Don’t think that post title is hyperbolic, because if UNC wins, it’s going to be considered, outside of any UCLA-era achievements, the greatest career any player has ever had.
So stew on that.
The pot-hole-littered road to the Final Four ends tonight, and that metaphor fits no better than now, as The Dance ends in the Motor City.
I’m not sad; it’ll be nice to have a little time off, and I’ve got some good interviews in store over the next month. (So stay tuned for that.)
But, fortunately, this sport doesn’t allow for a lot of hype. Sunday is the slowest news day, and the next thing you know, we’re down to two teams. I love the setup for the Final Four and title game. Now, just give us something watchable, North Carolina. Stop blowing everybody out. It’s not even fun to watch this kind of dominance (like Kentucky, UCLA or old Carolina teams used to do).
When you look at the last decade, we’re getting a watchable game (B- or better, in my terms) about every other year:
2008: Midwest No. 1 Kansas 75, South No. 1 Memphis 68 (OT). Certainly the best one of the group. Kansas’ flurried comeback coupled with Memphis’ shot to win a title with only one loss — oh yeah, and Mario Chalmers hit kind of a big shot. Chokejob or comeback, though? I think that’s still up for debate. What isn’t: the longevity this game will have. Grade: A.
2007: Midwest No. 1 Florida 84, South No. 1 Ohio State 75. Was worth it to see Oden in a title game (still pretty incredible OSU did this, in retrospect), but Florida’s memorable back-to-back titles didn’t give us much of a game. Grade: B-.
2006: Minneapolis No. 3 Florida 73, Oakland No. 2 UCLA 57. A snore of a game. The entire second half wasn’t worth watching. Grade: C.
2005: East No. 1 North Carolina 75, Midwest No. 1 Illinois 70. The game had a lot of future NBA talent on the floor, none of which was better than Illinois’ Deron Williams. A solid game, but one that would certainly blend in with all the others had Roy Williams not gotten his first title. Grade: B+.
2004: West No. 2 UConn 82, Midwest No. 3 Georgia Tech 73. The second worst title game in the batch. I was at UConn’s campus because I was really hoping the school would lose and I could see some rioting. Instead, the school won and I saw rioting. Lemme refresh you with one name from that Georgia Tech team: Luke Schenscher. Oy. Grade: C-.
2003: East No. 3 Syracuse 81, No. Kansas 78. You remember it: the Hakim Warrick block. A terrific game, and as memorable a team as we’ve had in 20 years because of the Carmelo factor. Grade: A-.
2002: East No. 1 Maryland 84, South No. 5 Indiana 72. The thing I most remember this Indiana team for is the epic win over Duke in the Sweet 16 and former coach Mike Davis constantly running onto the floor. Worst title game I’ve ever seen. Grade: C-.
2001: East No. 1 Duke 82, Midwest No. 2 Arizona 72. The year Shane Battier, Mike Dunleavy Jr. and Jason Williams got K his third. Yes, it’s been this long since Duke won a title. Grade: B.
2000: Midwest No. 1 Michigan State 89, East No. 5 Florida 76. Snoozefest. Remember, 2000 was the year that two eight-seeds in North Carolina and Wisconsin reached the Final Four. Michigan State was far and away the favorite. Grade: C.
1999: West No. 1 UConn 77, East No. 1 Duke 74. Maybe the last big upset in a national title game. A Michigan State win tonight wouldn’t trump this, even though it’s a two-seed. Do you remember how big a favorite Duke was for this game? And how Connecticut won because of that defense led by Ricky Moore. What an innocent time that was for Connecticut. Nobody hated it. This is probably my favorite title game of all listed. Grade: A.
I think we all want a game that’s watchable, and it’s reasonable to think we won’t get that. UNC has won every game by at least 12 points. The team is hitting lights out from behind 3. It is C-R-I-T-I-C-A-L that Michigan State not allow Carolina to shoot 3′s. Danny Green isn’t missing and it’s damn frustrating to watch.
If MSU pulls the upset tonight, 2009 will be remembered for a college team uniting a depressed state for a magical run. Speaking of Magic … yeah, you know where I’m going with that. So perhaps the stars are aligning for the green and white.
And if North Carolina wins, Tyler Hansbrough will cry. (I think he’s capable of that emotion. I think. ) And Roy Williams will cry through Thursday.
Dorky matchup breakdown will come shortly before the live blog tonight.
False. Christian Laettner. Three title games, two championships, upset an unbeaten UNLV team to win the first, hit a buzzer beater in the greatest game ever played to finish a perfect night (10-10 fg, 10-10 ft) on the run to the second, most career points in the tournament.
And, oh yeah, he was on the dream team. I hate the guy as muhc as anybody, but Hansbrough’s got nothing on that.
Yeah, the post’s title was kind of tongue-in-cheek, as the national media will certainly play up this “he’s done as much as anyone” angle.
But I feel ya!