NCAA Tournament: 10 hours on the road is a small price to pay

It was a game Texas A&M; was supposed to win easily. Thirteen-and-a-half point underdogs, the Quakers were so outmatched that some probably thought they shouldn't have even made the trip. So why should Penn fans who are unaffiliated with the basketball team make the trek all the way down to Lexington, Ky., to see them?

It's a clear-cut question, but after speaking with a group of five Penn students who did it, it's clear the answer isn't as simple.

Given the spread, it certainly wasn't about getting the assured victory.

It was about the 10-hour journey. It was about the allure of witnessing live a part of the most exciting sporting event in the nation. And about hope.

For any Penn student who has seen the Red and Blue's core of seniors grow and succeed in their four years on campus, there is a feeling that this is a team that deserves a contingent of home fans, however small it may be.

"To see the senior players that I followed for four years was an emotional journey," said senior Sam Rosenbaum, who did half of the driving on the trip he and his four friends made to the Bluegrass State.

As thrilling as it is to see the Quakers go on a run and elicit roars from the Red and Blue Crew in the Palestra, watching Ibrahim Jaaber and Mark Zoller do what they do on a bigger stage always remains an appealing idea.

It may be a long journey to Lexington - you can make it in just over 10 hours if you're lucky - but it was do-able. And Penn fans have journeyed farther for less important games. Last year, former Red and Blue Crew leader Jon Lubin flew from Stanford for the Penn-Princeton regular season matchup and then flew back the next morning.

There were other reasons.

"Rupp Arena was awe-inspiring," Rosenbaum said.

But while seeing the legendary University of Kentucky home court being peppered with Penn's colors instead of the usual sea of Wildcat blue is a unique experience, senior Greg Moran doesn't think this was the best part.

That would be watching the Quakers hang with a top-10 team - and knowing that maybe a million others were watching along with you.

"The [21-6] run was the highlight of my spectator experience at Penn," Moran said. "The 39-37 [Penn lead] was the absolute apex of my sporting experience."

Either that, or ending up in a hotel right across the street from where the Quakers were staying. Small world.

Still, after almost 24 hours of travel time and a round trip of nearly 1300 miles, the question remains.

Was it worth it?

Unless this fivesome was extremely atypical, the answer is yes, at least according to Rosenbaum.

"I think that seeing Penn play in the NCAA Tournament," he said, "is an experience that every Penn student should have."

Senior Staff Writer Matt Meltzer contributed to this report from Lexington, Ky.

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