TERRE HAUTE — Almost nobody believed Michael Menser. I mean, really believed.
Well, his coach and teammates did. But I’m reasonably certain that none of the other beat writers at the 2001 Missouri Valley Conference Tournament pre-tourney interview session even bothered to repeat Menser’s comment in print.
“If we put a good streak together,” the Indiana State Sycamore guard said, “we can win it.”
By “it,” Menser didn’t mean just ISU’s first-round game. He meant the whole tournament — a feat that no Sycamore men’s basketball team had accomplished since Larry Bird and Co. in 1979.
Surely, skeptics presumed, Menser had to say that. Why else would he think the Sycamores had a chance?
After all, they ended the season by losing six of their last eight games. They’d even lost their home finale — Senior Night, for cryin’ out loud, for Menser, forward Matt Renn and three teammates. They’d fallen from first place to a tie for fourth.
Thus, ISU became the No. 5 seed in the MVC Tournament at St. Louis, and no team seeded so low had ever won the championship.
Their dream of reaching the Big Dance had unraveled. Or so most people thought.
Thank goodness, Michael, Matt and the Sycamores kept believing. They did exactly what Menser said was possible. They put a good streak together, defeating higher-seeded rivals Southern Illinois, Creighton and Bradley to win the conference tournament. Then they beat 13th-ranked Oklahoma in the NCAA South Regional at Memphis.
ISU fans and Hauteans gained a Rolodex of memories from a championship season that ISU hasn’t matched since. Some fans would say their favorite was Menser’s 32-point performance against top-seeded Creighton in the MVC Tournament, giving ISU a rousing 87-74 victory. In voting announced this week, Missouri Valley fans chose Menser’s exploit as the sixth-greatest moment in the history of “Arch Madness” — the league’s nickname for its St. Louis-based tourney, where the current Sycamore squad plays Illinois State in Friday’s first round.
My most vivid image from that season is far less obvious.
It occurred half an hour after ISU stunned heavily favored Oklahoma 70-68 in overtime at Memphis. The arena, called The Pyramid, was almost empty. Fans left, happy or dejected. The shocked Sooners were gone. NCAA staffers crunched numbers and stapled together statistical booklets in a computer room. Writers and sportscasters cranked out their stories from the media bullpen. After interviewing players and coaches and analyzing the game stats, I decided to take a walk to gather my thoughts. Strolling back into the now-quiet arena, I spotted Menser sitting, alone, in a courtside chair, sipping on bottled water, gazing across the court.
And smiling.
I didn’t interrupt his moment. But a breathless, hurried team manager soon did. “Michael,” he said, urgently, “everybody’s on the bus.” Menser grabbed his equipment bag and dutifully followed him out to The Pyramid parking lot.
I’m not sure what Menser had been thinking about, as he sat in that chair. Knowing Michael, if I asked him today — nine years later — he’d probably say something typically gracious like, “Oh, just my coaches and teammates, and everything we achieved together.” Perhaps. But I’m guessing a few images popped up, too.
Like 10,000 students, Hauteans and ISU fans storming the Hulman Center court after he hit two 3-pointers in the final 8.5 seconds of a milestone victory over the Indiana Hoosiers that November.
Or taking in the scenery at San Juan, Puerto Rico — and winning a couple of games — in an early season tournament.
Or watching Renn — the other half of ISU’s senior dynamic duo — play in pain, night after night, while wearing a brace to protect the stress fracture in his lower left leg.
Or learning the finer points of the college game – and the value of a thick skin — from Coach Royce Waltman.
Or enduring two last-second losses to Southern Illinois on improbable buzzer-beater shots by Saluki archnemesis Jermaine Dearman.
Or getting revenge on Dearman’s team with a 67-64 Sycamore win in the MVC tourney’s first round.
Or that 32-point explosion against Creighton in the second round at St. Louis. Down 15-12, Menser injured his shooting elbow in a collision with the Bluejays’ Ryan Sears. Menser made a rare trip to the bench, resting briefly because his right hand “felt like it was burning.” The pain subsided, but that fire never left. He hit 9 of 18 field goals, including five 3-pointers from so far off he could see the East St. Louis city limits. The clincher came just before halftime.
He stood at halfcourt, dribbling away the half’s final 35 seconds. Sears, his defender, watched, patiently waiting for Menser to pass or drive. He did neither. When the clock reached :02, Menser pulled up and launched a 27-footer that swished the net. Creighton went into the lockerroom trailing 41-36 and never recovered. “That last one was worth a lot more than 3 points,” Waltman said of Menser’s shot. The Bluejays were done.
Or cutting down the MVC Tournament nets after beating Bradley 69-63 in the title game.
Or knowing his family drove from their hometown of Batesville to witness every Sycamore game.
Or maybe Michael sat in that chair at Memphis, simply reliving the dramatic win over Oklahoma just minutes before. Teammate Kelyn Block got three teeth knocked out, and surprised everyone by returning to lead ISU in an overtime win that made the front page of the next morning’s New York Times.
From Michael’s vantage point, the season’s highlights were a lot to absorb. No wonder he sat down and took a few minutes to comprehend it all.
It was pretty unbelievable, even for a believer.
Mark Bennett can be reached at (812) 231-4377 or mark.bennett@tribstar.com.
Mark Bennett B-Sides
MARK BENNETT: Sometimes you just have to believe
- Mark Bennett B-Sides
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Banks of the Wabash Festival is more than just yearly entertainment
Pioneers think counterintuitively. Where others see widespread apathy, they focus on the possibility for progress. In a way, the 2013 Year of the River celebration began in the 1970s.
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MARK BENNETT: After running for 28 hours straight, what’s another 5 miles?
Some phrases can only be uttered by a few people, or none at all.
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MARK BENNETT: Glitches show limitations of high-stakes testing concept
The dog ate my homework. That age-old excuse — based on a shockingly unforeseen complication — rarely works for a kid who didn’t finish yesterday’s math assignment. Yet, in a role reversal, Indiana school children, along with their teachers and administrators, are left to accept an explanation for a disruption best described as the mother of all ironies.
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MARK BENNETT: One step at a time to save lives
Joan Brown.
Remember that name. -
MARK BENNETT: Sometimes, the mere posing of questions is significant
The era seems quaint now, almost like a fable. When people left their house doors unlocked. When the sight of a police officer in a school meant it was Career Day.
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MARK BENNETT: New reality steers Nashville singer to Crossroads for Historical Society concert
People pass through the Crossroads of America for lots of reasons.
Business trips. College campus events. Federal prison sentences. Visits with relatives. Gas pitstops.
Or maybe a career change and a twist of fate.
Ty Brown makes his first stop in downtown Terre Haute as the headliner of a multi-band Sweet Sensations Country Jam concert May 4 in the Ohio Building — a fundraiser for the Vigo County Historical Society. -
MARK BENNETT: Terre Haute barber ‘sharpens up’ customers for 50 years
People streamed through this section of downtown Terre Haute in those days.
“You could hardly walk by here,” John Hochhalter said, pointing toward the sidewalk outside the window.
The bustle has faded since the early 1960s. Hochhalter remains. He’s still barbering in the same shop he and late business partner Kenny Thomas opened a half-century ago this week. -
MARK BENNETT: Memories, emotions rush back with announcement of new pope
I saw a pope once.Read quickly, that sentence sounds too casual, almost as if we’d crossed paths at Home Depot. Say it slowly, though, and the significance comes through.
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MARK BENNETT: Reflections of grid success stir with Brent Anderson’s passing
A few hundred miles away, and nearly 40 years gone by, a special game ball still occupies a fond place in Rudy Bohinc’s memories.
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Lent meets ‘The Bucket List’ in Terre Haute
Initially, the concept might conjure images of Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman jumping out of an airplane or sitting atop the Pyramids. Instead, think “Lent Meets ‘The Bucket List’ in Terre Haute.”
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MARK BENNETT: Never truer: Knowledge vital to narrowing ‘skills gap’
The pillar at the gates of Faber College in the movie “Animal House” bore a wise motto, despite its tongue-in-cheek intent …
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MARK BENNETT: Great-niece to re-enact Paul Dresser’s musical legacy in Terre Haute show
People can be forgotten. Their lives end, time passes and memories fade.
Often, the only keepers of their legacies are family and friends, who tell and retell their stories, generation to generation.
For Paul Dresser, his fame burned strong enough as a turn-of-the-century, million-seller songwriter to preserve bits of his public notoriety. -
MARK BENNETT: An Olympic takedown
Imagine an iconic image of American sports history erased.
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MARK BENNETT: Indiana’s ‘skills gap’
A problem lasting decades ceases to be a “problem.” By then, the situation becomes “part of the culture.”
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MARK BENNETT: America’s best quality of life? Indiana must address flaws, set priorities
Just as the job interview seems smooth, the interviewer drops the question.
“So, where do you see yourself in five years?” -
MARK BENNETT: Pondering what is meant by ‘quality of life’ to Hoosiers
Sometimes it’s sincere. Other times, it’s sarcasm.
You cross paths with a friend, ask how they’re doing, and they say, “Ah, just livin’ the dream.”
Livin’ the dream. What exactly does that involve? Can it be defined? -
MARK BENNETT: By whatever name, stomach virus still a sick story
It’s the ugly side of the cold-and-flu season.
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MARK BENNETT: Living on the banks
We are the Wabash.
Really. -
MARK BENNETT: Rising young producer lands spot in Sundance Film Festival
When a project clicks, the moment is clear.
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MARK BENNETT: Remember the 20 children lost
Their names were listed on the screen at the front of the church on Sunday.
Our pastor asked us to choose one and pray for their family. I selected Noah Pozner, just by chance. -
MARK BENNETT: Tasting panel to help find Champagne Velvet’s ‘million-dollar flavor’
Rounding up enough volunteers to serve on a committee can be a struggle.
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MARK BENNETT: Thanksgiving’s feast can be defined by either the presence of family or the family’s quest for presents
The best gift deals will be gone by 12:01 a.m. Nov. 23.
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MARK BENNETT: Salvation Army touches many lives
Sometimes, the unexpected happens.
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MARK BENNETT: Election excellence: 30 out of 32 is pretty darn good
Detroit car makers unveil the latest Mustangs and Corvettes on Wabash Avenue.
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MARK BENNETT: Climbing the rungs of Lincoln’s Ladder
One crucial quality helped Abraham Lincoln become America’s greatest president.
Courage? Political savvy? Wisdom? Moral character? -
MARK BENNETT: Drop the needle
Over time, excellence and nostalgia inappropriately merge in our minds.
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No matter the age, voting’s a part of American fabric
The electoral karma seemed, well, unfair.
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MARK BENNETT: A moment on the brink
Ominous, but distant.
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MARK BENNETT: Valley-born filmmaker influenced by roots
Real-life stories inspire Laura Brownson.
Even those vastly unlike her own. -
MARK BENNETT: No debating it: Candidates have it easier than ‘forensics’ specialists
Nightmares can jolt us awake, just before we fall off a cliff or show up for work or school unprepared.
- More Mark Bennett B-Sides Headlines
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