Shelvin Mack's family gathers to cheer him on

The folks at Victoria Guy's house didn't get the memo that NCAA Tournament mania was supposed to be over in Lexington.

That's because Guy is the mother of former Bryan Station High School player Shelvin Mack, now a Butler University standout who had his second shot at the NCAA title Monday night.

Ten family members gathered at Guy's house on Pennebaker Drive to watch the Butler-University of Connecticut game, which tipped off on ESPN at 9:05 p.m. To them, the University of Kentucky's loss to UConn on Saturday was a distant memory. Guy was in Houston watching Mack play, but the aunts, uncles and granparents who turned up made it clear — Lexington still had a dog in the fight.

The group was sad when Butler came up short in the title game for the second year in a row, losing 53-41, but they said they remained proud of Shelvin.

"A lot of people said they wouldn't get here again, but they did it," said Tyane Guy, Mack's aunt. "This doesn't define who he is."

Over a dinner of spaghetti and garlic bread, the team cheered Mack and the Bulldogs as diehard fans — all while teasing the 6-foot-3 guard the way only family could.

As Mack walked through the halls of Reliant Stadium in Houston before taking the court, the family laughed as the camera caught him snacking.

During Mack's drought in the first half — as shot after shot clanged off the rim — they teased him some more.

"Shelvin, you need to show up to the game," Tyane Guy said to the TV. "You're still out in the hallway eating that food."

But with four minutes left in the first half, Mack made his first basket — a three-pointer that tied the game at 19. Family members jumped out of their seats, clapping and cheering so loudly it sounded as if the Houston crowd was packed into the living room.

Then, a little more teasing.

"Yeah, but look how long it took him to get there," Tyane Guy said, pointing at the clock.

Despite the good-natured ribbing, the family oozed pride and love for Mack. A cabinet full of his trophies and plaques overflows into the TV room, where even more plaques and posters hang.

His father, Shelvin Mack Sr., said his son has always been good at basketball. The senior Mack said his son chose to go to Butler over UK because he liked the atmosphere.

"He met the coach and he gave the coach his word he would go," Mack Sr. said. "The only thing a man's got is his word."

Doralice Duke, Mack's cousin, tried desperately to get her freshly laundered Butler shirt dry in time for the game, checking the dryer again and again.

It was still damp when the game started. She put it on anyway, braving two hours of discomfort all in the name of team support.

"It's all about the Bulldogs," the shirt said, a slogan that couldn't have been more true in the brick house on Pennebaker.

This story was originally published April 5, 2011 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Shelvin Mack's family gathers to cheer him on."