Selection Sunday Has Wildcats, Owls, Hawks Fans Pumped
By Justin Udo, Ed Benkin, Mike Dougherty
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - The NCAA college basketball selection committee has ruled, and three local teams are on the tournament bracket this March Madness.
Two of them, the Villanova Wildcats and St Joe's Hawks, were a foregone conclusion. The third, the Temple Owls, were no guarantee, but they're in as well.
READ: Nova, Temple, St. Joe's Learn NCAA Tourney Fates
Get in, and anything can happen, which has Owls fans excited:
"We definitely deserve it, had a couple big upsets and we're pumped to see an upset in the first round," this Temple fan tells KYW Newsradio.
Most Owls fans were on pins and needles Selection Sunday, but now, many say the sky's the limit:
"Their going all the way baby, I'm calling it! The Temple Owls, they are bringing it home."
"They're going all the way. Number one baby!"
If Temple wins their first game Friday, and Villanova does the same, the crosstown rivals would meet on Sunday, something this Villanova fan would welcome with open arms:
"For me I'm 'Cats' all the way, but it would definitely be a huge Philadelphia rivalry and that would be so much fun having that up in Brooklyn."
This longtime Nova fan says she is excited about what the Wildcats accomplished to this point:
"It's just such a family and a community, everyone just always seems to have so much fun every game."
Hawks fans were on cloud nine Sunday as well.
"Just seeing them grow throughout the year is definitely a great thing," this fan says. "I feel like they just have a great vibe, a connection. They show a lot of confidence."
Like fans of the other Big Five teams in the tournament, St Joe's supporters believe their squad has the ingredients to make something special out of this opportunity.
"Something we see different now in the 2016 St. Joe's Hawks is confidence. It's the five guys who come out on the court and look like they know what they're doing and they know the goal at hand."