City Council got swept up in March madness last Monday, honoring the VCU men’s basketball team at the start of their weekly meeting.
Seemingly everyone in Richmond knows about the Rams win in the NCAA tournament. When the dust settled and the final seconds ticked off, 11-seed VCU was ahead of No. 6 Duke by two points, and Richmond exploded in a multitude of cheers and exuberant celebration.
This followed a phenomenal season including a record 16 conference victories and a 65-59 win over GMU in the CAA tournament. The Rams ended their season in a heartbreaking, 84-79 loss to Pittsburgh in the second round of the NCAA.
Though the loss was hard on Richmond, the city came together to honor their new heroes with a celebration at the Stuart C. Siegel Center. The honorifics continued when the City Council presented senior point guard Jesse Pellot-Rosa and Athletic Director Norwood Teague with a plaque to commemorate the achievement.
“It feels great. Not just for me but for my whole team,” Pellot-Rosa said. “Being honored by the city of Richmond, you know, this has never happened before. It’s a great honor.”
Pellot Rosa’s feelings weren’t all positive. When asked about the game against Pittsburgh, he expressed some regret.
“[I feel] a little bitter. I felt like we should have advanced on and played a little longer. We had the game won,” Pellot-Rosa said. “We were putting the pressure on them and a couple of bounces went the wrong way. But I can’t complain.”
Teague said he was happy with VCU’s performance against Duke, and the honor from the Richmond City Council.
“I thinks it’s great, and I appreciate them doing it. It’s funny coming to a building like this and everybody saying congratulations,” Teague said. “It’s great to bring Jesse here because . he’s a VCU guy, a graduate of George Wythe. It’s nice to bring someone here to City Hall that’s a product of good old Richmond.”
Council President William Pantele presented the award. The room of about 50 onlookers erupted in applause as Pellot-Rosa and Teague held up the plaque for all to see.
“Thank you for everything,” Pantele said in an emotional voice as he shook Pellot-Rosa’s hand. “You’re one of Richmond’s finest.”