Larry Brown Sports

There must be something about winning a game in the Big Dance that makes people actually want to dance. No. 9 seed Wichita State knocked off No. 1 seed Gonzaga 76-70 in the West Region Saturday for one of the biggest “shockers” of the tournament. Several of Wichita State’s players — led by junior guard Nick Wiggins — broke out a dance circle on the court at EnergySolutions Arena in Salt Lake City.

One of the nicest postgame moments came when Shockers coach Gregg Marshall was interviewed by TNT’s Jaime Maggio and was joined by his children. Marshall’s daughter was so proud and stunned, she had tears in her eyes:

Read The Rest of the Story…

Marquette coach Buzz Williams spoke emotionally after leading his team to the Sweet 16 for the second straight year. Asked by a reporter about his decision to go into the stands to hug his family after the team’s victory instead of conducting a TV interview, Williams explained his actions in a heartfelt, yet strange way.

“I’m not worried about TV, not worried about the crowd, not worried about the pageantry or the ambience of what the tournament is about,” he said. “I’m humbled by it all. Extremely grateful for my wife and the sacrifices that she makes and for our four children, growing up as sons and daughters of coaches is very volatile and extremely emotional.

“A country kid that just hung in there. Hang in there, hang in there, hang in there, throw a good pitch, throw a good pitch. The butcher, the baker, the candlestick maker, show up and go to work and do it every day no matter what’s surrounding you. That’s really hard, man.

“You got to be a lion chaser to be married to me. She’s tougher than all them kids we play with. It’s really humbling, really humbling.”

Many people were moved by his speech while others thought he was high on drugs. I just know those words earned him plenty of points with the wifey, that’s for sure.

Oh, and sorry to break it to you, Buzz, but West Virginia fans still hate you.

After his team overcame a 15-point deficit for a gritty, one-point road victory over West Virginia, Marquette coach Buzz Williams had every reason to dance. Even more reason: the No. 10 Golden Eagles pulled it off with four of his top players suspended for parts of the game.

So as John Denver’s “Take Me Home, Country Roads” flowed from WVU Coliseum’s speakers as the arena emptied after the game, Williams did a couple twirls and a two-step as he made his way across the floor for an interview with ESPN right in front of the West Virginia student section. And the student faithful was hardly pleased with Williams’ little shimmy.

By the time he made it to the broadcast booth, a cluster of incensed students had to be held back by security and ESPN analyst Bill Raftery got hit a foamy object undoubtedly meant for Williams.

Here’s a video of the entire episode:

Read The Rest of the Story…

Marquette head coach Buzz Williams was understandably excited after his Golden Eagles beat No. 15 UConn in overtime on Thursday night. With a record of 17-11, the victory will be crucial in determining whether or not Marquette is worthy of the NCAA tournament. That being said, he should probably take it down a notch before he has an aneurysm. Check out the Buzz Williams horse voice video:

That’s either a man with a rip-roaring flu and fever or one whose wife is at home concerned for his health. The NCAA tournament committee should probably consider Williams’ safety before deciding if Marquette should make the field of 68. Imagine this guy in a close tourney game?