Loyola official: Some Sister Jean critique ‘disgusting’
SAN ANTONIO – Critics pounced Saturday night when Sister Jean left her spot at the Alamodome with about about two minutes left in Loyola-Chicago’s 69-57 loss to Michigan in the Final Four.
“I cannot believe anyone would insinuate she gave up on these kids,” Bill Behrns, assistant athletics director for communications at Loyola, told USA TODAY by email Sunday. “How utterly disgusting.”
It turns out there was good reason for the 98-year-old nun’s early exit, according to Behrns. She wanted to be in position by the tunnel to greet the players as they left the court.
“Just as she has for every other game, win or lose,” he said.
Indeed, Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt, Loyola’s team chaplain, hugged and consoled the players, each who leaned down to embrace the spirited woman in the wheelchair.
Loyola players weren’t the only ones seeking her out after the game. Michigan’s Jordan Poole spotted Sister Jean and chased her down.
“I’m a big fan of yours,” Poole told her, smiling broadly. “You did an amazing job.”
Earlier in the tournament, Poole, a freshman guard, laughed while noting that more people were talking about Sister Jean than the 30-foot buzzer beater he made to lift Michigan to a second-round victory over Houston.
At an interview session after Michigan’s victory over Loyola, he fielded a question about his postgame interaction with Sister Jean.
“She got those guys,” Poole said of the Loyola Ramblers. “She had their back the entire time, and everybody talks about them being a Cinderella story and she was getting a lot of attention.
“But being able to build a fan base how she did, and being able to have Loyola have so many fans out here and travel well, and I just thought the entire concept and everything that she brought to the table, and being able to have such a a big impact on the team, being in a situation like this, I thought it was amazing.”
George Clooney vs. Peter Falk
Michigan coach John Beilein didn’t need help from a casting director Sunday when asked what actor would play him and what actor would play Villanova coach Jay Wright if the NCAA basketball championship game were turned into a movie.
“At the end of the game (Monday), he’ll still look like George Clooney and I will look like Columbo, by Peter Falk, at the end of that thing,” Beilein said, eliciting laughter at a news conference. “So there’s your comparison.
“I’d like to say Kevin Costner, but I can’t go there.”
Jalen Brunson vs. Jalen Brunson
Villanova’s Jalen Brunson, the national collegiate basketball player of the year, looked momentarily stumped Sunday when asked what his game plan would be if he had to defend himself.
“Just hope I miss,” he said a day before Villanova plays Michigan in the title game at the Alamodome. “Just hope I miss. …
“I don’t know. That’s a good question.”
The followup question: Who’s the toughest defender you’ve faced this year and why?
“I definitely know the answer to that,” said Brunson, a junior point guard. “I’m pretty sure I’m going to keep that to myself, ’cause I don’t want anyone to know there’s any weakness in me. So I’m just definitely going to keep that to myself.”
Beilein’s guilt feelings
Citing Poole’s 30-foot buzzer-beater the Michigan Wolverines needed to escape in the second round of the NCAA tournament, Beilein reflected on the proverbial road to the Final Four that culminates Monday against Villanova.
“I feel guilty sometimes about some of the games we’ve won because we’ve just had this grace fall on us all of a sudden,” Beilein said.
Yet Michigan’s coach also said he’s learned that’s just the nature of the tournament. “It’s not about the best team,” Beilein said during a news conference at the Alamodome. “It’s a time that funny bounces of the ball will determine the champion. And that’s why we love it. We just absolutely love it. And things could turn a game just like that. So we’ve had those breaks.”
How Wagner became Weasley
A mystery has been solved at the Final Four.
Mortiz “Moe” Wagner, Michigan’s starting center, explained why his Twitter handle is @Moritz_Weasley, the same name he uses on Instagram and Facebook.
“It’s a funny story,” Moritz said a day after scoring 24 points and grabbing 15 rebounds in Michigan’s victory over Loyola. “So, when I was little, I started my social media activity on Facebook and my mom didn’t want me to use my real name because of privacy issues and all that stuff.
“I made up a name that everybody would know is not mine, similar to my real name. It kind of became funny because of Ron Weasley (a character) in Harry Potter. So it became a joke and then Instagram and all that stuff came along. So I just kept it and now it’s my nickname.”
For the record, the 6-11 Wagner looks at least a foot taller than Weasley (as played by actor Rupert Grint in the Harry Potter movies.