It would be nice to have tickets to the NCAA Tournament East and
West Region first and second round games in Buffalo, N.Y., this
weekend.

Of course for many college basketball fans, a certain Era
reporter inclusive of that group, those tickets — which cost a
total of more than $200 to see all six games in the nosebleeds of
HSBC Arena — aren’t readily accessible or are just too
expensive.

No matter. Local basketball has been just as entertaining, and
not anywhere near as damaging to your wallet.

Headlining area teams is the St. Bonaventure women’s basketball
squad, which just five years ago wasn’t even worth a mumble in the
Atlantic 10’s postseason discussion.

Now, the Bonnies are headed to their second straight Women’s
National Invitation Tournament, a voice in the room of selection
committees.

Coming off a WNIT Elite Eight appearance in 2009, a second
consecutive 20-win season (22-9) and program record for regular
season wins (21) all but ensured them another bid to this year’s
tournament.

They play Robert Morris at the Reilly Center tonight in the
first round of the WNIT. The Lady Colonials were ousted in the
Northeastern Conference Tournament semifinal round, yet posted a
respectable 23-win season and were tabbed the tournament’s
top-seeded team.

St. Bonaventure, 11-3 on Bob Lanier Court this season, should
again be able to win on its home floor.

Really, the Bona women’s biggest asset is knowing how to play
against elite teams, three of which conveniently play in the A-10
conference.

Tournament champion and third-seeded Xavier, and a pair of No. 8
seeds, Dayton and Temple, are all in the ‘Big Dance,’ speaking
volumes for the ultracompetitive conference.

The Bonnies lost to the Flyers once during the regular season
and in the conference tournament quarterfinals, but beat Temple on
the road by double-digits and played then-No. 10 Xavier close in a
62-53 loss at home Jan. 23.

And, the Bona women beat more good teams, even NCAA tournament
bound squads. Just ask Marist and Bowling Green, which are both
12-seeds, how good these Bonnies can play.

Some more facts to tinker around with: St. Bonaventure has
previously beaten three other teams that are seeded seventh or
higher (Michigan State, Wisconsin, West Virginia) in the upcoming
NCAA tournament. All three victories came during a historic 2008-09
season in which the Bona women first posted the most regular season
wins (20) in program history.

Look for talk on the Bona women to crescendo in coming seasons,
when they could very well be playing in March’s most famed
tournament.

Continuing to give credit when credit is due, don’t forget about
the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford.

The Panthers made it back-to-back seasons that they reached the
Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference basketball finals.
Unfortunately, they met Medaille College both years.

The UPB men’s program is budding into a formidable program —
they actually knocked off Medaille when it was ranked 21st in
Division III this season. The case, however, is the Mavericks beat
them twice in each year’s most meaningful game, ostensibly crowning
them the better team overall.

Not that the Panthers won’t be that much hungrier if they reach
the title game next season, they will. Plus, they will return their
team’s top three scorers in sophomores Dan Heisey, Sam Moore and
Zach Moore. Each member of the trio ranked among the AMCC’s top 20
in points per game, with Heisey ranking sixth. So, capturing their
first title since 2003 could be a reality in waiting.

Arguably, the Pitt-Bradford men’s path could have been
predicted.

For the UPB women, nothing was expected — literally.

Perennially dismissed as a contender, the Lady Panthers dragged
themselves into this past December with a 2-7 record.

Enter new coach Brian Sansom, who took over in that month and
turned around feelings that the season was essentially over. By the
end of the women’s campaign, the Pitt-Bradford alumnus had guided
his team to a seventh seed in the AMCC tournament.

Then, more shock and awe.

After an upset win over third-seeded Frostburg State, the Lady
Panthers grabbed their first showing in a championship game since
1999.

Though they eventually fell to Medaille’s women’s team, the Lady
Panthers nearly fulfilled a dream underdogs chase but rarely
accomplish.

“One Shining Moment” anyone?

One mile from the UPB campus, Bradford High enjoyed one of the
better seasons in northwest Pennsylvania.

In 2008-09, the Owls scrapped together a 5-7 record in the
District 9 League and were one game above .500 for the entire year
(12-11).

Almost 12 months later, they took a disappointing season in
stride and used their past experiences as a springboard for
improvement, actually sparking one of the best turnarounds Bradford
has ever seen.

With a senior class of six (Pug Fuhrman, Jimmy Grove, Michael
White, Matthew White, Ryan Mackey, Evan Kline), Bradford matured
beyond expectations. The Owls posted a final overall record of
22-3, ripped off a 18-game win streak extending from the end of
December to the middle of March and cruised through the D-9 League
with an unblemished 12-0 record. Oh yeah, add to that another D-9
Class AAA title.

To Bradford’s chagrin, the astounding streak of wins came to end
Tuesday night at the hands of West Mifflin, 63-42, in a PIAA Class
AAA second round boys playoff game.

That’s too bad, really. The loss overshadows the fact that
Bradford made its first appearance in the state playoffs since the
2007-08 season and takes away from an Owls team that averaged just
under 60 points a game, limiting its opponents to just 46.

This season made head coach Dave Fuhrman’s 20th such grind, a
tenure that boasts a 340-171 record, one of his most memorable.

Hands down, it’s a season to be cherished by the entire program,
especially by a group of determined seniors.

They, along with the other teams aforementioned, have provided
fans a microcosm of the craze associated with the NCAA tournament,
at a time when many of those same fans were — or are — waiting to
spend hundreds of dollars for similar excitement.