Every year when the Mountain West basketball tournament comes around in March, Seth and I will say to each other, “we should go to the tournament one year.” Well, this year was shaping up to be the best year to go for a number of reasons. The team was predicted to be good for one, it was Jimmer’s senior year and he was turning into a super star, and this was the last year for BYU in the Mountain West conference. This had to be the year, it was now or never.
Lucky for us, we thought about it far enough ahead of time to get the wheels rolling. We started making calls for tickets and lodging, and to see who wanted to go. It turned out to be me, Seth, Erik, Kirk, Dad, and Seth's friend Kyle. We headed to Vegas and we had a blast.
We stayed at a little place just off of the Strip called the Jockey Club. It was just a hotel, that's it. No gambling, no slots, no smoking. Perfect (especially since my mother made us all promise before leaving that we would not gamble, as if we would...), as we spent almost all the time watching the games anyway.
It was an electric atmosphere, the competition was heated, and the crowds were all hostile toward BYU. And we all did a little of our own thing to pass the time:
Dad kept stats on the Cougs:
and Erik, well, I think he was just busy trying to figure out his camera ;-):
Between games we ran into a few celebrities who were nice enough to pause for some pics and a little conversation with Dad:
Craig Thompson, the commissioner of the Mountain West Conference.
Harvey Unga, recently graduated running back for BYU.
and Chad Lewis, former BYU tight end.
We even made a trip to the pawn shop made famous by the show Pawn Stars:
And of course, saw some of the sites on the Strip.
The highlight of the tournament was Jimmer putting on his show. To set the scene, BYU was rolling, taking down every team in their path. They are 28-2 and peaking just as tournament time was approaching. Then, a spot of bad news; Brandon Davies is suspended from the team. That put a damper on the end of the season and their post season aspirations. BYU lost to New Mexico the next game, but then dispatched Wyoming just before the Tourney.
TCU was first up in Vegas and they proved a tougher win than they should have been. BYU won 64-58 with Jimmer scoring 24.
Then the game this generation will talk about for 30 years. Up next is New Mexico, who had just beaten the pants off BYU at the Marriott Center the week before and swept the season series claiming two of BYU's three losses. The team is tired and discouraged from the suspension news and no one is certain what to expect from them anymore. Jimmer, however, is not done. He goes off for 52 points while the rest of the team has 35 combined as BYU wins 87-76. It was a site to behold. He seemingly could not miss. And he was not given any favors as only one of his record breaking points came at the free throw line.
We cheered loud, and by the end of the game most of the other fans were too. Even the New Mexico fans cheered Jimmer as he left the court at the end of the game. How could they not. Here is a recap of the game: http://byucougars.com/m-basketball/fredettes-52-propel-byu-championship-game
BYU advanced to the tournament championship game against San Diego, but lost 72-54 in the end. It was a fantastic tournament anyway. The games were great, the atmosphere was fun and everyone had a great time. In the end everyone wanted to know how to Jimmer!
BYU ended up with a 3 seed in the NCAA tournament. They beat Wofford in the first round 74-66, then spanked Gonzaga 89-67 to advance to the Sweet 16 for the first time in 30 years. Florida was next and BYU bowed out with an 84-73 overtime loss (BYU beat Florida in overtime the year before). But what a great year for BYU, best in 30 years. There are some who believe that if Davies would not have been suspended they could have gone to the final four, I think they could have.
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