In Detroit: 'Nova students vow return

DETROIT - They hung in there, because they had seen this team make big comebacks before.

They chanted, "Let's go 'Nova," even as North Carolina opened up a 15-point lead in the first half and maintained a double-digit lead over their beloved Wildcats for most of the second half.

And once the outcome was no longer in doubt, they remained to support their team.

When senior Dante Cunningham fouled out in the second half, the students chanted his name in appreciation.

As the last second ticked off, they chanted, "Thank you, seniors."

"We'll be right back in it next year," Villanova freshman Connor Bertoni said as the final horn sounded.

At times it looked as if Villanova would respond to the crowd.

Shortly before halftime, the team went on a run, cutting the lead to nine and reminding fans of the Wildcats' comeback win in the first game of the tournament.

"We've come back from more than that in the tourney," Villanova freshman Tom James said at intermission. "We're not giving up."

James and two other friends occupied the front row of the student section, sporting blue-dyed Mohawk haircuts.

They were among the 400 fans who scored the $20 tickets offered to students on a first-come basis.

Bertoni said he and his friends went to Villanova's business school to get online because that building has the fastest Internet connection.

His group of five then got front-row seats in the student section, under one of the baskets, because they drove themselves to Ford Field and beat the university's bus.

Villanova's No. 1 fan, former coach Rollie Massimino, who led the team to an improbable national championship in 1985, was sitting in courtside seats behind Villanova's bench.

Throughout the night, fans made their way down to ask for an autograph or a picture. His popularity trumped that of the other famous coach sitting in his row, former Lakers coach Pat Riley.

Rick Kaisel, a doctor at Wills Eye Hospital, greeted Massimino before last night's first semifinal game between Michigan State and the University of Connecticut.

"I was a teenager when they won in '85," he said. "It's exciting to have them back."

Remembering that night 24 years ago, Paul Akman was upbeat about Villanova's chances.

"Sad to say, but that's still the single greatest night of my life."

Contact staff writer Troy Graham at 856-779-3224 or tgraham@phillynews.com