![]() While the Michigan State, Duke and West Virginia players only had to worry about practices and interviews Thursday and Friday, the Bulldogs shuttled back and forth to campus so they could get to a class or two. He kept the Bulldogs on their regular schedule early in the week - including those 6:30 a.m. While wanting his players to savour the experience, Stevens also has done his best to contain the hoopla surrounding his team. “You take more pride, get more excited about that than anything else.” … Right next to my hotel room, I will say I can hear ‘One Shining Moment’ followed by the Butler fight song. “It certainly is a different level of energy and enthusiasm for Butler than ever before. “This is unique,” Butler coach Brad Stevens acknowledged. Leave it to little Butler - enrolment 4,200 - to give Hoosier fans some hope. And Purdue, a dark horse pick for the Final Four a few weeks ago, became an underdog after Robbie Hummel went down. Notre Dame got bounced out in the first round in the NCAA tournament. Indiana had its second straight losing season. Basketball is ingrained in Indiana’s identity, but it has been a rough stretch lately for the state’s three big-name schools. auto industry, and Izzo made sure his players embraced their chance to lift a beleaguered state.īutler isn’t shouldering quite as heavy a burden. Few states were hit worse by the economic crisis than Michigan, the heart of the U.S. In fact, the Spartans fed off the crowd in their semifinal upset of Connecticut. ![]() Coach Tom Izzo jokes that he could have brought an all-star team and still not made a run at the Tar Heels. Now, the Spartans aren’t blaming their shellacking by North Carolina in last year’s title game on the distractions of being so close to home. But it hasn’t been done since 1975, when UCLA won in San Diego. Of the 10 previous schools who played in a Final Four in their home state, five won it all. “It’s a big difference from just being in town for a regular-season game.” Everyone just wants to be around, from someone you knew in kindergarten to someone you just met last week. But it also comes with distractions, as well,” said Draymond Green, whose hometown of Saginaw, Mich., is two hours north of Detroit. “It comes with a lot of fun and excitement. When the Spartans made it to last year’s Final Four in recession-battered Detroit, 145 kilometres from campus, almost 10,000 fans showed up just for a pep rally at a suburban mall. On paper, playing at home would seem to be a huge advantage: you’re the overwhelming fan favourite a long red light on the trek from campus is the extent of your travel drama and there’s no need to scout out restaurants or practice sites.Īll that enthusiasm also can cause a headache. “I think that could be the case if we were playing anywhere, but for it to be here in Indianapolis makes it even more special.”īutler (32-4) plays Michigan State (28-8) in the first semifinal Saturday. “Just turning every corner and seeing Butler shirts, Butler jerseys, Butler hats, any kind of Butler apparel on every corner, I don’t think it gets much better than that,” point guard Ronald Nored said Friday. Who knew there were that many Butler alums out there? Playing a mere nine kilometres from their campus, the Bulldogs have brought what seems like the whole Hoosier state along for their first appearance on college basketball’s biggest stage. Butler is enjoying the kind of lovefest that Michigan State saw at last year’s Final Four - and then some. ![]()
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