You can’t screw up a victory. You really can’t screw up the first victory for your team in the MAC Tournament since 1982.

Or so you thought.

Fresh off a second-round victory over Western Michigan in the MAC Tournament at Cleveland’s Gund Arena, NIU coach Rob Judson and players Perry Smith and Marcus Smallwood entered the post-game press conference room.

The three began their assent up the stairs to their seats at the interview podium.

That’s when the trouble started.

Athletics Director Cary Groth and NIU President John Peters, among other NIU followers, applauded Judson and the players.

To most people this may not seem like a big deal.

But, to people who know the ins and outs of college athletics, like Groth and Peters, they should have known better.

The press room is reserved for the press. Post-game conferences are conducted in a very professional manner. No one cheers, applauds or makes any gesture to promote one team over another.

When the two people who knew better began their tribute to the Huskies, one reporter leaned over to another with disgust.

“Get these clowns out of here,” he said.

And who couldn’t agree with him.

Nearly every reporter in the room looked on in disbelief during the gesture.

But, before you go off believing that reporters are a bunch of stiffs, know this: All reporters have favorite teams. If you cover a team over a whole season, you do have a special connection with them. No one said that this is wrong.

What is wrong is when you express this liking at the wrong time like Peters and Groth did. Reporters, for the most part, are always supposed to take non-partial views in their writings – outside of columns.

The old cliche says, act like you have been there before and act like you will be there again.

In truth, NIU never has played at Gund Arena since the MAC Tournament started playing there, and winning still is new to the NIU community, but that is no excuse.

Why the NIU followers were in the press conference is none of my business.

But, the way they acted was.

In that 15-minute press conference, I didn’t want it to be known I was from NIU. I actually was embarrassed.

I guess you can screw up a victory.