Ben Baby
Multiple Authors
ST. LOUIS — When Queens University coach Grant Leonard stepped as much as the dais Thursday afternoon, he had firm.
Well, extra particularly, he had Buddy.
Perched to the proper of the microphone was a hollowed-out duplicate of a German Shepherd canine with a studded collar and “B” necklace around his neck. Throughout Queens’ run to the NCAA males’s tournament in its first 12 months of eligibility, Buddy has served as the staff’s unofficial mascot. As the 15-seed Royals put together to face 2-seed Purdue on Friday in St. Louis, there is a purpose Leonard referred to as Buddy the staff’s “spirit animal.”
“We want [the players] to embody the street dog mentality of fighting for everything you can get,” Leonard mentioned.
Technically, Buddy is a trophy. After every recreation, he’s awarded to the Queens participant who does the issues that do not get counted in the field rating however are integral to the staff’s success, resembling taking prices or diving to the ground for free balls. This season, the personal faculty positioned in Charlotte, North Carolina, completed third in the American Sun Conference throughout the common season however earned a spot in the NCAA tournament following an extra time win over Central Arkansas in the league championship recreation.
To be much more exact, the canine that will likely be on the ground of Enterprise Arena is Buddy II. According to Leonard, Buddy I used to be “injured” throughout a postgame celebration in January after Queens beat Florida Gulf Coast.
Procured by way of Amazon, Buddy goes all over the place with the staff. Redshirt freshman guard Matthew Walter, a reserve on the staff’s bench, is his unofficial caretaker tasked with such duties resembling escorting Buddy by way of the airport.
The staff has embraced what Buddy has come to symbolize.
“Buddy, he has definitely been our identity,” Queens sophomore guard Yoav Berman mentioned. “We are going to go out and play hard every game.”
Leonard mentioned that final summer season, the teaching employees was attempting to carry that spirit out of the gamers, who then responded that “they were dogs.” That prompted a follow-up query from Queens assistant coach Adam Short, who’s nicknamed Bulldog: Were they the pampered kind of canine or the kind that would earn their hold with scrappy play?
The Royals (21-13) are hoping to take an enormous chunk out of Purdue (27-8), the Big Ten tournament winners and a staff that also boasts key gamers from the 2024 squad that misplaced in the nationwide championship recreation.
Queens senior guard Nasir Mann mentioned the staff’s versatility and taking pictures depth throughout the roster may assist the Royals’ probabilities of an upset.
“Our ability is shoot and space the floor,” Mann mentioned. “Everybody on our team can shoot the ball at a pretty good clip. I think that’s a very dangerous thing. You can get hot at any given moment, especially in March Madness. That’s when the miracles truly happen.”
However Friday’s recreation at the Enterprise Center unfolds, Buddy will likely be close by. He’ll have a seat close to the staff’s water cooler, hoping to be a part of a historic celebration in St. Louis.
