Marquette upsets No. 3 seed Syracuse
CLEVELAND -- Oh, is there ever a Buzz in the NCAA Tournament.
Brent Williams is better known as Buzz -- Coach Buzz, if you play for Marquette -- and his postgame celebrations have become the stuff of legend. Sunday night, he might have had his wildest yet.
His bald head glistening with sweat, he leaped in the air, pounded his fists on tables and shared tears and hugs with his family. He saluted the fans and slapped hands with band members and anyone he could touch wearing the Golden Eagles' gold and blue.
Williams is off to the round of 16 -- and he wanted to bring the party with him.
Darius Johnson-Odom sparked the celebration by hitting a tiebreaking three-pointer with 27 seconds left that sent Marquette to a 66-62 win over Big East rival Syracuse, putting the Golden Eagles in the NCAA Tournament's round of 16 for the first time in eight years.
With 51 seconds left, Dion Waiters threw his sideline inbounds pass too high and close to the midcourt line. Scoop Jardine tiptoed over the line on his jump to snag the ball for a backcourt violation.
"I thought I had him and I was just trying to throw the pass where I thought he could catch it," Waiters said. "I don't know what happened."
Johnson-Odom delivered the shot of his career for a 62-59 lead, and 11th-seeded Marquette is moving on to the round of 16 for the first time since Dwyane Wade led them to the Final Four in 2003.
Marquette will play second-seeded North Carolina (28-7) in the East Regional semifinals Friday in Newark, N.J. Marquette, known then as the Warriors, beat North Carolina to win the national title in 1977.
At Marquette, there's always a link to the '77 team and its treasured coach, Al McGuire. Where most teams have a logo or a letter on the jersey, Marquette has "AL" at the neck.
Johnson-Odom scored 17 points and Jae Crowder had 16 for the Golden Eagles. Waiters scored 18 points and Kris Joseph had 12 for Syracuse, which was doomed by 18 turnovers and lost guard Brandon Triche for most of the second half with a bruised tailbone.
This was the second straight early exit for the third-seeded Orange (27-8). "I thought it was just a great game," said Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim, whose team was a No. 1 seed last year and lost in the round of 16 to Butler.
Afterward, Syracuse players sat in front of their lockers in stunned disbelief. Many of them still were in uniform 20 minutes after the game, almost afraid to accept that their hopes of an NCAA title had been dashed for the second straight year short of the Final Four.
"We're still the better team," Jardine said. "We fought all season and we had a good season, and to go out like this is tough."
Marquette was one of a record 11 Big East teams to make the field -- and the most scrutinized. With 14 losses and a 9-9 record in conference play, the Golden Eagles were a shaky pick when the brackets were announced.
Who's counting them out now?
