Little things mean a lot

Scenes from behind the closed door of the NSU Demons locker room after Sunday’s last-second SLC Basketball Tournament Championship Game loss to a very good Texas A&M-Corpus Christi team …

… Emotion was powerful, as you would expect, especially for the four seniors. After the team’s prayer, forward Jermaine Spencer asked to call “up” the team one more time. The chant goes “1-2-3, TOGETHER!” And they were.

Spencer then gave a passionate talk about how the teammates and coaches had supported him through several personal trials along with his five years in the program, and he thanked each of the team. He also challenged the returning players to get back to the championship game next year, and to get back to the NCAA Tournament and win. With six seniors next year, that seems possible.

Kennan Jones was quiet as ever. He’s Mr. Even Keel. He was clearly in agony, but still, had a relatively calm demeanor. I would hate to play poker against him! His career ends with “the Chief” fourth in NSU’s all-time assists list. That is absolutely amazing when you consider he didn’t even play half of each game until this season, because the No. 2 all-time assists man and the career steals king, Tyronn Mitchell, was the starting point guard.

Luke Rogers was the most emotional before Coach Mike McConathy began to talk. After Spencer’s remarks, Luke went around the room, shaking hands and hugging each teammate and coach.

Eric Woods got a special hug from Coach Mike. His bad knees really limited E-Woo in his only season in the uniform for NSU, but he’s been part of the team for two years and he’s a quiet favorite, both among teammates and coaches, and among kids in the community.

… As Coach Mike said the benediction, he mentioned something Demon football great Marcus Spears said to him coming off the court. Spears pointed out this senior class had been at the heart of taking NSU basketball to unprecedented levels of success and expectations. It’s really amazing when you look back at the scope of it. NSU basketball was in a state of flux upon the arrival of Spencer and Jones, both fifth-year seniors. Look what they’ve left behind. Just amazing. No wonder that comment choked up Coach Mike as he verbalized it.

…Spears, who was given a championship ring for his passionate involvement with last year’s team, asked to speak. He told the players how proud he was of that little ring, the only championship ring he’s ever gotten in his athletic career. He also told them to remember in life, and definitely in competition, that mistakes make a huge impact. That coming back from mistakes is the sign of true champions, and that he loved them all like brothers.

… Then former Demon footballer Andy Perot chimed in to echo Spears’ comments. Andy – a favorite of the players and a dear friend of Coach Mike’s – and his wife Angie, administrative assistant to Vice President Jerry Pierce, were with the team all week long and are “part of the family.”

… Finally, your support was noticed. Those young men were amazed at the tremendous turnout of NSU fans in the Campbell Center and the text messages, e-mails, and calls they received from friends and fans. They regretted they couldn’t give us one last celebration, but once again, they gave us lots of magical moments and kept us believing until the final horn sounded.

Doug Ireland, SID