On March 23 at noon, OU students met at the O’rena to depart on a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Two buses took around 100 students to attend the Oakland University vs North Carolina State game in the second round of March Madness.
The Office for Student Involvement (OSI) announced on Instagram that tickets were available for the Saturday game. The first 100 students to get to the OSI window in the Oakland Center would get free tickets. A flood of students got in line, each of them hoping they would be one of the first 100 lucky winners to score a free ticket.
“I thought it was really cool. When we won against Kentucky, Oakland University decided to put money in for the students to go to the next game in person — I really appreciated that from the school,” sophomore Nicholas Wasielewski said. “It’s something I know other big schools aren’t doing. I think it really boosts the student’s support for the program.”
Why would students want to sit in a bus for 10 hours there and back just for one basketball game? The answer is simple: how often does your university’s basketball team cause a major, internet-famous upset against 3rd seed Kentucky? Not very often.
Wasielewski shared his excitement about watching the game in person, describing the electric atmosphere in the stadium.
“I felt like Oakland played a really good game. We never had the lead until going into the last few minutes of the game. When we got the lead, all of the students were behind the team. Everyone in the stadium could feel the energy shift. It was a big momentum changer,” Wasielewski said.
Despite the loss (79-73), the game was nail-bitingly tight and great entertainment for students who made the trip. The 5-hour long bus ride was worth it — a tied game bled into overtime.
“I think that was one of the best sports experiences I’ve ever been to. I’ve been to countless sports games, and there’s nothing like cheering for your school in March Madness. There’s a lot of schools that don’t get to do it, and I wish we can do it again,” Wasielewski said.
Shawn Slater, a fifth-year student on the track and field team, attended the game in person. He was one of several OU athletic team students who went on the trip. Among others, students from the volleyball, swim, track and field teams showed up to cheer on their fellow athletes.
“When athletes support athletes, it can change game day. A great way to get that kind of support is through each other. It’s really an ecosystem that needs to be kept,” Slater explained.
A major lesson to take away from the vibrant student section on the March Madness trip is this — OU students will always support other OU students. OU’s men’s basketball team helped put more life into the campus community, bringing together students of different backgrounds to cheer on the team.
For some, this game marked the end of their senior year, serving as a milestone in their final month at OU. Alexus Winkowski, who is in the last semester of her senior year, shared the importance of the game to her.
“The experience was crazy. I’m so happy to have been here because this has been amazing. Even though we lost, it was great,” Winkowski explained.
The upset over Kentucky has affected the entire campus community alongside the basketball players. Jack Gohlke sparked NIL deals overnight following the Kentucky game. Basketball players’ social media accounts grew overnight. Several OU websites saw major traffic.
“I couldn’t tell you how many news articles and clips I’ve seen about our basketball team. I saw something that was saying Oakland has gained like $20 million and advertisement exposure just from this game alone. March Madness allows for other smaller schools like us to be a showcase,” Slater said.
Hopefully, OU will advance to March Madness next year. If not, students still got a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity — cheering for their school at March Madness.
“This experience made us feel a little more connected to the university. It allowed us to support the players — by having us come over to a stadium that’s five hours away to cheer them on,” Winkowksi said.
Students attending the trip expressed their gratitude for the opportunity. A free ticket to March Madness to cheer on your university on a national level is bound to be engraved in one’s memories.
“You could tell that this meant so much to everybody that was here. There was not a single person that I could see that really took the moment for granted,” Slater said.
Although the statistics, scores, fouls and referee calls are all a major part of basketball on a technical level, nothing can beat the student experience of interacting with your fellow peers on a memorable trip.
