Mendez and Brooks left the game with 1:09 to play and shared a group hug with coach Joe Mihalich as Niagara fans chanted, ``Thank you, seniors.''
``That scene is what makes college basketball special,'' Sampson said. ``You don't see that in the NBA. They had courage to come to Niagara and four years later, look what they did.''
Cruz's eyes were red and Brooks bowed his head during post-game interviews.
``We did something special, we made it to the tournament,'' said Cruz, also a senior. ``I was sad that we lost and our college career is over.''
Dolores Mihalich, the 80-year-old coach's mother, sat near Murphy with her hands clasped and a purple bandanna covering her head. She is battling colon cancer, which has spread to her liver.
Her son had promised that one day she would see him coach in a tournament game. Once the Eagles qualified, she carefully scheduled her biweekly chemotherapy treatments so she would be strong enough to travel across the country.
``As heartbroken as we are now, we had our one shining moment getting here and playing in the tournament,'' Mihalich said. ``We don't need another .500 Big 12 or ACC team in the tournament. We need more Niagaras.''
Thats one of them that ive read so far. There was one on espn.com which was really touching as well... Respect to the coach in this one!
