OKC in Hoops Press

From the The Capital Times of Madison, Wisconsin, home to the UW Badgers, this article about the bombing, parallels to OKC, events a decade ago. It's a funny, nice intro to the city:

Mike Lucas: Ten years ago, Bruins, bombing in headlines

By Mike Lucas
March 16, 2005

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Ten years ago ...

UCLA, Kansas, Kentucky and Wake Forest were the No.1 seeds in the NCAA men's basketball tournament. This marked a return to glory for the Bruins, who grabbed a top seed for the first time since 1975 - John Wooden's last championship season.

Ten years ago ...

The University of Wisconsin women's basketball team, coached by Jane Albright-Dieterle, was awarded a No. 10 seed and drew Kansas, led by Middleton's Angie Halbleib, in the first round of the NCAA women's tournament.

Ten years ago ...
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Wisconsin athletic director Pat Richter began a coaching search to replace Stan Van Gundy, who had been fired after one season as the UW's interim head coach. The Badgers lost their final game 97-72 at Michigan State to finish with a 13-14 record.

Ten years ago ...

Western Kentucky rallied from a 14-point deficit to upset Michigan 82-76 in a Midwest Regional first-round game in Dayton, Ohio. The loss officially ended the Fab Five era as the final two members, Ray Jackson and Jimmy King, bowed out. "Michigan basketball will survive and prosper," Wolverines coach Steve Fisher predicted.

Ten years ago ...

Purdue's Cuonzo Martin hit two free throws with 35.2 seconds left to lift the Boilermakers to a 49-48 win over UW-Green Bay in a Midwest Regional first-round game in Austin, Texas. "The game was there for us to win," said UWGB coach Dick Bennett. "A lot of experts were picking them to beat us," added Purdue coach Gene Keady.

Ten years ago ...

UCLA's Tyus Edney, a diminutive 150-pound guard, went coast-to-coast in 4.8 seconds and scored a short baby hook shot over two defenders - a bank shot, no less - that gave the Bruins a stunning 75-74 victory over Missouri in a second-round NCAA tournament game in Boise, Idaho.

Ten years ago ...

Bryant "Big Country" Reeves helped lead Oklahoma State to its first Final Four appearance since 1951 as the Cowboys outmuscled Massachusetts 68-54. Reeves scored 24 points and pulled down 10 rebounds to dominate his matchup against skinny UMass center Marcus Camby.

Ten years ago ...

Defending NCAA champion Arkansas outlasted Virginia 68-61 to earn a return trip to the Final Four - joining Oklahoma State, UCLA and North Carolina in Seattle, Wash. The Razorbacks were looking to become the first repeater since Duke won back-to-back crowns in 1991 and 1992.

Ten years ago ...

The Bruins controlled the boards and overwhelmed Arkansas 89-78 in the Kingdome to capture their 11th NCAA title, and first in 20 years. Cameron Dollar replaced an injured Edney and ran UCLA's offense to perfection, picking up eight assists. "This is the greatest feeling, this is what you dream about," said Bruins coach Jim Harrick.

Note: Harrick's staff included Mark Gottfried (now at Alabama), Lorenzo Romar (now at Washington) and Steve Lavin (now with ESPN).

Ten years ago ...

UW-Platteville, coached by Bo Ryan, completed an unbeaten season with a 69-55 win over previously unbeaten Manchester (Ind.) College, coached by Steve Alford, in the Division III national championship game in Buffalo, N.Y. Ernie Peavy led the Pioneers with 17 points, while Aaron Lancaster had 10 rebounds. "Possession for possession, this is the best defensive team I've ever had," Ryan said.

Ten years ago ...

Less than a month after winning their title, the Platteville Pioneers were forced to deal with a crushing loss. On April 13, 1995, reserve point guard Gabe Miller died from what was diagnosed as acute aortic dissection. He was 21. "He was one of the best-liked and hardest workers on our team," Ryan said. "When something like this happens a lot of things come into much clearer focus...about life and what our priorities should be."

***

The University of Wisconsin men's basketball team, coached by Ryan, will leave Madison today for Oklahoma City, Okla., the site of Friday night's first-round game against Northern Iowa in the NCAA tournament. The Badgers are scheduled to fly into Will Rogers World Airport.

Yes, that Will Rogers - the "Indian Cowboy" from the Cherokee Nation (Oologah, Okla.) - who once said, "I never met a man I didn't like." Obviously, he never met Barry Bonds. Rogers was a journalist, ambassador, philosopher and entertainer.

"There's no trick to being a humorist when you have the whole government working for you," he once opined.

Rogers, not Bonds.

Another time-honored Rogers observation - "We can't all be heroes because somebody has to sit on the curb and clap as they go by."

That seems only fitting on the eve of the Big Dance as we follow the bouncing ball from Chicago to Oklahoma City, from the UC (United Center) to the OKC, from Mike Ditka's restaurant to Mickey Mantle's, from the Museum of Science and Industry to the National Cowboy Hall of Fame, from the Cubs to the Oklahoma City Zoo, from Orange overdose (Illinois fans) to Orange overdose (Oklahoma State fans), from Bricktown (the Big Ten final between the Badgers and the Illini) to Bricktown (the party district in OKC).

Ten years ago...

The early morning tranquility of April 19, 1995 in Oklahoma City was shattered shortly after 9 a.m. when a bomb went off in the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building - killing 168 people, including 19 children.

Today, the Oklahoma City National Memorial Center occupies the former site of the Murrah building. Since its opening in 2000, countless visitors have passed through the museum and stood and reflected at the Survivor Tree, an American Elm, which withstood the horrific blast.

This weekend would be a good time for the eight competing NCAA basketball teams - their players, coaches and fans - to reflect on their surroundings and the people who still live with the memory from 10 years ago.

E-mail: mlucas@madison.com

Not a bad article. I agree. The teams should meet at the memorial. That would be a nice tribute.

That's a great article. I think we should all email Mike Lucas and say thank you for thinking of OKC and mentioning the Memorial - mlucas@madison.com

Nice article! For once, an out-of-towner looking at the positives in our city and not the negatives! Can we say progress?