Spring break will be fun even in The Pit
By Ferd Lewis
Advertiser Staff Writer
Perhaps never before have so many college kids from Hawai'i been so excited about the prospect of spending their spring break in ... Albuquerque, N.M.?
But, then, as these University of Hawai'i Wahine have reminded us these past few nights, this isn't your normal basketball team, either.
Not by a long shot, which is, by the way, the improbable route that takes them to Albuquerque, site of the semifinals of the Women's National Invitation Tournament Saturday.
No sooner had they punched their ticket to the Duke City with a remarkable 52-51 comeback victory over Oklahoma State last night, than the exhortations of "On to Albuquerque!" and choruses of "final four! ... final four! ..." began in the jubilant stands of the Stan Sheriff Center.
As Crystal Lee cradled the ball in her hands in the waning moments, her toothpaste-commercial smile widening by the instant, her teammates began to dance and hug.
With a season-high crowd of 4,279 counting down the final seconds with them, the Wahine shrieked with joy at the prospect of continuing a season that had seemed to have run out of gas 2 1/2 weeks ago in Tulsa, Okla., and seemed to be running out of time last night.
"We're playing off adrenaline and heart because, well, we really have nothing else to play with," #Lee said.
"When I wake up in the morning and roll out of bed, my body feels like my season should be over," said Lee, a senior. "I feel like my career should be over and I should be looking forward to spring break instead of basketball. But when I come out of games like this one, I'm so glad it isn't over. I want to keep going. I really don't want it to stop."
And for a 34th time in this season seemingly without end, the Wahine will play on. That they will do it on the Lobos' home court, the infamous Pit, mattered not at all last night.
Only that they would continue this improbable journey, seeing through what they started more than four months ago.
For no Wahine team has lasted longer into the postseason or positioned itself to win so much. Or, as Lee termed it, "the post-post-post season."
And no team has deserved it more.
Only one other Wahine team, the 1992-93 edition that went 28-4, has won more games than this 26-7 — and still counting — squad.
That they have done it for three games now without Kylie Galloway, their most accomplished player, who quit 10 days ago, merely underlines the amazement of their deeds.
"I can't help but really love these kids here," Goo said afterward, his voice choking with emotion. "To be where we are now after where we were (running on fumes in the Western Athletic Conference Tournament), is really amazing. What else can you say?"
How about: Anybody for spring break in Albuquerque?
