Ram Nation celebrates another NCAA opportunity

Credit: JOE MAHONEY/TIMES-DISPATCH

VCU mascot Rodney the Ram works the crowd at Champps where fans gathered to watch the NCAA bracket show.

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Ram Nation doesn?t want to go all over tarnation.

Virginia Commonwealth University basketball fans said Sunday they liked VCU?s chances in their NCAA tournament opener, but several were disappointed that the game will be in Portland, Ore.

VCU will play Wichita State on Thursday in the tourney?s South region.

?Haven?t these people heard that Portland, Oregon, ain?t in the South?? said Debbie Coberly, 56, of Chesterfield County.

She was geared to go pretty much anywhere east of the Mississippi River to see VCU play, she said.

?I?ve got a new truck and (travel) trailer. We were ready,? said her son, Martin, 21.

Sporting a VCU ballcap with rams? horns, Debbie added, ?I?m sort of glad we?ll be saving money.?

They spoke outside the Champps sports restaurant in Stony Point Fashion Park, where about 300 VCU fans gathered to watch big-screen broadcasts of tournament pairings and hear a live broadcast from radio ESPN 950?s Greg Burton.

Several fans were happy to see the Rams paired against Wichita State, which VCU beat last year 68-67 in a BracketBusters game.

?That kind of kicked off VCU?s great season,? when the Rams reached the tournament?s Final Four, said Buddy Noland, 64, of Chester. ?It?s kind of a rematch.?

?It?s a very winnable game, in my opinion,? said Peter Mooney, 24, of Henrico County.

Jake Meador, 13, of Hanover County said he was looking forward to the big game. He has been going to VCU games since he was a baby.

?They?re real exciting,? he said, ?and I like watching them play.?

rspringston@timesdispatch.com

(804) 649-6453

Source: http://www2.timesdispatch.com/sports/2012/mar/12/ram-nation-celebrates-another-ncaa-opportunity-ar-1758188/

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