Long Island redshirt freshman guard Eddie Munyak delighted the crowd at Viejas Arena — and himself — in the final minute against No. 1 Arizona when Munyak launched a 27-foot 3-point attempt that banked in off the glass.
“He’ll remember that for a lifetime,” broadcaster Kevin Harlan said.
No doubt.
“The crowd went crazy,” said Munyak, who had his parents, girlfriend and AAU coach watching in the stands. “It was just insane. It’s what you dream of. … I dedicate my life to basketball. I’ve gone through a lot, so moments like these just really bring out the emotion in me and just make me so happy. Injuries, just off the court stuff, just a lot of stuff.”
Munyak is a former walk-on from Huntington, N.Y. who received a scholarship this season. His only time on the court this season was for two minutes against Le Moyne. He never touched the ball.
With the clock winding down in the 92-58 loss to the Wildcats, teammates encouraged LIU coach Rod Strickland to put Munyak into the game. He checked in with 1:16 to play. Moments later, Munyak found himself with the ball in his hands after teammate Tre’shawn Sheppard passed up an open shot to get him the ball on the left wing. And swish, err, glass.
“So, I didn’t call bank,” Munyak admitted. “I was like, ‘Oh, let me get this up quick.’ Got it up quick. But once I saw it was going toward the glass, I’m like, ‘Oh, this is glass.’ And then, basically, just let out my emotion, looked at the LIU fan section, just screamed at the top of my lungs. I think some tears came out of my eyes.
“Literally one of the best moments of my life. Emotion came out of me, which is kind of (rare) for a guy with no emotion. But that was amazing. Like, I still feel like I’m floating right now.”
LIU fans cheer during the first round of the 2026 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Viejas Arena on Friday, March 20, 2026 in San Diego, California. (Meg McLaughlin / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Fins up
The session’s opening game between No. 1 seed Arizona and No. 16 Long Island University was expected to introduce fans to the “fins up” free-throw chant popularized a couple of years ago at LIU’s basketball arena, which is known as The Reef.
The chant was originated by Cameron Koffman and David Pochapin, who adopted the Sharks as their team, though they are neither students nor alums of the school. The chant went viral this season on the way to LIU’s first NCAA tourney appearance in eight years.
Pochapin shouts “Fins up!” alerting fans to put their hands over their heads and clap in unison on Sharks free throws.
“The way the fins up looks for every person is slightly different,” Pochapin told ESPN. “Cameron gets incredibly vertical with his.”
Koffman noted that players sometimes participate as well.
“More of like a praying fins up, but they do it,” Koffman said.
LIU didn’t have much of a prayer against Arizona, trailing by 24 points at halftime in a 92-58 loss to the Wildcats. And, in fact, they didn’t even have a chance to get their fins up in the first half since the Sharks never attempted a free throw. LIU guard Greg Gordon finally went to the line for a pair of free throws 1 1/2 minutes into the second half.
Miss. Miss.
It was that kind of day for the Sharks.
Mad Men
Ninety minutes before Arizona and Long Island tipped off a day of Madness at Viejas Arena, a group of guys tailgated at a picnic table adjacent to the San Diego State football practice field.
It is the same spot they gathered 25 years ago when SDSU hosted tournament games for the first time.
Has it really been a quarter century? So much has changed. And we’re not just talking about receding hairlines and expanded waistlines.
SDSU has changed football coaches six times since then. SDSU’s basketball team had yet to win an NCAA Tournament game then, but is still basking in the glow of playing for the 2023 national championship.
The 2001 field in San Diego included Kent State, which had a power forward named Antonio Gates, who was two years from embarking on his Hall of Fame career with the Chargers.
Steve Martin, a La Mesa native who now lives in La Jolla, organizes a group that has been attending March Madness the past 36 years with a core group of guys known as the “Elite Eight.”
“Since then we’ve added guys who played basketball, love golf and want to see live games in the gym,” Martin said.
They typically travel to a West Coast venue, getting in some golf between games. On those occasions where the tournament comes to town — this is the sixth time at Viejas Arena — they make it a local affair.
“Getting together makes us feel younger again, except for the ailments,” said Todd Innes, who met most of the group around 1980, when they were SDSU students. “It’s a great tradition that I hope never ends. … March Madness is my favorite time of year, and this makes it even better.”
Bob Martin, Steve’s father, was the inspiration for all this, gathering a group of guys in the mid-1970s to attend Final Fours.
“When it started, they called it a ‘Fishing trip,’ but I’m not sure they ever pulled a pole out,” Steve said. “In 1979, they were at the Final Four with Bird and Magic.”
That would be the NCAA championship when Magic Johnson’s Michigan State team defeated Larry Bird’s Indiana State squad.
Steve’s group started in 1990, going to Long Beach to see Loyola Marymount’s 149-115 upset of defending national champion Michigan following the death of Hank Gathers.
One of the rules for the group is that it’s just the guys — no wives or girlfriends allowed to come along.
And there’s this: No fooling around in mid-June and having a life event get in the way of the March Madness get-together nine months later. Some planned accordingly better than others over the years. Then there’s Larry Gates. His daughter’s birthday is March 14.
Gates, no relation to Antonio, offers a shrug and a smirk.
Auctioneer Steve Martin (top) calls teams during Calcutta auction on the eve of the NCAA Tournament. (Kirk Kenney / San Diego Union-Tribune)
Oh! Calcutta!
One of the highlights of the week for Martin’s group is the Calcutta auction conducted on the eve of the tournament.
Members of the group each receive 500 virtual dollars to bid on teams as they are randomly pulled from a baggie. There was a certain Big Ten flavor to the proceedings, with Ohio State, UCLA, Michigan State and Michigan alums participating.
When Ohio State was pulled from the baggie, George Stuart, who was born in Columbus, Ohio, made sure to correct the auctioneer, saying: “The” Ohio State.
“They did go for a trademark on that — but they were denied,” Michigan Man Bill Sailer pointed out.
Stuart can still brag about winning the Calcutta a record five times. Tom Watt and Mel Koren are next with four victories. Sailer has won once with “The System.”
“It’s propriety,” Sailer said when asked about his calculations.
Dale Yahnke, who hosted the auction, was all fired up about Wisconsin, using more than 25% of his budget to buy the Badgers.
“I was a big Nick Boyd fan from his time at San Diego State,” said Yahnke, referring to the former Aztecs guard who starred for Wisconsin this season. “I think he’s a clutch player and they beat Michigan at Michigan. For a team to beat them on their home court, that team has to have some guts. That’s what I was banking on.”
On Thursday, Yahnke watched along with the rest of the nation as No. 12 seed High Point upset No. 5 Wisconsin in an 83-82 thriller.
“I’m broken-hearted,” Yahnke said Friday morning. “My brackets are busted.”
Did you know?
The San Diego regional included two schools — Utah State and Villanova — that were both participants in the first NCAA Tournament in 1939.
Utah State lost 50-39 to Oklahoma in its opening game, but beat Texas 51-49 in what was called the West third-place game. Villanova beat Brown in its opener 42-30 before losing 53-36 to Ohio State. Oregon beat the Buckeyes 46-33 to win the inaugural national championship.
The eight-team field included one school from each of eight geographic districts around the country determined by various selection committees.
The field did not expand until 1951, when it was doubled to 16 teams. More expansion: 1975 (32 teams), 1979 (40), 1980 (48), 1985 (64), 2001 (65), 2011 (68).