When the Philadelphia Eagles beat the New England Patriots to win the Super Bowl last month, it gave the City of Brotherly Love one of its most important sporting victories ever. But just two years ago, it was another team that brought Philly a memorable win.
When the Villanova Wildcats hit a dramatic last second shot in Houston to win the NCAA men’s basketball national tournament in 2016, Anthony Siragusa, who plays trumpet for the school’s band, was watching the game on campus.
“Everybody just went nuts and ran into the street together,” Siragusa said. “It was great to celebrate with all your friends and the entire community. It was a lot of fun. It was [like] nothing I’ve ever experienced before.”
With that taste of victory still fresh in their minds, Villanova supporters and fans from Purdue, Texas Tech and West Virginia all flocked to Boston to watch the East Regional Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight rounds at the TD Garden.
About 10,000 visitors trekked to Boston to watch the games at the TD Garden, according to the Greater Boston Convention and Visitors Bureau. The city is hosting the tournament for the first time since 2012.
That type of traffic means big money for the city. The bureau also estimates that the contests would add over $25 million in new spending to the local economy in less than a week.
For local businesses, that boost was welcomed with open arms.
Philip Colton owns and manages The Fours Bar and Grille, which is next to the arena. Filled with memorabilia and photos of Boston sports legends both past and present, it feels like it’s tailor made for an event like March Madness.
Major games like these also meant a nice pay day for Colton’s bar, which he estimated may see up to a 70 percent boost in business over a normal weekend.
“It’s hard to replace 20,000 people right next door for two days,” he said, referring to the number of seats in the Garden.
That boost in the economy was spread out throughout the city, especially in popular spots like Quincy Market, where locals mixed with loyal team supporters decked out in their university's colors.
For many of these fans, loyalties run deep. Mike Henderson grew up a fan of West Virginia and both of his children graduated from the university.
“Everybody in the state’s excited. It’s our professional team,” he said. “We don’t have a professional team in the State of West Virginia. So it’s the team that we root for as a state.”
Todd Roberts went to Purdue, as did his father and several of his family members. He has a son at the school now and he hopes his younger son, Nick, will go there too. This was their first time in Boston.
“It’s been a long time since we’ve been to the Final Four, and so we’ve got two games here, hopefully we can get back there,” he said. “It’s been since 1980.”
Then there are the fans from Texas Tech. There may not be a place more different than Boston than Lubbock, Texas, home to the Red Raiders. Located roughly 2000 miles away deep in the flat plains of West Texas, it’s the type of town where “y’all” is a proper noun.
In a state where football is king, Tech is known more for its prowess on the gridiron than the hardwood. It’s men’s team hadn’t been to the Sweet Sixteen in over a decade.
For Tech alum Dan Briggs, who traveled all the way from Texas to Boston, that made the trip up north all the more worthwhile.
““For us, it’s very special,” Briggs said. “I don’t care if we’re playing Tiddlywinks or if we’re playing lawn darts, if Texas Tech is on it, I’m wanting us to beat whoever we’re playing.”
For all the dreams of the Final Four these fans had, however, only one team could punch the ticket.
Villanova knocked out West Virginia on Friday night and Texas Tech overcame Purdue to earn its first-ever trip to the Elite Eight in a game that stretched into early Saturday morning, setting up a Sunday afternoon matchup between the Wildcats and Red Raiders with a Final Four berth on the line.
The two squads, who had never met before in either school’s history, played what almost felt like a home game for Villanova with all the blue and white clad fans in the stands. Tech got out to a quick start but couldn’t keep its foot on the gas, struggling to find easy buckets and stop Villanova’s transition offense.
Villanova, one of the best offenses in the country, regained its composure after a shaky first few minutes and never gave up the lead after snatching it from Tech, notching a 71-59 win despite Tech coming within five points late in the second-half.
Just outside the TD Garden at The Harp, a bar packed with Villanova fans, alumna Lindsey Kreisher was ecstatic over the victory.
“This brings all of our friend group back together from Philly and Texas and Raleigh and everywhere, they all come back together for these games,” she said. “So it’s pretty awesome.
Now the stage is set for the Final Four in San Antonio, where Villanova will return to the Lone Star State once again hungry for another title for their school and for their city. To get there, the Wildcats had to take a pit stop in Beantown first.
