Basketball, St. Patrick's Day make for a big party



MEQUON -- If all Irish eyes were smiling on St. Patrick's Day, the eyes of many Wisconsinites were also beaming as Saturday turned into the perfect day for a celebration.

With the combination of the holiday and both Marquette and Wisconsin playing in the NCAA Tournament, there were plenty of reasons for people to put on their green and cheer on the Golden Eagles and Badgers Saturday. "We purposely came out to Taylor and Dunn's to watch the game and have a little St. Patrick's Day cheer," Chris Brown said while watching her beloved Golden Eagles beat the Murray State Racers in the third round of the tournament.

The day was just as joyous for Chris Halaska who was rooting for the Badgers. "This is one of the greatest days ever," Halaska said. "The Badgers are going to be in the Final Four, which is going to be great."

Bagpipers made their way through the green-clad crowd at the Mequon establishment as did green beers, green beads and corned beef. St. Patrick's Day coinciding with the NCAA Tournament is common, but adding Marquette and Wisconsin into the mix and it all happening on a Saturday, made the party unique.

"Life couldn't get much better. It's amazing," Courtney Buchach said. "The atmosphere here and the people here, plus the fact that we have hoops on TV, it's unbelievable."

In the end, the luck was on the side of the fans as both Wisconsin and Marquette won their games and advanced to the Sweet 16.