The St. Peter’s Peacocks are not only the Cinderella story of March Madness over the last nine days, but they are now the story of March Madness.
The 15th-seeded Peacocks led by Coach Shaheen Holloway have made history by becoming the lowest-seeded team in tournament history to reach the Elite Eight by shocking the third-seeded Purdue Boilermakers 67-64. Even more stunning was the 15-8 run over the final four minutes to close out the victory in crunch time.
The Peacocks are the first New York City/New Jersey college team to advance this far in the tournament since St. John’s did it back in 1999. St. Peter’s will play in the East Region final Sunday against North Carolina, who defeated UCLA.
The Peacocks are no longer the unknown team full of unheralded recruits. Just like the previous games against Kentucky and Murray State, they won the game with huge defensive stops, clutch shots, and hitting big free throws late.
Coach Holloway showed his appreciation for the fanbase’s support throughout the Peacock’s unlikely run.
“I can’t believe the support that we’re having. … Jersey City’s been unbelievable for us.”
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 26, 2022
Shaheen Holloway shouts out the love New Jersey has shown @PeacocksMBB on their #MarchMadness run 🙏 pic.twitter.com/IRQcmyR2Vf
The Peacocks overcame a porous 38 percent shooting performance hitting only six three-pointers with their defense on Purdue’s projected top-five NBA lottery pick Jaden Ivey and 7’4 center Zach Edey. Something Holloway talked about after the game via the New York Post.
“When you’re playing against teams like that who are supposed to win, when you keep it tight, certain things can happen,” Holloway said. “I told my guys, ‘Just keep battling, keep battling, let’s see what happens.’ We kept battling; I knew the ball was going to bounce our way, and it did.”
St. Peter’s is 40 minutes from a Final Four berth at Wells Fargo Center Sunday.
