Albany

So far, there have been no marriage proposals from star-struck women.

"I'm still waiting," UAlbany junior guard Peter Hooley said with a big smile Tuesday afternoon at SEFCU Arena.

The UAlbany basketball team leaves town at 10 a.m. Wednesday, bound for the NCAA Tournament. The Danes are flying to Columbus, Ohio, for a date Friday with Oklahoma in the East Region. UAlbany is seeded 14th; Oklahoma is a three seed.

When Hooley lands in the Buckeye State, he can expect more of what he has been going through since becoming a hardwood rock star last Saturday afternoon. Monday night — and again on Tuesday morning — he was a live guest on ESPN's SportsCenter.

There have been radio interviews. Hooley said he was doing one with an Australian radio station at 5 p.m. Monday night when coach Will Brown poked his head into the room and told Hooley ESPN wanted him.

Hooley and Brook Rayder, the UAlbany sports information contact for men's basketball, hopped in a car and drove to Bristol, Conn., the home of the self-proclaimed worldwide leader in sports.

"This has all been a whirlwind," Hooley said. "Crazy. But it's been pretty cool. I could never have dreamed any of this."

Hooley became a hero for the UAlbany basketball ages on Saturday when he hit a game-winning 3-point shot with 1.6 seconds left in the America East Conference championship game over Stony Brook at SEFCU Arena. VIDEO: SEE HOOLEY'S SHOT.

The story got more legs when national media outlets began to hear the whole story, one that is familiar to people in the Capital Region. Hooley left the Danes for a month to return home to Australia to be with his mum, Sue, who died of colon cancer at the age of 52 on Jan. 30. After making that big basket against Stony Brook — UAlbany won the game 51-50 — Hooley said he won it for his mother. And he said he had no doubt she was watching over him and the Danes.

Then, all of a sudden, people wanted to hear Hooley's story. The big basket was the No. 1 play on SportsCenter's nightly Top 10. The likable Aussie's Twitter feed went from 1,100 followers before the Stony Brook game, to 3,400. And growing.

When the Danes land in Columbus, Hooley says he will be ready to talk to anyone who wants to talk to him.

"I will be. I have to be," he said. "I am sure it will be pretty crazy out there, but if my story manages to touch even a couple people and inspire them, then it has done its thing."

Brown did something he might not normally have done to accommodate Hooley. While the Danes are preparing for their biggest game of the year, he moved practice Tuesday — from noon to 3 p.m. — so Hooley could do the ESPN gig.

"That could be the first time. And the last," Brown said. "I thought it was a great opportunity for Peter and our program. This was something we had to do. Sometimes there are things that are a little more important."

Brown has been one of Hooley's biggest supporters since his mum got sick four-and-a-half years ago.

The coach is going to let his player take this ride for as long as it lasts.

"There is a story behind this, and the story is a sad one," Brown said. "But there is also a fairy tale ending to our (Stony Brook) game. It's March Madness. I told Peter as long as he was comfortable doing this, we would move forward."

His teammates, of course, are getting a huge kick out of this. Senior forward Sam Rowley, a fellow Australian and Hooley's best friend, watched the ESPN bit and was impressed.

Hooley maybe not so much.

"Hey," Hooley said. "I am just a little country kid who managed to hit a pretty big shot."

twilkin@timesunion.com • 518-454-5415 • @tjwilkin