ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. _ Basketball has always represented common ground for the Drew clan _ family business, touchstone, emotional outlet.
As the Drews faced their most difficult personal moment this fall and winter, basketball was again at the center of the struggle. Former Valparaiso University basketball coach Homer Drew was diagnosed with prostate cancer in September. Three days later, Janet, his wife of 44 years, was found to have advanced stage 3 bladder cancer.
The terrible news was a 1-2 punch to a close-knit family that includes son Scott, the head coach at Baylor. Homer Drew's cancer was not necessarily a shock, given that his father had died from the disease and that he underwent regular tests. Janet's diagnosis blindsided everyone.
"You expected one bad news, but two at the same time.....," Scott Drew said. "That was a tough day."
Six months later, Homer is cancer free. Janet, finishing radiation treatment, received encouraging medical news last week that led to an impromptu celebration after son Bryce coached Valparaiso to the Horizon League regular-season title.
Basketball served as a welcome diversion, Homer Drew said. He and his wife still live Valparaiso, a northern Indiana town of 31,730. They followed Bryce's team in person, and used satellite to catch almost all of Baylor's games from afar.
"It was a wonderful release," Homer Drew said in a phone interview as his wife napped. "It gave something for both of us to be involved in and for both of us to look forward to. We went from doctor to hospital to game. That was the pattern for three months."
If there is a first family of March Madness buzzer-beaters, it may be the Drews.
Tuesday marked the 14th anniversary of one of the most famous shots in NCAA Tournament history. Bryce Drew's jump shot off a long inbounds pass helped Valparaiso edge Mississippi in the first round of the 1998 tournament.
Homer was coaching the 13th-seeded Crusaders. Scott, the oldest child, was an assistant and rising star in coaching as his father's heir apparent.
Sister Dana was a standout player at Toledo, good enough to have her jersey retired this season.
While his two siblings were dealing with their parents' illness, Scott was trying to multitask nearly 900 miles away, coaching a top-10 program with high expectations while trying to do what he could for his parents.
He learned the intricacies of Skype and FaceTime to help his three children bond with their grandparents, calling nearly every day.
"I knew they were always watching our game, and I was trying to put them in a good mood by winning," he said. "It's hard enough when you compete. When you know how much it means to family, friends and loved ones among you, it makes you want to even compete that much harder."
He also immersed himself in cancer research. Scott can recite the ominous numbers about men over 40 and prostate cancer, along with the remarkable medical advances in treating bladder cancer. His mother had a replacement bladder that doctors built from part of her small intestine.
He also gained an appreciation for his father, whose initial surgery went well and who then took on the primary caregiver role for his wife.
Early on, Janet Drew told her husband: "This is the toughest coaching job you'll ever have."
Suddenly, he was confronted with a world of catheters and stents _ and even shopping. Janet drew her recently retired husband a map of the local grocery store, complete with arrows marking milk and bread.
"To see him take care of her makes me proud to be his son," Scott said. "I hope I can be a father like that someday."
Added Bryce, whose team fell to Miami in the NIT on Wednesday: "They don't have to say any words. Seeing how they've gone through teaches me hundreds of lessons."
Just more than three weeks ago, on Feb. 21, the Drew family got an answer to their hopes and prayers.
Because cancer had been found in Janet's lymph nodes, doctors were concerned about a possible spread to the brain and lungs.
MRI scans of her brain and torso revealed no further cancer.
"She's always been the rock and foundation of the family," Homer said, praising her courage and faith. "It's amazed us how she tackled it day in and day out with the difficult surgery and recovery."
Scott got the good news by phone but had a surprise for his mom. He, his wife and three children were in Valparaiso. After Bryce's team beat Loyola of Chicago to win the Horizon League, the entire family of three children and seven grandchildren surprised Janet in Bryce's office.
The family hopes for better news next week when the radiation treatment ends and Janet is examined again.
"It definitely brings you closer any time there's a struggle in the family and seeing your mom and dad going through tough times physically and not able to do the things they would want to," Scott said. "It makes everybody realize how quickly life passes and how you have to enjoy every day."
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