ATHENS, Ohio — Walter Luckett arrived in the `70s, made a magazine cover and created a stir, but left without getting the Bobcats very far.

Gary Trent morphed into the “Shaq of the MAC” in the ‘90s, taking the program to national heights that didn’t translate at tournament time.

Ohio University went 48 years looking for more than one shining moment in the NCAA tournament, going through seven coaches and a handful of stars without advancing past that opening weekend. It’s finally changed for the school nestled in the hills of southeast Ohio.

The Bobcats have become the tournament’s latest mid-major darlings, knocking off Michigan and South Florida to reach the round of 16 for the first time since 1964. They’ll play North Carolina on Friday in St. Louis.

The long wait has made it sweet indeed.

“It’s very warming,” Trent said from Minneapolis, where he’s an elementary school intervention specialist. “It’s so great to see them advance. There’s only 16 teams playing in the country, and Ohio U. happens to be one of them.”

Even though the school was on spring break, the students still around campus jammed Court Street after the 13th-seeded Bobcats ousted Michigan in their opening game. Then, the Mid-American Conference tournament champions topped the Big East’s best defensive team for another celebration that got more than just the town talking.

“This has been unreal,” said Walter Offutt, a transfer from Ohio State. “Let’s continue the run.”

Their win on Sunday became an immediate talking point. Clark Kellogg was calling the Lehigh-Xavier game when Ohio finished off the Bulls, giving him a chance to exult on the air. Kellogg’s son, Nick, is a sophomore guard for the Bobcats.

“Oh wow!” Kellogg said. “Oh my goodness! Way to go Bobcats!”

The postgame celebration was shown on TBS and got more rave reviews. School President Roderick J. McDavis, dressed in a green Ohio jacket, gave players a pep talk: “I told you a few weeks ago there was another level!”

Now, the school has something to talk about other than parties and potatoes.

Ohio, which is known regionally for its annual Halloween party, was ranked the top party school in the country by the 2011 Princeton Review last summer, an annoyance to administrators trying to change that image.

“Honestly, I don’t know where that party thing comes from,” Trent said. “I’ve been on other college campuses. It’s no more wild than any other.”

The football program got its first bowl victory in December, beating Utah State 24-23 in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl with a touchdown drive in the last 2 minutes.

The basketball team was looking for a breakthrough as well — that Sweet 16 thing.