Riding the nation's longest winning streak at 24 games, and with perhaps the nation's best shooter in Curry, Davidson (28-6) is royalty again.
"This coming week is going to compare really nicely to the truly electric feeling that was here in the Lefty years, when he recruited really great players and took the team to national prominence," Woods said. "I bet I had seven phone calls right after the game, people who just wanted to share the moment with somebody."
Davidson pride was apparent almost everywhere yesterday in this well-to-do town of about 9,000 people 20 miles north of Charlotte. Folks drove around with Davidson flags on their cars. Storefronts on the old-fashioned Main Street had congratulatory messages. The ice cream shop had a "Sweet 16" sundae special for $3.16.
That was after Davidson made a triumphant return to campus Sunday night, hours after Curry scored 25 of his 30 points in the second half and the 10th-seeded Wildcats overcame a 17-point deficit to stun second-seeded Georgetown, 74-70.
The team bus was greeted by a police escort at the edge of town. The little liberal arts school of 1,700 students, which plays in the unheralded Southern Conference, had made the town proud again.
"People were beeping their horns as they passed," coach Bob McKillop said. "People were coming onto their front porch and waving Davidson flags that were once never part of the decor of their house."
"It's been nuts," said the soft-spoken Curry, who has scored 70 points in two NCAA Tournament games. "We've been on a high lately, all the media coverage we've been getting. It's kind of cool, but now we're back at practice."
Davidson's players went through a light workout yesterday to begin preparations for Friday's game in Detroit against No. 2 seed Wisconsin in a Midwest Regional semifinal.
"You look at the newspaper and Thomas [ Sander] and Steph are on the front page of USA Today, The Charlotte Observer, ESPN.com," said point guard Jason Richards, who scored 20 points against Georgetown. "It's unbelievable how much the nation is starting to look at Davidson now. We're a small school and we're finally in the national spotlight."
