Great article from Brian T.



Courtney Pigram said it hurt.

It hurt to go out like he did. Like the Bucs did.

So close. So near. So real.

History waited. Underdogs watched. Losers wondered: Could it happen? This year? This team?

In the end, history moved on. The big kids won. The small kids again got kicked in the gut.

But Pigram did East Tennessee State University right. So did Kevin Tiggs. And the rest of the 2008-09 Buccaneers.

ETSU nearly crashed The Dance. It nearly ruined Pitt’s party. It reminded a national audience why ETSU basketball matters. And why every proud, hungry fighter always deserves a chance.

The Bucs’ season ended Friday afternoon, as No. 16 seed ETSU fell, 72-62, to the No. 1 seed Pittsburgh Panthers in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at the University of Dayton Arena in Dayton, Ohio.

But the Buccaneers’ loss was a reminder. A reminder of what ETSU basketball once was. What it is now. And what it could still become.

“We lost,” Tiggs said. “But we’re all right. We’re all right.”

The Bucs are all right.

They bruised the Panthers. They shook up Pitt. They fought and battled and hustled and wrestled, making the East Region’s top seed look fat, lazy and stuffed.

East Tennessee State played a better game than the Panthers on Friday. And the Buccaneers proved that their No. 16 seed was a joke.

“There’s no way [they’re] a 16 seed,” Pitt coach Jamie Dixon said.

Enough said.

And enough was said when Pigram drained a 3-pointer from the right wing, pulling ETSU within 59-57 with 4 minutes, 28 seconds to go.

As Pigram lifted his right arm upward and turned his right hand into a “3,” Bucs freshman forward Isiah Brown threw a roundhouse punch into open space and screamed.

Pigram’s shot said ETSU was for real. That anything can happen.

He and the Buccaneers just didn’t make enough shots Friday. But all the clanked iron on open looks disguised what really went down.

East Tennessee State hung with and at times punished Pitt. The Bucs attacked from the opening tip and clamped down on a Panthers squad that appeared lost.

As Pitt drifted, ETSU danced. Pigram mixed smiles and swagger with hard stares. Tiggs carved up the Panthers’ once-meaty interior.

Bucs basketball was back. Big time. On a national stage. On a million-eyed platform.

Before the game, media members whispered “Who is ETSU?” jokes. After, the whispers had evolved into questions of legacy and history.

The loss still hurt Pigram. His college days are done. So are Tiggs’.

But they took ETSU to the promised land. They paid on their potential. And, somewhere, Keith “Mister” Jennings, who delivered a similar performance for the Bucs 20 years earlier, is smiling, wide and bright.

Just like Tiggs.

very well put. We certainly should have been a 15 and with a little luck a 14. However I know we have to be proud of ETSU basketball. They played like they belonged there, as opposed to some of the 16's. Go Bucs.

You guys played you're hearts out, and you should be proud of it. Its pretty sad though that not one major sports anyalist gave you guys any chance to be competitive before the game. But anyone with eyes and a decent brain who's seen ETSU could of predicted a tough game for pitt. You guys have size and athletes that other low/mid majors dont have. You played you're hearts out, but you def did not play you're A game as espn and cbs will lead ppl to believe. You guys missed a ton of open shots, and had plenty of dumb turnovers while shooting 50% from the ft line and yet you still gave Pitt the scare of their life while bruising their egos.

Thanks for the kind words Owlzfan! You pretty much echo the way I feel about the team after watching the game Friday. The Bucs played tough yet did not have their "A" game. A game they could easily have won. I love March Madness!

It's tough for a Mid Major.. they gave Miss State a 13.. and it's obvious ETSU had a better team than MSU.. MSU lost to both Auburn and Alabama.. and wasn't it Mercer who beat both of them????

Correct

I bet we could have beaten an SEC team but none of them were ranked high enough for us to get one of them in the pairings

Notwithstanding the monster Blair, I was struck how comparable our players were in athleticism and talent. One Pitt fan on their board quipped (in response to my assertion that several of our players could play in so called 'major' conferences) that 'most players who can play in major conferences do...' After watching Tiggs get to the rim at will; after seeing CP slice and dice their guards, who incidentally, are regarded as some of the best perimeter defenders in the nation; and after witnessing Greg Hamlin track down the speedy Fields like a cornerback in a fast break and block him high off the glass, I thought: Am I seeing this? I thought Big East players would 'lock up' Tiggs and CP or blow by a bummed-knee Hamlin. It simply never happened.

No we didnt but it was fun getting a shot at history. We wont get that shot again for awhile

(03-22-2009 01:45 PM)Owlzfan84 Wrote:  You guys played you're hearts out, and you should be proud of it. Its pretty sad though that not one major sports anyalist gave you guys any chance to be competitive before the game. But anyone with eyes and a decent brain who's seen ETSU could of predicted a tough game for pitt. You guys have size and athletes that other low/mid majors dont have. You played you're hearts out, but you def did not play you're A game as espn and cbs will lead ppl to believe. You guys missed a ton of open shots, and had plenty of dumb turnovers while shooting 50% from the ft line and yet you still gave Pitt the scare of their life while bruising their egos.

Thanks for the kind words owlsfan!

I believe CP was recruited by Louisville.

Yes, Louisville, Oklahoma and others backed off CP because of his ACT score.. so he came to ETSU because Travis Strong was here.. he paid his own way his freshman year, made his grades.. and the rest as they say is history.. Bad luck for those other schools and great for us!!!!!!!!!!

(03-22-2009 10:56 PM)youngbuc Wrote:  No we didnt but it was fun getting a shot at history. We wont get that shot again for awhile

I'm not sure about that. Next year's team could be very special. Tuggs, Smith, Brown, Hubbard, Davis returning, Saluzzo Williams...I think we have the makings of a team that could go to post season play.

I meant 16 taking down a 1, I agree we could be in the NCAAs again next year but we wont be a 16

Many a slip twixt the cup and the lip. The NCAA bid isn't a given for anyone, but I think we are going to be the team to beat in the A-Sun next year, and should do well. I hope we have a little tougher non conference schedule next year. We should stop playing Southern Conference teams and move up a notch in picking competition.

Great article. I wish I could have seen this game live. Is it online anywhere? Im happy ETSU showed what it is capable of to the world. Back to back ASUN near upsets in the tourney. Such heartbreaks.

(04-26-2009 10:10 PM)MercerFan Wrote:  Great article. I wish I could have seen this game live. Is it online anywhere? Im happy ETSU showed what it is capable of to the world. Back to back ASUN near upsets in the tourney. Such heartbreaks.

Are you back from Officer Candidate School, Mercerfan? If so, welcome back!