The Long Beach State men’s basketball team has been hurling toward national notoriety this entire season.
Last Saturday, they arrived and a slew of media attention came with it, confirming what 49er fans have known all along.
“Numerous NCAA tournament teams have hungry veterans,” Myron Medcalf wrote in ESPN’s College Basketball Nation Blog. “But few upperclassmen have gone through the things that T.J. Robinson, Larry Anderson and Casper Ware have throughout their careers.”
“The 49ers will not be intimidated,” he continued. “They’ll beat New Mexico and Louisville on their way to the Sweet 16.”
You read that right: Sweet 16.
But, The Beach’s moment in the spotlight has not only confirmed the strength of the team’s play. It has also highlighted unique qualities about the team that – before Saturday – only its fans knew.
Take this for example: LBSU doesn’t have much money to spend on its men’s basketball program.
According to the Memphis Business Journal, Duke spent $13.8 million to North Carolina’s $6.5 million and even San Diego State spent $3.6 million.
But LBSU, according to the Journal, spent a whopping $1.7 million. That’s good for 53rd best among 68 teams.
USA Today, the Los Angeles Times and the New York Times have also featured The Beach in print, online or both.
The New York Times opted for both, telling fans a little more about a team they already know.
Page B10 of March 13’s New York Times featured a story by John Branch titled “Win, Win, Win, or Go Home,” playing off the three victories the ‘Niners needed in the Big West Conference tournament to clinch an automatic bid into the NCAA tournament.
The article tells LBSU fans about head coach Dan Monson’s ailing father and the music he carries on his iPod but it also tells the country the ‘Niners are ready to play.
“For most, Long Beach State is a name on a bracket,” Branch wrote. “Few consider how it got there.”
According to the LBSU Athletics Department, Branch spent “several weeks” with the men’s basketball team, “chronicling their journey to the NCAA tournament.”
Branch’s article is a must-read for any LBSU fan, even if it rehashes history they’ve lived through themselves: losses to UC Santa Barbara, a near sweep of the Big West regular season, and record-breaking careers in Ware, Robinson and Anderson.
Yes, for 49ers fans, LBSU is not “a name on a bracket.” They know how their team got there and they knew they would get there all along.
Media attention comes with an NCAA tournament berth but it’s not just a reward for the players, it’s validation for the fans.
“I am proud of our great team. I am also proud of our students who made the Honda Center a home court,” Cal State Long Beach President F. Alexander said via email after Saturday night’s victory over UCSB – after the ‘Niners “arrived” and after Ware was hoisted in the air by hundreds of LBSU fans, but before the media attention came. “What a great night.”
And what a great night it was – for the fans and the players.