Talk about a night to remember.
No one who watched Rider beat Wagner to win a berth in the NCAA tournament should ever forget what they saw Tuesday.Darrick Suber certainly won't. But he had a better view than most.
"I've thought about this type of play every day since I was a kid," Suber said. "I've been dreaming this dream ever since I picked up a basketball.
". . . People across the country got their money's worth tonight."
What ESPN's audience saw was a court-length drive end with Rider's career scoring leader making a 12-foot jumper at the buzzer for a 65-64 victory in the Northeast Conference championship game.
The victory in Lawrenceville, N.J., and that of Wright State, which beat Illinois-Chicago 94-88 in the Mid-Continent tournament at Datyton, Ohio, brought to 15 the number of teams now qualified for the 64-team NCAA tourament.
The Rider-Wagner matchup was not a meeting between Magic Johnson and Larry Bird, but Suber and Wagner's Bobby Hopson staged a thrilling duel of their own. Suber had 33 points, one more than Hopson, who scored his career high.
Wright St. 94, Illinois-Chicago 88
In this game, the sound of the buzzer had a different result - very nearly a tragic one. Reserve guard Chris McGuire was trampled when Raiders fans stormed the court in celebration of their first invitation to the big show.
Medical officials worked on McGuire for 15 minutes, putting a brace on his neck and a protective board under his back, before taking him off on a stretcher.
McGuire was taken to a hospital to make sure there was no serious damage.
"It was all just precaution," trainer Tony Ortiz said. "He should be fine."
Bill Edwards scored 38 points and Mike Nahar 25 for Wright State (20-9).