Quakers drawn in Crimson tidal wave, 91-85

Hoops fans in agony over final defeat As the final buzzer sounded, an anguished groan echoed across campus that was so loud and intense it was nearly impossible to hear the clenched-jawed curses of more resigned Quaker fans who seemed to be fighting to keep their emotions under control. There were kicked-over barstools, though. And a few people were even seen hanging their heads down, hiding their faces in their hands, after the Quakers' 91-85 loss to the University of Alabama Crimson Tide in overtime. "The dream is over," lamented Wharton junior Neil Shah. But Shah said despite his ardent following of the Quaker season, he was still able to put the loss in perspective. "I'm bummed out," he said, adding, though, with a half-smile that because the most talented players this year are graduating seniors, "the Ivy League season will be more competitive next year -- more exciting." But Shah, who walked home -- alone -- from Cavanaugh's Restaurant at 39th and Sansom streets, said that most of the 20 students who watched the game with him were not taking Alabama's defeat of the Quakers quite as philosophically. At first, he said, his friends screamed and cursed. Some even yelled out ironic shouts of "Go Quakers!" And then there was silence. "There was a lot of depression," Shah said. "People were just zoning out, in a state of shock." An Allied walking guard patrolling Superblock at the time of the game's conclusion also said that campus seemed to be unusually "quiet" for a Thursday night. Even stunned. One student emptied a bag of jelly beans out of a window in High Rise North. The Allied guard, who would not disclose his name, said the sound of the candy striking the ground was "the most noise I heard all night." Such pained silence comes in stark contrast to students' reactions after the Quakers' win over the Michigan Wolverines in December. That night, wild fans blared victory music, shrieked out declarations of love to senior guard Jerome Allen and littered the campus with streamers and confetti. "I think people had a lot of expectations this year," Engineering sophomore Edward Son said. "There was too much pressure on them, because it was their last year." Those fans who were not sulking alone -- resigning themselves to finish the night catching up on studying -- decided to vent their pain the old-fashioned way. "I have to go drink our troubles away," called out one student, dashing away south on Superblock before he could give his name. It was unclear if the student would not comment on the game because recounting the experience was too painful, or because he was in a hurry to get to the nearest bar. But other students, sober and straight-faced, seemed strangely unemotional. That is, unless they were in denial. "The sun will come up tomorrow," College junior Jay Atkinson said. His friend Wharton junior Anthony Fusco, however, insisted that Atkinson was actually the biggest Quaker fan out of anyone he knows.

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