Bryant University Head Coach Talks March Madness

The Bulldogs of Bryant University in Rhode Island punched their ticket to the big dance over the weekend.

The Division I men's basketball team will represent their state in the the NCAA March Madness tournament.

On Saturday, March 15, the men's basketball team, lead by head coach Phil Martelli, Jr., defeated Maine 79-59. The team clinched the title and earned a spot on the bracket.

Get our free mobile app

Bryant University Makes It to March Madness

"It's something you dream about, you know, when you get into sports, and specifically for me, basketball, you dream of those moments," Martelli said. "And it's surreal. There's some mix of exhaustion and exhilaration and all those things."

With under a minute to go in the game, Martelli did what many coaches often do, taking the upper classmen out of the game one-by-one, giving each one a moment to be acknowledged.

"As they were coming off one by one, you know, big hugs with them, and the crowd's going crazy, that's when it hit me," he said.

Experience in the Postseason

Martelli is no stranger to post-season play. He played four years with the Hawks of Saint Joseph's University in Pennsylvania, where he made two NCAA tournament appearances.

"I've been fortunate, you know, twice as a player was really cool, and now my fourth time as a coach, first as a head coach," he said.

Get our free mobile app

Back to the Big Dance

This is the second time Bryant University has made it to the coveted tournament.

After a 2022 NEC Conference win, the Bulldogs advanced to the NCAA tournament. They lost in the first round, but made it to the tourney nonetheless.

Now, the Bulldogs enter the tournament again, this time as the No. 15 seed taking on No. 2 seed Michigan State on Friday, March 21 in Ohio.

"We have a pretty good group that's been pretty laser-focused all the way through, and one of the things we talk about is you have to be able to handle success and handle failure in life, right? And we've done that," Martelli said.

He's not looking to alter his coaching strategy or pregame routine, but he will acknowledge the opportunity.

"I think on Friday night, I'll probably just tell them, and I've done this before with them in certain situations, like, enjoy this, go have fun," he said.

With a later game, some teams will have already been eliminated before the Bulldogs hit the court.

"At that point in time, there'll be 34 teams or 36 teams left playing and that's a pretty special thing," he said. "I don't want them to lose sight of that in the in the midst of, you know, we're trying to win and advance. It's a good reminder for me of, this is pretty cool. Let's go have some fun."

Watch the Bryant Bulldogs take on the Michigan State Spartans on Friday, March 21 at 10 p.m. on TBS.

Go Bulldogs!