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"Abandon hope all ye who enter here."- Divine Comedy The Marriott Center doesn't sport the supposed inscription at the entrance of Hell, but teams must feel like that at times.
A raucous and sold out crowd of nearly 21,000 electrified the arena as BYU brought the second ranked Gonzaga Bulldogs to their home.
It was crazy in there. I couldn't hear myself think. It was just so loud.
–Brock Zylstra
"It was crazy in there." said senior Brock Zylstra, "I couldn't hear myself think. It was just so loud. It was a great atmosphere, a lot of credit to our fans, coming out and supporting us"
The Bulldogs are poised to earn the top ranking in the nation, provided they beat a terrible Portland Pilot team on Saturday, after dispatching the BYU Cougars 70-65 on national TV on Thursday night.
"They're good. They're one of the best teams I've played since I've been here." said head coach Dave Rose, "They're comparable to the North Carolina team we played in Vegas a few years ago, that ended up winning a National Championship. They're deep, they have great point guard play, they have great post play, they didn't shoot the ball extremely well tonight that kind of kept us in the game, but they found another way to win."
BYU has had a mildly disappointing season- although it speaks volumes that a 20-win season can be considered disappointing- so, how do you give the best team in the nation a heart-stopping scare?
How do you close the chasm from BYU to Gonzaga?
You tap into the 6th man. You tap into the 21,000 screaming fans, that might just be, blissfully ignorant of the talent disparity.
Then a magical night becomes possible.
"It was a great crowd." said head coach Dave Rose, "You know we had a couple chances to take the lead and sometimes that's all you need to get over that hump and carry you through". But the maniacal crowd could only take the team so far. They lifted the Cougars to within a point (63-62) with 1:04 remaining in the game, but BYU could creep no closer.
Senior Brandon Davies tried to treat his final home game, as just another game.
That didn't last long.
"it didn't really hit you until you are walking out there with your family and your fellow seniors. It feels like a normal game until you are out there." said Davies, "You have to give our fans a lot of credit for coming out and supporting us."
The ‘Zags play in "The Kennel", in their own right, a great college basketball atmosphere, but their capacity is 6,000, nearly three-and-a-half times smaller than the Marriott Center. The size and noise generated at the Marriott is unparalleled in the West Coast Conference.
"There was a point in the game where you couldn't hear a thing. I've got nothing but love and respect for our fans, they're always there for us." said Davies.
Rose knew when the schedule came out in the summer that playing Gonzaga at the end of the season, at home, on Senior Night had the makings of a special evening. "It was set up great for us, all we had to do was finish a couple of plays and it would have been a much happier ending."
Although no team has won a championship with moral victories, there were 21,000 fans that were treated to spectacular game, with an equally memorable atmosphere.
