwest, so we want to see Gonzaga bring it home.”
Music festival draws thousands
About 100,000 people are expected to visit the free March Madness Music Festival over its three days.
The Chainsmokers, who won a Grammy Award this year for their hit “Don’t Let Me Down,” drew an at-capacity crowd Saturday night, rumored to be about 20,000, though officials couldn’t confirm the number. Gates closed while indie-rock band Grouplove were on stage.
Demand could be even bigger today, when Aerosmith will headline the festival, along with Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Blink-182 and Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats.
Compiled by Republic reporter Kaila White from reports by Republic reporters Conner Borgelt, Alden Woods, Richard Ruelas, Perry Vandell, Alejandro Barahona and Ed Masley.