SAN ANTONIO _ What a March it was for Loyola, from the first day of the Missouri Valley Conference tournament on the second day of the month to the NCAA tournament Final Four on Saturday.
Madness, indeed.
The team that had not played in the NCAA Tournament since 1985 not only made it back but made the most of it, becoming only the fourth No. 11 seed to advance this far. But the Ramblers' wild ride ended with a 69-57 loss to No. 3 seed Michigan _ just one win short of the national championship game.
This Loyola team wasn't just happy to be here.
Senior Ben Richardson walked off the Alamodome court with tears in his eyes, his arm slung around best friend and teammate Clayton Custer. Marques Townes sobbed in the handshake line. Donte Ingram, a senior, shared a warm embrace with coach Porter Moser when he checked out of the game knowing the end was here.
Sister Jean, the team's 98-year-old chaplain and tournament darling, was still at the edge of the court, this time consoling players instead of celebrating with them. Richardson stopped to give her one last sweaty hug, as she had called them during this improbable run.
After pulling off upset after upset, the Ramblers simply didn't have it against Michigan.
They made only 1 of 10 3-point attempts. They turned the ball over 16 times. They had several stretches in which they couldn't make a shot.
Handling Michigan big man Moe Wagner _ who had 24 points and 15 rebounds _ was as tough as advertised. Loyola freshman center Cameron Krutwig held his own for most of the game, finishing with 17 points.
Custer warmed up in the second half, in which he scored all but two of his 15 points.
Loyola (32-6) looked as if it would to become the lowest-seeded team to play for a national title when it took a 10-point lead early in the second half. Later, Custer hit two free throws to give Loyola a 45-37 lead with 11 minutes, 25 seconds remaining.
But the Wolverines (33-7) answered with a 17-2 run _ during which Loyola committed an uncharacteristic five consecutive turnovers _ to take a 54-47 lead with 4:59 left. Wagner's three-point play capped the pivotal stretch.
