As you can probably tell, I couldn't figure out how to start this post about the Championship game last night. I am late to the blog party, so it isn't really worth talking about the game anymore. After all, the 'Memphis can't shoot free throws' angle has been played to death. All I will add is that John Calipari simply choked at the end of that game! His players were lost and he couldn't get control of the situation. It's too bad. They outplayed Kansas for 38 minutes last night.
For me, the game brought back memories of two other NCAA Championship games. The obvious comparison was the 1987 game when Keith Smart hit that baseline jumper to beat my Alma Mater Syracuse. The game winning shot is the only thing remembered in a game where Freshman Derrick Coleman missed a free throw that would have sealed the game, and the Syracuse team looked absolutely lost in the remaining seconds after that. I still remember that game vividly because it took me years to get over it. I had actually put it out of my memory, which is why it wasn't the first game I thought of.
No, the first game I thought of was the North Carolina State - Houston championship game from 1983. To me, the similarities were striking. Houston was coming off one the most amazing college games ever played. The Final Four match-up of Houston (Phi Slamma Jamma Fraternity) versus Louisville (The Doctors of Dunk) was even better than advertised. After all, it was billed as a game where the team with the most dunks would win. It was during this game that I became obsessed with the NCAA tournament. Simply amazing! Coming off of that performance, Houston played a game against a team that took away its strength (high flying dunks), and ultimately exposed a fatal flaw - free throw shooting.
NC State's strategy was to foul - starting with freshman Alvin Franklin with just over 2 minutes left in the game. Franklin missed the front end of a one-in-one, which ultimately led to a last second shot-turned-dunk that everyone remembers today.
Of course, from last night's game I rememberfreshman Derrick Rose missing a crucial free throw to seal the game and the last second shot by Mario Chalmers that essentially won the National Championship. Sound familiar?
It was an amazing game. There were at least 8 NBA players on the floor and the skill level was through the dome roof! For those of you who believed that UNC or UCLA belonged with these two teams just weren't watching all year. And I WAS one of those who thought UCLA belonged. Let me say two things here: 1) Darren Collison was simply outclassed against Memphis and UCLA could not score enough to handle either of the teams that played Monday night. And 2) Tyler Hansbrough is at the ceiling of his talent. A great college player with unbelievable energy who can't get his shot off against players of equal, or better talent. Unfortunately, he doesn't have great talent. UNC was sheltered by the fact that, prior to the Final Four, they have only had to leave North Carolina twice since early February.
Speaking of UNC, who saw Roy Williams with his Kansas patch at the game yesterday. If Jim Boeheim EVER showed up at a Georgetown game wearing their colors, I would fear for his life. It is not responsible and if I were a UNC alum/fan I would be furious. Having said that, the Jayhawk colors may have been better than that tie he was wearing on Saturday night. It was putrid.
Well, that's really all I have from the game last night. It is clear that the game will be more remembered for the shot than for the missed shots. It always happens that way. And for Chris Douglass-Roberts and Derrick Rose, this is a very good thing.
No comments:
Post a Comment