ESPN.com · Mar 13, 2017
Northwestern celebrates 1st-ever tourney bid
For pure drama, best wait until the shots start flying.
For sheer excitement, Selection Sunday belonged to Northwestern.
The Wildcats, longtime losers in Big Ten basketball, were officially invited to the NCAA tournament for the first time in school history, and the group-hugging, selfie-taking reaction from the players when the school's name was announced Sunday showed how much the accomplishment meant.
Coach Chris Collins waved off decades of futility by pumping both fists in the air to celebrate the Wildcats' invitation.
"When I came here four years ago, it was a belief in a day like today,'' said Collins, whose team won 23 games on its way to the NCAA tournament.