LYNCHBURG, Va, – Selection Sunday doesn’t come every day. For one day, fans can gather to see where their favorite college basketball teams will be playing in the NCAA Tournament.
Fans of the Liberty University Flames got a double dose of Selection Sunday as both the men’s and women’s basketball squads automatically qualified for March Madness.
The men’s basketball squad netted a 12 seed and will be going to Seattle to take on the 5th seeded Oregon Ducks. As for the women’s team, they will be taking on 4th seeded Kentucky as the 13 seed.
Fans grew raucous and wildly cheered as they saw Liberty’s name appear on the screen. Now, they will get to see their teams represent their school on a national level.
“Everything that Liberty stands for,” Heath Kimmel said. “Our religious learnings, everything being on TV for everyone to see is what I’m most excited about.”
Sports itself has the rare ability to do something that is hard to do today: bring people together for a common goal.
“It bridges all of the divides that we have in our culture today,” Mike Mills said. “You know we have so many racial biases and cultural biases, that all of that is pushed to the side.”
It wasn’t just older fans and college students who were filling the stands. It was also younger fans who now have the chance to make new memories.
“He is just beginning to understand it, he’s been asking a lot of questions but he is very very excited,” Kimmel said about his young son. “He woke up last at 3 am in the morning asking me did Liberty won and I said yes, they did. So he’s really getting into it.”
