DePaul University Athletics
Mejia-Led DePaul Stuns No. 5 Kansas
3/3/2017 12:00:00 AM | MEN'S BASKETBALL
(DePaulBlueDemons.com will be posting feature stories this week that have appeared this season in the men's basketball game programs looking back at great moments in Rosemont. DePaul's final game at Allstate Arena is Saturday, March 4 against Xavier.)
Wednesday, Jan. 18 - Rosemont's Finest: Kleinschmidt's 4-Point Play Beats Louisville
Tuesday, Feb. 28 - Stellar Broadcaster Swirsky Called the First Game in Rosemont
Wednesday, March 1 - Joey Meyer Maintained the Family Legacy
Thursday, March 2 - "Q" Remembers Knocking off No. 3 Cincinnati at Allstate Arena as Freshman
CHICAGO - It might have been the most famous three-minute run in Allstate Arena history, and Sammy Mejia was the spark that ignited an incredible comeback against one of the nation's finest.
The date was Dec. 2, 2006, and what the Blue Demons pulled off on that winter's day was like a totally unexpected, early Christmas present for the nearly 17,000 screaming partisans.
DePaul had fallen behind No. 5 Kansas by 14 points in the second half, and this Jayhawks team featuring future NBA players Mario Chalmers and Brandon Rush was riding high coming off a big win over defending national champion Florida.
The Blue Demons steadily chipped away at the deficit until Mejia's three-pointer with 3:02 left tied it up at 53-53. A minute later, Mejia connected again from behind the arc, and his baseline jumper with 1:18 to go finished off an eight-point spree that led to the 64-57 upset.
"That Kansas win is one of my most memorable victories during my college career," Mejia said. "I remember my family being in town for that game. Kansas was really good that year, and we put up a good fight and were able to pull through in the end for the win.
"Those eight points at the end of that game is my most exciting stretch during any game. I remember those three shots like it happened yesterday. The sound of the fans after every shot stands out. The fans were great, and they always showed me so much love. I loved our fans.
"Those final three minutes are the kind of moments that make basketball special. You always try to prepare yourself to have an impact on the game, and then when those moments actually come, you just try to capitalize on it and enjoy it. My teammates were great. We always encouraged each other, especially when someone was having a run like that. It was a moment I will never forget."
DePaul had gotten off to a disappointing 2-4 start and was getting over jet lag after having competed in the Maui Invitational. Turning around its season against the Jayhawks was a daunting task.
"That game against Kansas definitely was a challenge for us," said Mejia who was a second round pick of the Detroit Pistons in the 2007 NBA Draft before playing overseas for eight years and emerging as one of the top players in Europe. "We wanted to show our ability to compete with the better teams in the country. We were all excited about playing a team like Kansas, but we were also excited to be back home playing in front of our fans. We fought hard, and we never quit. As a result, we were able to create a special memory for DePaul basketball.
"We knew that Kansas would make a run at some point during the game. All great teams make runs. We just wanted to make sure we were mentally prepared to accept the challenge and counter any run they made. We were definitely motivated by the challenge and embraced it more and more as the game went on.
"Getting off to a good start was huge for us. It gave us confidence and belief we could give ourselves a chance to win in the end. When we fell behind by 14, we just spoke about keeping our composure and understanding that there was a lot of time left in the game. We just wanted to make everything difficult for them. We stood together and fought until the very end."
Mejia, who is currently playing for Tofas Sport Basketball in the Turkish Basketball League, led all scorers that day with a season-high 23 points. It was the first win for DePaul over a top-five team since a 61-60 overtime upset of No. 3 Cincinnati at the Rosemont Horizon back in February of 1999.
The Jerry Wainwright-coached Blue Demons of 2006-07 also featured future NBA player Wilson Chandler that season along with Draelon Burns, Karron Clarke, Lorenzo Thompson, Marcus Heard and Jabari Currie.
That memorable moment at Allstate propelled DePaul (20-14) onto a postseason run that saw the program topple Hofstra and Kansas State in the first two rounds of the NIT. The Blue Demon surge and Mejia's career came to an end after a tough 52-51 loss to Air Force in the third round.
Mejia remembers the conviction in each of his teammates that would not allow them to concede anything to the Jayhawks despite trailing by nine at halftime after DePaul went scoreless in the final 7:12 of the first half.
"The players always believed we could win," Mejia said. "That is something you never lose as a basketball player and as a basketball team, and we did a good job believing we could win every game. We understood and accepted every challenge and were always ready to compete and enjoy everything that came along with that challenge. We never wanted to feel like we lost a game ourselves. That was a big thing for us."
Another big key to toppling Kansas was the defensive effort on Rush, who was held to just three points by a combination of Blue Demon defenders.
"Defending any one of the guys on that team was a total team effort," Mejia said. "We knew how much talent they had and we tried to overcome that as a team. We accepted every role that was given to us on the defensive side and were always there to help each other out. That was always our goal."
Pulling off one of the biggest upsets in program history was certainly a reason to celebrate with all the Blue Demon fans who never lost faith in their team.
"During my four years, I really fell in love with our fans," Mejia said. "I always enjoyed playing in front of them, and they always made me feel loved. I will never forget a lot of the great times I shared with them.
"When the game finally came to an end and the fans continued to cheer us on, that's what I remember more than the shots that I made during the game. Their joy and the celebration were everything to me. It was good to see that we made them proud of us. There was a small party in the locker room after the game. We knew how special that moment was, and we just tried to enjoy it as much as we could."