(Photo by Advocateloyola)
Miami guard Lonnie Walker IV, a 75% free-throw shooter, stepped to the line with 9.3 seconds remaining. He dribbled twice, took a deep breath, and launched the ball towards the rim for the front end of a one-and-one.
The ball nicked off the front rim, deflected up off the back iron, and bounced several times, nearly settling to a stop. As the basketball fell back into play, two players jumped and tipped it back up into the air where Loyola-Chicago’s Ben Richardson snagged it and dished it off to Marques Townes. Townes dribbled to the left wing, drew a double-team, and kicked a pass to senior guard Donte Ingram, who stepped into a deep three from the edge of the NCAA logo.
The sports world held its collective breath, watching as the ball shivered through the mesh, giving the 11-seed Ramblers a 64-62 lead over the six-seed Hurricanes with 0.3 seconds remaining. As the final three-tenths of a second ticked off the clock, the legend of the Loyola-Chicago Ramblers was born.
It didn’t stop there; in the second round, junior guard Clayton Custer pulled up and hit the game-winning jump shot with just 3.6 seconds left to knock off three-seed Tennessee. Now, the Ramblers are set to kick off the NCAA Sweet Sixteen with a matchup against the seventh-seeded Nevada Wolf Pack on Thursday night.
In addition to their two miracle victories, the Ramblers also feature a media darling in Sister Jean Dolores-Schmidt, the 98-year-old team chaplain. She’s been with the Ramblers since 1994 and played high school basketball herself in the 1930’s. Prior to each game, she leads the team in a collective prayer, and she sits courtside in a wheelchair with her maroon-and-yellow-striped scarf. According to Custer, Sister Jean often includes a “scouting report” within many of her pregame prayers. She also sends a comprehensive email to the team following every game detailing what went well and what needs to be improved.
“We are going to get the big W up there and we did.” -Sister Jean Dolores-Schmidt following the Ramblers’ first round victory over Miami (via New York Post)
Aside from divine intervention, how is this Cinderella getting it done on the court? The Ramblers are a well-balanced offensive team with a particular flare for the dramatic. Against Miami, they had four different players in double-figures, and versus Tennessee, every rostered player found his way onto the score sheet. Most importantly, they’ve been able to trade blows with elite college hoops programs late into the second half. In each of their victories, the Ramblers remained in striking distance until it was time to go win the game, and then they did just that.
Will Loyola-Chicago survive Nevada and move on to the Elite Eight? Only time will tell, but one thing’s for sure: They have support from the man upstairs.
(Sister Jean info via Today and matchup info courtesy of ESPN)
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