Every head was arched up toward one of the five large T.V. screens at Buffalo Wild Wings, 360 Albert Ave., Sunday during the Detroit Pistons' Game 7 in the playoffs against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
"We expected at least this crowd," said General Manager Aaron Weiner amid the packed bar. With half the game finished and the Pistons ahead, Weiner said he still wasn't sure of the outcome.
"I'm not ready to celebrate yet; we still have two more rounds," he said.
Dressed in Pistons jerseys and T-shirts, the waitstaff hurried around collecting glasses and dropping off baskets of wings. Wearing a No. 22 Tayshaun Prince jersey, Meaghan Beaver — a waitress at the restaurant — said she attributes what sports knowledge she has to her job.
"I've learned more about sports here, so I have no idea what's going on," the fifth-year fashion design student said. "They stay longer if (the Pistons win). If they lose, they are right out of here."
In the front of the restaurant, East Lansing Mayor Sam Singh stood at a table laughing with a group of students.
"I just got done at the art festival and (I'm) meeting friends to watch the second half of the game," he said. "I'm confident they'll do it."
Grandville resident Matt Engels sat at a table near the center of the restaurant watching the game with three friends. Engels said the group has met at the restaurant every Sunday since football season, so he makes the trip to East Lansing each week. He said the staff may start to recognize him and his friends.
"Whether that's good or bad, I don't know," Engels said. "(The Pistons are) not as good as they should be. The last five games have been frustrating."
The Pistons game has made the group's Sunday routine more exciting, said Beth Naeger of Haslett.
Kinesiology senior Allison Cahill had the chance to meet her favorite player, Tayshaun Prince, when she worked at his wedding last September. Cahill also met players Ben Wallace and Chauncey Billups. She said Prince was her favorite player before she met him.
"I'll have a lot of hugging to do (if they lose)," said finance senior Scott Casbey, Cahill's boyfriend.
With less than one minute to go and Detroit widening the gap between the Cleveland Cavaliers, the crowd awoke with applause and a series of cheers.
"The game was exciting; it was a great game," said Lansing Community College student Chris Crawford. "They played hard. Go Pistons!"
MSU alumnus James Kramek didn't think they played perfectly, but was happy with the outcome of the game. "They weren't playing up to their standards, but they came through. That's what Pistons do."
