It’s not every night that you stand center court at the Chase Center ready to sing your heart out but it happens. On Nov. 16, with the familiar call from over the booming public announcement system—“Ladies and gentlemen … please remove your hats for the national anthem.”, the spotlight shone on Scot Hanna-Weir and the Santa Clara University Chamber Singers. And, friends, they sounded amazing.
The first-ever Santa Clara night at the Warriors was on. Students and alumni celebrated inside and out, scoring special mash-up Warriors-SCU t-shirts, sporting old-school letter-jacket style Bronco outerwear, and waiving flags. The main event, of course, was the game between the Golden State Warriors and Oklahoma City Thunder—each team sporting their own Bronco alum and early draft pick.
In fact, post-game the Warriors’ Brandin Podziemski ’23 and the Thunder’s Jalen Williams ’23 came back on the court. The pair hugged former Bronco teammates, chatted with coach Herb Sendek, and capped the night off by trading jerseys. Pregame, Podziemski said “We are going to showcase Santa Clara and what we are all about.” And, indeed, we did—excellence in arts and play and community through and through.