Before the St. John's University Pep Band starts playing in front of a sold-out crowd at Madison Square Garden, there is a journey from the Queens campus. 

From the streets of the city, the band enters the sports and entertainment mecca and warms up behind the curtain at the world's most famous arena, preparing just as the team gets ready to tip-off against Big East Rivals, the UCONN Huskies.

The St. John's University Pep Band is always ready for the big stage, including drummer Christian Marino of Whitestone, Queens, who says being part of the group and this season doesn't even seem real sometimes. 

"This is like a second family. I get to play at MSG like every week. This is a dream I didn't know I had until I fulfilled it," Marino, a junior at the university, said.

The band has been performing at basketball games and dozens of other events each year for more than four decades, with around 25 to 30 student musicians in the group.

Win or lose, they are always there.

Members say playing in front of a sold-out crowd during a magical and historic season for the Red Storm has been incredible.

Courtney White is the band director, and also played with the band as an undergrad and graduate student.

"We bring it our all every time we are here, but it's really the energy of the kids that kind of helps project through the space," White said. 

Elisha Dorsey is a percussionist from Queens who is now a senior. 

"It's like an out-of-body experience. You are here and wow, it's awesome, beautiful," Dorsey said. 

As a drummer, the word had gotten out that I am always looking for a gig. 

On a trip to campus a few years ago, St. John's associate vice president of university communications and public affairs Brian Browne suggested sitting in with the band.

Little did I know that Hall of Fame Coach Rick Pitino would be turning the program around, and the sitting in would be in front of more than 19,000 people at The Garden.

With the help of Marino, my drumming guide, I played along to "Land of 1000 Dances," a popular pep band and marching band song across college athletics.

It was quite a thrill considering all the concerts and sporting events I have seen at MSG over the years, starting in the late 1970s with trips to Knicks and Rangers games and sitting in the blue seats upstairs for games. I even made it to MSG's jumbotron. 

But enough about me. Watching the band, I realized they are so much more than musicians.

They are kind of the heart and soul of the fan base during games, enjoying an amazing ride under Pitino. Just ask super-fan Billy Rabold, aka "The Red Suit Guy," a fixture at Red Storm games for years. 

"Whether it be the cheer team, the dance team, the band, the student section, seeing that the team feeds off of what we do and all the fans wherever we are whether it be Madison Square Garden, whether it be Carnesecca Arena, whether it's on the road, you can see that they take that energy with them and they put it into their performance on the court night in and night out," Rabold said.

If things keep going, they way they are going, the band has a bunch more basketball games to play at coming up. As White said, she's been mentally preparing them to bring the energy for a very long time.