Gopher Dip

It's March 22, and the Gophers are playing UCLA in the NCAA tournament. The last time the Gophers played UCLA on March 22, it was 1997, a trip to the Final Four was on the line, and I spent the last half hour of the game hugging a jar of salsa and a package of cream cheese.

This is what the NCAA Tournament used to do to me.

The Gophers were one of the best teams in the country in 1997, reaching a ranking as high as No. 2. This was almost without question the most talented team in Gopher history[1], led by the sensational Bobby Jackson. They played in-your-face defense, they hit clutch three-pointers whenever they needed them, and they out-muscled the toughest teams in the Big Ten. In short, they were a joy to watch, and when they entered the NCAA tournament as a No. 1 seed, Gopher fans held on for what we thought would be the ride of our lives.

The first weekend was a laugher. The Gophers were so much better than Southwest Texas State and Temple that it wasn't even a contest. The Gophers entered the Sweet 16 cruising, ready for anything.

And then Clemson showed up, and they gave the Gophers all they could handle in the Sweet 16. My nails never stood a chance as the game went to double overtime before Jackson exerted his will and pushed the Gophers to the Elite 8.

And that's where UCLA was waiting. Two years previously, the Bruins had won the national title, and they had several players on their roster who had both won a national championship and experienced the humiliation of a first-round loss. They were ready to avenge the Princeton fiasco of a year ago. I was excited, settling down in my basement to hopefully witness the Gophers' first trip to the Final Four. The game tipped off, I was pumped ... and then I realized that we didn't have our dip.

It's not a very complicated dip - cream cheese, shredded cheese, and salsa, mix and let sit in the fridge for a few hours, enjoy with delicious Triscuit crackers or Ritz. Straightforward. I had eaten that dip for each of the first three games, and somewhere along the line I decided it was lucky. These things happen when you're 15. I had quickly dubbed it "Gopher Dip," and it became just as much a part of that season as Jackson's high socks. Because it was "lucky," I was apprehensive about starting the UCLA game without it - and we couldn't quick make it, because it had to sit in the fridge for a while[2].

UCLA wouldn't go away. At all. But then, neither would the Gophers. And as the end of regulation neared and the score remained close, I couldn't handle it any more. At a commercial, I ran upstairs, grabbed all the ingredients for Gopher Dip, and brought them downstairs. I then watched the rest of the game standing, hugging the ingredients, hoping.

Of course, the Gophers won, in overtime, the greatest win in Gopher history, and of course I thought that I had helped by standing there hugging cream cheese. And after the game was over, they cut down the nets, and Miles Tarver danced with Al McGuire, and it all seemed like a dream.

And in a way, it was a dream. Because according to the NCAA, those games never happened. That Gopher season, plus the three before it, have been wiped from the record books because the players on that team were spending about as much time in college classrooms as I was, and when they did go, they were turning in assignments written by somebody else[3]. The academic fraud scandal destroyed the basketball program for almost a decade.

That game against UCLA, 16 years ago today, represents the pinnacle of Gopher basketball. When they cut down the nets in San Antonio, they had climbed higher than they ever had, and it was all downhill from there - losing to Kentucky in the Final Four that year and then, the next season, struggling to overcome graduations before becoming the first team to lose to Gonzaga in the tournament. And then the scandal that wiped everything away as if it had never happened.

The NCAA says that officially nobody won the Big Ten title that year, that nobody won the Midwest Regional in the NCAA tournament. But I remember standing there watching them overcome UCLA, winning despite the fact I ate no dip that day. I don't care if the NCAA says it was fraudulent. I have my memories, and I have my recipe for Gopher dip. Nobody can take those away.
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[1] - The 1978 team that had Kevin McHale, Mychal Thompson, and Flip Saunders might disagree with that.
[2] - It's very possible that my mom simply was sick of eating the same snack for every game and made up the "sit in the fridge for a few hours" excuse so she could have something else for change. I've never asked.
[3] - My favorite story from this is the claim that Courtney James locked himself in his hotel room the night before the Final Four game and wrote the best term paper his professor had ever seen. James was later arrested for hitting his girlfriend with a phonebook. So ... yah.

What will happen in the Big Ten Tournament

I've been thinking about predicting the NCAA tournament on my blog this year, if only to give me something to write about. But then I remembered that the NCAA tournament has 68 teams, which means 67 games to pick, which is way too much to truly hold my attention. I'm lazy, after all. Plus, I usually suck at picking the NCAA tournament. Like, real bad.

Then I thought, why not pick the Big Ten tournament? People all around the country are saying the Big Ten is without question the best conference in the country this year, so the Big Ten tournament probably going to  determine the national champion anyway.[1] Plus, it has a chance to be more competitive as a whole than the NCAA tournament. So I'm gonna do that, and if I do well at picking the Big Ten tournament, maybe I'll move on to the big one.

First Round

(8) Illinois vs. (9) Minnesota

I've never cheered for a team that was more difficult to figure out than this year's Gophers. They've beaten Indiana, Michigan State, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Memphis, but they've lost to Northwestern, Nebraska, and Purdue. So I don't know. It seems like the explanation is simply home vs. away, as they were a completely different team in Williams Arena than they were on the road, but I don't think it's that simple. That explanation doesn't account for their absolute no-shows during some road games, and played like crap in some home games they won. But they also played well in the neutral-site games they've played, and every game they play from here on out is technically a neutral site game. I say technically because the Big Ten tournament is in Chicago, and the last I saw, Chicago is in Illinois. There's gonna be a lot[2] of orange in the stands for this first game, so it might count as a road game. I have faith in the Gophers, though. For all of Tubby's faults - most of which can be summed up by the word "offense" - his teams always seem to show up for the conference tournament. I think they will again. At least for one round. Gophers by 5.

(5) Michigan vs. (12) Penn State

Remember a few weeks back when the Michigan players all showed up to a pointless game in the middle of Pennsylvania, (most likely) smoked a bunch of high-caliber weed, and proceeded to lose to an atrocious Penn State team, thus costing themselves a top-five national ranking and a first-round bye in the conference tournament? I bet the Wolverines remember that all too well. Their last game against Penn State has almost certainly been playing on a loop on campus all week. And don't underestimate just how terrible Penn State actually was this year. Wolverines by 34.

(6) Iowa vs. (11) Northwestern

So Iowa finished sixth in the Big Ten, huh? Do we know how this happened? That makes even less sense than Michigan not earning a first-round bye. Meanwhile, Northwestern is kinda the host team here, since they're in a suburb of Chicago, but they're so bad in almost all sports that Chicago kinda clings to Notre Dame instead, even though Notre Dame is 100 miles from Chicago. And I've read all about how Northwestern has had a bunch of injuries this year, so that's too bad. At least they won't have to worry about missing their flight home. Hawkeyes by 16.

(7) Purdue vs. (10) Nebraska

After Nebraska beat the Gophers on March 6 in the final game in the Devaney Center, the fans stormed the court. It had to be the first time anybody had ever stormed the court against the Gophers, and it had to be the most ridiculous court-storming in a season full of ridiculous ones. It was embarrassing, although not as embarrassing as the Gophers losing to Nebraska. Did you know Nebraska is ranked 332nd in the nation in scoring offense? That's especially difficult since there are only 321 teams. Boilermakers by 14.

Second Round

(1) Indiana vs. (9) Minnesota  

At the risk of sounding like an absolute homer here, I don't think Indiana wants anything to do with the Gophers in this spot. The Gophers beat Indiana in Williams Arena, and if Trevor Mbakwe had beaten Cody Zeller to a rebound on a missed free throw, the Gophers would have had the ball with a chance to tie with a minute to play in Assembly Hall. Plus, the Gophers beat Indiana in Bloomington [3] last year. Why do the Gophers do well against Indiana? Probably because Indiana likes to run. The easiest way to beat the Gophers is slow it down; they'll get lethargic and bored on offense and quickly lose interest. Indiana won't slow it down, but they'll still win. It'll be closer than a lot of people expect, but Indiana will still win. Hoosiers by 5.

(4) Wisconsin vs. (5) Michigan

I don't hate a lot of Wisconsin college sports teams. I hated Bret Beliema and his spazzy, temper-tantrum throwing face, but before that, I didn't have much of a problem with the Badgers football team. But that is not the case with the basketball team. I hate Bo Ryan, and I hate his over-coaching, momentum-choking, snooze-inducing defensive borefest of a basketball team. Honestly, how does he get any talented recruits to Madison playing that bullshit style of basketball?[4] I hope Michigan wipes the floor with them in this game. Unfortunately, when the final score of every game you play is 48-45, it's really hard to get blown out. Stupid Badgers. Wolverines by 6. 

(3) Michigan State vs. (6) Iowa

Dude, it's Tom Izzo, and it's a single-elimination tournament. Bet against the Spartans at your own risk. Spartans by 9.

(2) Ohio State vs. (7) Purdue

I wanted to find a reason to pick Purdue, because for some reason I think I shouldn't trust Ohio State here this year, but the Buckeyes have won five straight, including wins over Michigan State and at Indiana. They're cruising, and Purdue is not. And really, would this year's Big Ten Final Four look right if Purdue was involved? Buckeyes by 13.

Semifinals

(1) Indiana vs. (5) Michigan

Michigan could have created a four-way tie for the Big Ten title if they had beaten Indiana in Ann Arbor in their final game of the season. Instead, they lost by a point, dropping all the way to the five seed. I think they have something to prove. Although they lost to Indiana twice during the season, they're gonna win the game that counts - unless they meet again in the NCAA tournament. Wolverines by 1.

(2) Ohio State vs. (3) Michigan State

Can you see why so many people are excited about the Big Ten tournament this year? Just look at all the huge matchups that are possible in just the next week. Incredible. I'm waxing poetic about how good the conference is because I just don't know who to pick in this game. I just look foward to watching it. Spartans by 2.

Championship

(3) Michigan State vs. (5) Michigan

There will be two simple things to know about this game. The first is that Michigan will be playing its fourth game in four days, again thanks to its loss to Penn State. The second is that Tom Izzo coaches Michigan State. I don't really like Izzo that much - I went to a Gophers-Spartans game once, and all he did was whine and stomp his feet like my three-year-old - but he is a hell of a coach. He'll be lifting the hardware at the end of the tournament. Michigan State by 9.

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[1] This is probably not true.

[2] Or, as much as can be expected at a game starting at noon on a Thursday.

[3] Bloomington, Indiana, obviously, except that I live in Bloomington, Minnesota, so I wanted to avoid any possible confusion.

[4] This is, inadvertently the most damning statement about Tubby Smith's tenure at Minnesota that I could possibly make.

An uneducated look at this season's bowl games

I like the college football bowl season. I always have. I've never even been that upset about a lack of a playoff because of the bowls. They're just fun. I like sitting back on New Year's Day (or January 2 this year) and watching all the pageantry and games.

Of course, it's been ruined lately by the sheer number of games. I know it's all about money, and more bowl games equals more paydays for college teams, but this is ridiculous. There are 35 bowl games this year, which means 70 teams made a bowl game, which is more than half of the FBS teams. Read that again. More than half of the eligible teams made a bowl game. Going to a bowl game used to be a reward for a good season; now it's a reward for avoiding a catastrophic season.

I think 20 would be the perfect number of bowl games. That's 40 bowl teams, which is exactly 1/3 of the FBS teams. That way you can be assured that it's only good teams that make a bowl game. It's a true reward for a truly good season.

That argument aside, I still like seeing all the bowl matchups. I also like trying to predict all the games when I watched a total of about 27.5 college games this year. Fun times! So, without further ado, my picks for each game:

BCS GAMES

National Championship Game: LSU vs. Alabama
OK, here's the thing. The actual point of the BCS is to make sure that the two best teams meet in the National Championship Game. That's it. All the other games are just filler designed to get as much money to the schools as possible. So in that regard, the BCS succeeded; LSU and Alabama were very clearly the best two teams in college football this year.

That being said, the second-most cited reason that there's no playoff in the highest level of college football - after, of course, money - is the argument that every game counts. Well, this blows that theory completely out of the water. Alabama had its chance at LSU, and they didn't get it done, losing a 9-6 overtime snoozer. But, they get a second chance at it. And it doesn't feel right. I can't imagine many people outside of the Gulf Coast are excited about this matchup.

This has happened before, you know. In 1996, Florida State finished the season as the undefeated number 1 team. Number 2 was undefeated Arizona State, but they were still contractually obligated to the Rose Bowl at that time so, lacking any other options, the powers that be gave Florida State a rematch against Florida, who the Seminoles beat during the regular season. And then Arizona State lost to Ohio State in one of the best Rose Bowls ever played, and then Florida beat Florida State, and Florida was named the national champion, and nobody really felt very good about that.

I mention all that as a long-winded way of saying that while LSU-Alabama might have been technically the correct matchup for the title game, the heads of the BCS would have been better off finding another team for LSU to play. And how satisfied will college football fans be if Alabama wins this game? I don't think they will, but I will cheer for Alabama if it somehow means a change to how things are done. Prediction: LSU 5, Alabama 2 (OT) ACTUAL: Alabama 21, LSU 0 (There's no doubt Alabama was a great team. I still would've loved to have seen their defense against a team with a real offense, like Oklahoma State)

Rose Bowl: Wisconsin vs. Oregon
There's only one college football game I go out of my way to watch every year. I absolutely love the Rose Bowl, and I'm glad that through all the BCS changes, it has survived to retain its Big Ten-Pac 10 12 matchup. I love seeing the the historic stadium divided exactly in half with the two schools' colors (which will look especially festive with the red and green mixing this year) and I love how the stadium looks as the sun starts to set in Pasadena. It's my favorite college game of the year, and this single game is the primary reason I don't yell too loudly for a playoff in college. Yes, I'm an old-fashioned sap. Get over it. Prediction: Wisconsin 42, Oregon 39. ACTUAL: Oregon 45, Wisconsin 38 (I had no idea Oregon hadn't won the Rose Bowl since 1917. So I say good for them.)

Orange Bowl: West Virginia vs. Clemson
I'm having a hard time believing that this is a BCS matchup. I had to remind myself that Clemson somehow beat Virginia Tech twice this year to win the ACC, and West Virginia didn't win the Big East as much as they avoided losing it. Not exactly an inspirational matchup. Prediction: Clemson 31, West Virginia 17. ACTUAL: West Virginia 70, Clemson 33 (The Clemson basketball team has held its opponents under 70 points in 11 of its 14 games this year.)

Fiesta Bowl: Stanford vs. Oklahoma State
Damn Iowa State. Their upset of Oklahoma State kept the Cowboys out of a matchup with LSU. It's too bad, because it would have been cool to see if Oklahoma State's all-world offense could have scored on LSU's impossibly good defense (or if their porous defense could have held LSU under 28 points). Instead, the Cowboys get a matchup against a very good Stanford team that lost to only Oregon this year. There's been a lot of attention given to Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck, the likely No. 1 pick in next year's NFL draft. Oregon exposed Luck a quite a bit when they beat Stanford, but Oklahoma State doesn't have the horses to do the same. But can Stanford stop the Cowboys? Prediction: Oklahoma State 45, Stanford 31. ACTUAL: Oklahoma State 41, Stanford 38, OT (You know what's overrated? Defense in major bowl games)

Sugar Bowl: Michigan vs. Virginia Tech
No conference champions in this BCS game. Instead, it's two teams that got an at-large bid. And mildly surprising choices at that. For Michigan, it's a good story that they're back to prominence, but if you're going to pick a second Big Ten team, Michigan State played in the Big Ten title game, only lost that game by 3, and beat Michigan. But, the maize and blue travel much better than Sparty, so they were picked. In other words, money wins again. For Virginia Tech, this was their spot to lose entering the ACC title game. Then they lost the ACC title game. Oops. Yet, they still got a BCS berth over somebody like TCU, Boise State, Arkansas, or Kansas State, all of whom would probably beat Virginia Tech. But the Hokies will probably draw more fans, so they got picked. Whatever. Prediction: Michigan 28, Virginia Tech 10. ACTUAL: Michigan 23, Virginia Tech 20, OT (Like all classic games, it featured a fake field goal where the center caught a pass on a deflection.

OTHER GAMES

(Listed in the order they appear. And I refuse to mention the title sponsor of bowls, which is why some of these names might get confusing. Bear with me here.)

New Mexico Bowl: Temple vs. Wyoming
I think New Mexico is the most random place to ever host a bowl game, with the possible exception of Toronto or Shreveport, La. When I hear the schools "Temple" and "Wyoming" mentioned in the same sentence, I think that they're the two most random football teams I can think of. So really, it's a match made in heaven. Prediction: Wyoming 20, Temple 10. ACTUAL: Temple 37, Wyoming 15 (the lesson: don't underestimate Owls)

Potato Bowl: Ohio vs. Utah State
The fact that there's actually a game called the Potato Bowl is either the greatest or the most depressing thing I've heard this year. There's really no in-between. As for the game, it'd be a lot better if it were Ohio State vs. Utah. But such is life. I've heard Utah State was really good at blowing leads this year. Prediction: Ohio 31, Utah State 30. ACTUAL: Ohio 24, Utah State 23 (Do I get bonus points for that?)

New Orleans Bowl: San Diego State vs. Louisiana-Lafayette
These two schools can close their eyes and dream that they're actually meeting in the Sugar Bowl. Then they'll open their eyes and see they're playing in a quarter-full Superdome. This game is played in the Superdome, right? Anyway, last I checked, Louisiana-Lafayette is in Louisiana, as is New Orleans, so let's go that way. Prediction: La-La 27, San Diego State 14. ACTUAL: La-La 32, San Diego State 30 (As always, don't bet against Louisiana in Louisiana)

St. Petersburg Bowl: Florida International vs. Marshall
Sheesh, another team with home state advantage. Is Florida International the one that got in a brawl with Miami (Fla) a few years back? Or was that Florida Atlantic? Anyway, I think Randy Moss still has a year of eligibility left at Marshall, and he's not doing anything right now, so maybe they should sneak him onto the field. Prediction: FIU 35, Marshall 10. ACTUAL: Marshall 20, FIU 10 (Wait, so Randy Moss did come back? No? I'm confused)

Poinsettia Bowl: Texas Christian vs. Louisiana Tech
Congratulations, TCU! You beat Boise State in Boise to win your conference. You finished in the top 15 in the nation! You're moving to a much, much better conference next year! Your reward is a bowl game in San Diego! Oh, but it's not even the most prestigious bowl game played in San Diego. We save that one for teams from major conferences that you would probably beat by 30. But no hard feelings, right? Prediction: TCU 56, Louisiana Tech 9. ACTUAL: TCU 34, Louisiana Tech 27 (I forgot to factor in the possibility of TCU not caring about this game and sleep-walking through three quarters. At least they won.)

Las Vegas Bowl: Arizona State vs. Boise State
Christ, another travesty. Boise State's a top-10 team, and they get stuck in this wretch of a game against a team that has already fired their coach? Wow. I think Kellen Moore will throw with his off hand for sport in this game. Boise needs to get into a real conference quickly so that a single final-second, one-point loss doesn't keep derailing their season. Prediction: Boise State 56, Arizona State 9. ACTUAL: Boise State 56, Arizona State 24 (I think they let them have the 24 to make it more of a challenge)

Hawaii Bowl: Nevada vs. Southern Mississippi
Does anybody in Conference USA like Southern Miss right now? First, by beating Houston and knocking the Cougars out of a BCS bowl, they cost the conference something like $10 million. Then, they get rewarded with a Christmas-season trip to Hawaii. They better be careful, or else the other conference teams might not let them back in. Oh, and as is required, I must mention that Brett Favre went to Southern Miss, so BRETT FAVRE BRETT FAVRE BRETT FAVRE. Thanks. Prediction: Southern Miss 24, Nevada 3. ACTUAL: Southern Miss 24, Nevada 17 (If there's one thing I know, it's how many points non-BCS schools will score in minor bowl games)

Independence Bowl: Missouri vs. North Carolina
Finally, a bowl game I've heard of against football schools that are relevant. It's been a while. A lot of pressure's on Missouri because this will be the last bowl game they ever play in after they move to the SEC next year. Might as well go out with a bang. As for North Carolina, they had a good win against Wisconsin the other day. Of course I'm talking about basketball. Who talks about North Carolina's football team? Prediction: Missouri 31, North Carolina 21. ACTUAL: Missouri 41, North Carolina 24 (I'm starting to look like I know what I'm doing here)

Game played in Charlotte named after a department store chain I've never heard of: Louisville vs. North Carolina State
I'm pretty sure Louisville tied for the Big East championship this year. It's not a good sign for the conference that a co-champion is relegated to playing what is essentially a road game in a generic no-name bowl. The Big East should just give up football and focus on basketball. It'd be a lot less embarrassing. As for NC State, I thought they finished like 11th in the ACC this year. Apparently not. Prediction: Louisville 17, NC State 13. ACTUAL: NC State 31, Louisville 24 (So, uh, ACC > Big East, huh?)

Game formerly known as the Motor City Bowl but now named after pizza: Western Michigan vs. Purdue
I don't care. Prediction: WMU 30, Purdue 8. ACTUAL: Purdue 37, WMU 31 (Whatever)

Military Bowl: Toledo vs. Air Force
Toledo is called the Rockets. Air Force is a military academy. Synergy, people! Air Force won the Commander in Chief Trophy this year, which is really the only trophy they care about. I bet they'll be handed a trophy if they win this one, too. I think Toledo's gonna win, but wouldn't it piss off the military if the military lost the Military Bowl? Prediction: Toledo 24, Air Force 17. ACTUAL: Toledo 42, Air Force 41 (If an air strike suddenly flattens Toledo's stadium tomorrow, now you know why)

Holiday Bowl: California vs. Texas
Once upon a time, a national championship was decided in the Holiday Bowl. That will never happen again. The Holiday Bowl also used to be known as the most unpredictable, highest scoring of the bowl games. Now it's just the third best team in the Pac-12 against the fifth best in the Big 12. It used to be the best of the December bowl games. Now it's just lost in the shuffle. Prediction: Cal 35, Texas 24. ACTUAL: Texas 21, California 10 (It's because Texas is bigger, isn't it)

Game played in Orlando named after a sports apparel shop: Florida State vs. Notre Dame
This would have been an awesome game in 1993. Now, I'm just surprised that Florida State wasn't banned from a bowl game this year. I predict a lot of gold helmets in this one. Prediction: Notre Dame 31, Florida State 24. ACTUAL: Florida State 18, Notre Dame 14 (The revenge of Charlie Ward?)

Alamo Bowl: Washington vs. Baylor
I liked this better when it was Big Ten vs. Big 12. Oh well. Baylor's pretty good - they beat Oklahoma, right? That says something. Washington beat ... Washington State? I think? But they play in Seattle, which must be really nice. Baylor plays in Waco, which is still mostly known for David Koresh. Prediction: Baylor 42, Washington 28. ACTUAL: Baylor 67, Washington 56 (No, wait ... sorry, that was a basketball score. What? It wasn't? Wow.)

Armed Forces Bowl: BYU vs. Tulsa
Wait, so there's a Military Bowl and an Armed Forces Bowl? And they're different games? And Army and Navy aren't playing in this one? I'm confused. And that's before you mention that Tulsa calls its sports teams the Golden Hurricane despite being 500 miles from the Gulf Coast. Too many questions for me. And don't ask me where this game takes place, because I couldn't even begin to tell you. Prediction: BYU 30, Tulsa 21. ACTUAL: BYU 24, Tulsa 21 (Huh. I'm actually doing pretty well with these so far. Oh, and I literally just finished watching this game and I still don't know where it took place)

Pinstripe Bowl: Rutgers vs. Iowa State
Blame Iowa (State). If they don't beat Oklahoma State, we don't have that rematch in the National Championship Game. However, that win got them here, in a game in historic new Yankee Stadium. I'm pretty sure Rutgers was not one of the teams that tied for the Big East title, but they'll probably win it next year, considering they'll basically be the only team left in the league. Prediction: Iowa State 27, Rutgers 21. ACTUAL: Rutgers 27, Iowa State 13 (This left Iowa State with a losing record. But they're a bowl team! HAPPY!

Music City Bowl: Mississippi State vs. Wake Forest
I had to look at this game three times before finally convincing myself these two teams aren't in the same conference. I don't know why I always get Wake Forest and Vanderbilt mixed up, but I do. Fun fact: Minnesota beat Alabama in the 2004 Music City Bowl. Records since then: Minnesota, 33-57; Alabama, 70-21. Yee gods. Prediction: Wake Forest 21, Miss St. 7. ACTUAL: Mississippi State 23, Wake Forest 17 (Two straight losses. Are my powers slipping?)

Game formerly known as the Copper Bowl: Iowa vs. Oklahoma
It feels like this matchup should be in a more prominent bowl, because didn't Oklahoma have a pretty good year? Iowa was typical Iowa, of course, beating Michigan but losing to Minnesota, basically showing absolutely nothing resembling consistency. This will be the kind of game where a Big Ten team gets slaughtered and everybody talks about how the conference is overrated. Prediction: Oklahoma 33, Iowa 17. ACTUAL: Oklahoma 31, Iowa 14 (See? I know my Copper)

Texas Bowl: Texas A&M vs. Northwestern
Another team under a lot of pressure to win this bowl game as, like Missouri, this will be Texas A&M's last one for many, many years. And I can't think of a better way to celebrate moving to the SEC than firing your accomplished former NFL head coach. Good move, Aggies. As for Northwestern, they're just happy to be here, as they are with any postseason appearance in any sport. Prediction: Northwestern 38, Texas A&M 35. ACTUAL: Texas A&M 33, Northwestern 22 (Duh. Texas in the Texas Bowl. I should have known)

Sun Bowl: Georgia Tech vs. Utah
When did the Big Ten stop having an automatic tie-in to this bowl? I always liked this one because unlike the Rose Bowl, the Big Ten could use the Pac-10 as its whipping boy in this game. I don't know much about Utah's team this season except it was their first in the Pac-12. Georgia Tech stubbornly runs a high school offense because they think they're a military academy or something. Prediction: Georgia Tech 30, Utah 20. ACTUAL: Utah 30, Georgia Tech 27, OT (The lesson: When given a month to prepare, teams can stop the option)

Liberty Bowl: Cincinnati vs. Vanderbilt
Did you know Cincinnati and Nashville, where Vanderbilt is located, are only 275 miles apart? That seems so much closer than logic should dictate. They need to make the eastern states bigger. Prediction: Cincinnati 31, Vanderbilt 7. ACTUAL: Cincinnati 31, Vanderbilt 24 (No, see, I meant a seven-point spread. Not seven total points. Really.)

Fight Hunger Bowl: Illinois vs. UCLA
Seriously? Seriously!? How is this game supposed to fight hunger? They're going to have trouble selling enough tickets to cover the teams' appearance fees, much less have money left over to give to the hungry. And while I'd technically rather watch this game than starve to death, it's a closer call than it really should be, because yuck. Both teams fired their coaches already. UCLA played in the Pac-12 championship game, but only because the USC team that beat them 50-0 was ineligible; they're the first under .500 team to play in a bowl game. Meanwhile, Illinois lost its final six games of the season, including the last one to Minnesota, which should in itself make you ineligible for a bowl. And somehow, these are bowl teams, and people are going to pay money to watch them play in a bowl game. This game right here is living proof that there are too many bowl games. Prediction: Tie, because neither team deserves to be called a bowl winner. ACTUAL: I refuse to look up to see if this game actually took place.

Game formerly known as the Peach Bowl: Virginia vs. Auburn
When this was called the Peach Bowl, this was exactly the type of matchup I expected to see in the game. Now it's named after a chicken restaurant that uses cows in its advertisements. I don't know what else to say right now. Prediction: Virginia 21, Auburn 20. ACTUAL: Auburn 43, Virginia 24 (Ooof).

Game currently played in the Cotton Bowl but is not nor hasn't ever been called the Cotton Bowl: Houston vs. Penn State
Houston was so close. So painfully close. They could have played in one of the big bowls, had the national stage to themselves. Then they crapped the bed in the conference title game. Playing Penn State is a decent consolation prize. Playing in this weird bowl with no tradition is not. I'm not even going to hint at any jokes about Penn State. Houston 31, Penn State 21. ACTUAL: Houston 30, Penn State 14 (Breaking news: Case Keenum just threw for 75 more yards while you were reading this)

Outback Bowl: Michigan State vs. Georgia
OK, I know I said I wouldn't list corporate sponsors in this section, but I always thought this was a natural name for this game. Maybe it gives me the idea of the Outback, which fits perfectly with my image of Texas, even if the Outback is technically in Australia. Even still, as I wrote that sentence, I remembered that this game is played in Florida, so now I feel like an ass. Anyway, Michigan State and Georgia are essentially the same team: Three losses, one of them in the conference title game, capable of beating good teams if they play perfectly, but not quite good enough to worry about for the national title. They're a good matchup for each other. Prediction: Georgia 28, Michigan State 24. ACTUAL: Michigan State 33, Georgia 30, 3OT (Georgia only scored three points combined in the three OTs. Yuck)

Game formerly known as the Florida Citrus Bowl Nebraska vs. South Carolina
It's a testament to the Big Ten's move that it seems perfectly natural that Nebraska is part of the conference. It's like they've been here the whole time. Also, it's strange to think that South Carolina hasn't always been in the SEC, but it's only been since 1992 for them. Odd, that. Prediction: Nebraska 31, South Carolina 24. ACTUAL: South Carolina 30, Nebraska 13 (Remind me again why I picked a team with a quarterback who can't throw to win a bowl game)

Gator Bowl: Ohio State vs. Florida
Remember that one national title game where Florida kept running the same play - Tim Tebow throwing a swing pass to Percy Harvin - over and over and over again, and kept they marching down the field because Ohio State kept playing its base 4-3 soft zone and refused to alter their game plan? Yah, that won't happen here, partially because Tebow and Harvin played against each other in the NFL this weekend, and partially because Jim Tressel is no longer the coach at Ohio State after being forced out because some of his players got free tattoos. (Read that again. After all that's going on with college sports, doesn't that seem trivial at this point?) Prediction: Ohio State 20, Florida 3. ACTUAL: Florida 24, Ohio State 17 (Remind me again why I picked the Gators to lose the Gator Bowl)

Cotton Bowl: Kansas State vs. Arkansas
Both teams lost only two games. Both teams losses came to top-15 teams. So, like MSU-Georgia, these are essentially the same team. Nice. Prediction: Arkansas 34, KSU 31 ACTUAL: Arkansas 29, Kansas State 16 (That game didn't really feel like it was that close).

Game named after a financial holding company: Southern Methodist vs. Pittsburgh
I don't have the energy any more. Prediction: SMU 21, Pitt 14 ACTUAL: SMU 28, Pitt 6 (Yah. Didn't watch it. Not even a second of it).

Game named after the web site that keeps putting Danica Patrick in a bikini: Arkansas State vs. Northern Illinois
The conference champions of the two most irrelevant conferences in America. Hence their berth in a worthless, pointless bowl game. Bonus points if you can tell me where this game is being played. Prediction: Arkansas State 31, NIU 16 ACTUAL: Northern Illinois 38, Arkansas State 20 (See the previous entry).

April 5, 2010: The Butler (almost) did it

Butler's run to the national championship game in 2010 was inspirational and surprising, though the surprise has been tempered a bit by their repeat run to the title game this year. Last year's was especially entertaining because the Final Four was held in Indianapolis, just a few miles from Butler's campus. The fact that they played in historic Hinkle Field House of "Hoosiers" fame just added to the mystique of Butler's run.

I started this blog on April 1, 2010. On April 3 and 5, Butler played a pair of great NCAA Final Four games that would have definitely deserved consideration if I was updating events in the present tense. Alas, I wasn't, which might turn out to be a good thing. The extra year might give each event some time to find its rightful place in sports history.

Take Butler's semifinal game against Michigan State, a game the Bulldogs held on to win 52-50. When it happened last year, I thought for sure the game itself was an instant classic, deserving of the top spot for April 3. A two-point game to send the ultimate Cinderella team into the title game? How can you beat that? But looking back at it a year later, the game was kind of a dud. Butler only scored one field goal in the final 12 minutes of the game. An injury-ravaged Michigan State team was held without a fast-break point. The normally exciting final two minutes was instead a display of missed shots and missed free throws. Just because it was a two-point game doesn't mean it was exciting. In fact, it was kind of dull, and certainly not worthy of knocking Rumeal Robinson and Michigan out of the top spot for April 3.

But then there was the title game, and more specifically, the shot. Just imagine if Gordon Hayward's half-court heave at the buzzer had gone in. Not only would it have been the greatest sports moment of 2010, it would have been in the running for the greatest NCAA championship moment ever, right along with Lorenzo Charles' dunk and Michael Jordan's shot. Even with the shot missing by an inch, the game was still a classic. You had Duke's steady play, Butler's frenetic comeback, and Hayward, the darling of the tournament, having >two shots to win the national championship. It was a true instant classic.

But now the question. Was it a more important game than the Time Out?

As unfair as it may seem, Chris Webber's career has come to be defined by the Time Out. It was the end of the Fab Five era in college basketball, and probably the most famous technical foul in basketball history. It would take a hell of a game to knock that famous one of the top spot for April 5.

But I think Butler's game was worthy of that. It had the same iconic heartbreaking moment (Hayward's barely missed heave vs. Webber's ill-fated time out), and they were both great games, but I think Duke's title wins out over North Carolina's for two reasons.

First, while Webber's time out sealed the game, there were still a few seconds of anticlimactic filler to get through before the final buzzer. The last few seconds were kind of a buzzkill not deserving of the game. Meanwhile, Butler's literally came down to the buzzer, as the game was still in the balance when the final horn sounded. Big plus there.

Second, Webber's time out has been clouded a bit by the NCAA sanctions that later hit Michigan. Technically, that championship game didn't happen. Michigan's appearance in that game has been vacated. And while we'll always remember it, I think it pales compared to the day Butler almost did it.

---

INDIANAPOLIS - Imagine for a moment if this shot had gone in:



Imagine it. A halfcourt heave for the National Championship. If that shot had gone in, how many college basketball games ever played would compare to it? A handful at the most? Granted, there have been many close college basketball games that featured a halfcourt heave that would have won the game, but how many of those shots came close? How many even hit the backboard?

Even though Gordon Hayward missed his championship-winning shot by an inch, a legend was born. That heave made sure everybody would remember Butler's run to the 2010 Championship Game, the game that was played five miles from their campus. They made their dream run, got their dream matchup against Duke, and almost beat the college basketball giants.

Duke won the 2010 national championship, but everybody will always remember Butler's run more fondly. They were called a Cinderella team, but at 33-4 entering the game, the Bulldogs were no slouches. They were on a 25-game winning streak when they met up with the Blue Devils, and they showed why, staying close to Duke all game long. Duke probably had more talent, but Butler beat several teams over the course of their tournament run that had more talent. The Bulldogs stayed right with them, right down to the final moments.

And then, imagine poor Gordon Hayward. He had not one, but two shots to win a National Championship. His first one, a fallaway from the baseline that hit the front rim, was actually the better look. His second one, the halfcourt heave, almost made him a legend.

Well, forget almost. It did make him a legend. By coming so close, Hayward and the Bulldogs became the poster children for all the teams that came painfully close to a title, only to have it barely slip away. In Butler's case, it slipped away by less than an inch.

But again ... imagine if he had made that shot...

March 31, 1975: Wooden walks away

SAN DIEGO - The pressure was on the UCLA Bruins in this one. Before the Final Four began, their legendary coach, John Wooden, had announced during a press conference that he would be retiring after the season. So now the onus was on the Bruins to send their coach into retirement with another championship, giving him an even 10 in a 12-year span.

But first, their opponent was Kentucky, deemed to be far superior to the Bruins in 1975. Kentucky was big and tall, boasting four players who were 6-foot-9 or taller. Kentucky had already been giant-killers in the tournament, knocking out prohibitive favorite Indiana in the Regional Final. That had been the Wildcats' only close game of the tournament as they eased to the final.

UCLA, meanwhile, had struggled to get to the championship game, needing overtime to beat Michigan in the first round, beating Montana by only three in the second round, and needing yet another overtime against Louisville in the national semifinal. The Bruins were also short and not very deep, and they lacked the star power of the previous Bruins title teams.

What UCLA had, though, was speed, and lots of it. So they pushed the pace against Kentucky, neutralizing the Wildcats' height advantage by scoring as many points in transition as possible. Even when they couldn't push the pace, the Bruins still had some surprising advantages. They outrebounded Kentucky 55-49 in the game.

Perhaps most impressively, the Bruins only used six players the entire game. Starters Dave Meyers, Pete Trgovich, Richard Washington, and Andre McCarter all played the entire 40 minutes, while Ralph Drollinger, the only bench player to see the floor, had 10 points and 13 rebounds in only 16 minutes of action.

Despite playing 10 players and having a height advantage at nearly every position, Kentucky couldn't keep up. UCLA took the lead for good late in the first half, and while Kentucky cut the deficit to one point with six minutes to play, the Bruins pulled away to win 92-85, sending Wooden out a winner. The Bruins had now won 10 of the last 12 championships, and 8 of the last 9. The school with the second-most championships was Kentucky with a mere four.

After the game, when the Bruins were done celebrating, the crowd at the San Diego Arena gave Wooden a four-minute long standing ovation in honor of his incredible coaching career.

March 30, 1991: Laettner, part 2

INDIANAPOLIS - Two college players, two different clutch situations, two different reactions.

After getting blown away in the national championship game by UNLV the previous season, Duke came back the next year determined to take the one extra step that had thus far eluded the school in its illustrious basketball history. Meanwhile, UNLV was looking for improvement of its own, and entered this year's semifinal matchup with Duke undefeated, looking to become college basketball's first unbeaten champion since 1976.

Unlike the previous year's matchup, this one was close throughout. There were 17 ties and 25 lead changes as each team threw its best punches at the other. The game was tied 77-77 late when Duke had the ball late. Then, fate intervened and gave two different players a chance to be the hero, one for each team.

First, Christian Laettner. Laettner had already established himself as a clutch college player the year before, and in the 1990-91 season further worked to establish himself as the best college player in the country. He was well on his way to being named the Final Four's most outstanding player when he was fouled after an offensive rebound with 12.7 seconds to go.

During a timeout before the free throws, as Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski looked Laettner in the eye and asked "you got 'em?" Laettner responded, simply, "I got 'em." Krzyzewski then made plans for Duke's final defensive possession, knowing full well the Blue Devils would be ahead by two in just a few moments.

Laettner hit the two free throws, just like everybody expected him to. Duke was ahead 79-77, and UNLV took the ball upcourt. In their huddle during the same timeout, coach Jerry Tarkanian called for a play where either forward Larry Johnson or guard Anderson Hunt would take the final shot. As it turned out, Johnson was open beyond the 3-point line and got the ball with no Duke player anywhere near him.

Johnson pump-faked ... and froze. He didn't shoot. Instead, he passed off to Hunt, who took a tougher 3-point attempt with a hand in his face that fell off the rim. By the time the rebound was tracked down, the buzzer had sounded and the UNLV's unbeated run was over.

In the face of a shot to win the game, Johnson froze. Sure, he wasn't a great 3-point shooter, but he was wide open, and his team ran the play for him. He just didn't want the shot. Laettner, meanwhile, wanted the ball in clutch situations, something he proved throughout his college career. He thrived on the pressure.

And so UNLV failed in its bid to be an undefeated champion, while Duke moved on to the national championship game, this time succeeding in winning the school's first national title.

March 29, 1982: A legend is born

NEW ORLEANS - It was the national championship game that had everything. There was the shot that launched a legendary career. And there was the heartbreaking turnover of the ages. Two extremes, two huge swings of emotion, in one 10-second span.

First, it was North Carolina's turn. Trailing by one with 30 seconds left, the Tar Heels inbounded the ball and looked to find an opening for the winning basket. With Georgetown in a 1-3-1 zone and the great freshman Patrick Ewing manning the middle, North Carolina knew they'd need a jump shot to win. So they passed around the wing a few times, taking time off the clock, before a young freshman found an opening in the zone.

Future NBA all-star James Worthy passed the ball to the young freshman - a skinny kid by the name of Michael Jordan - and Jordan calmly sank the jumper that put North Carolina ahead, 63-62. North Carolina's bench was celebrating.

But it wasn't over. Georgetown still had 10 seconds and a timeout to use to try to score the winning basket. Guard Fred Brown had the ball for Georgetown, no doubt looking to get the ball in to either Ewing or Sleepy Floyd, who had given the Hoyas the lead just before Jordan's shot. But, with time running out, Brown inexplicably passed the ball right to North Carolina's Worthy, and the Tar Heels were able to run out the clock after the turnover.

After the game, despite attempts by his coach to comfort him, Brown was devastated. He later said that he made the bad pass in part because Georgetown had been practicing in white jerseys all week, but were wearing blue for the national championship game.

Fortunately for Brown, the man who made the winning shot for North Carolina ended up becoming the greatest basketball player of all time. Losing a game on a shot that launched a legend helped put Brown's turnover on the back burner a little bit. People still remember his bad pass, but not as much as they remember Jordan's clutch shot.

Another thing that's not remembered about the game is that despite the winning shot, Jordan wasn't the biggest star for North Carolina that day. That honor went to Worthy, who, aside from being in the right place to catch Brown's errant pass, scored a game-high 28 points. Ewing also starred, scoring 23 points with 10 rebounds. In all, five players who played in the 1982 National Championship game went on to have distinguished NBA careers.

It was a game with 15 lead changes, one where neither team ever led by more than a handful of points. But it's best remembered for its final basket, its final lead change, where a freshman guard hit the shot that launched a legend.

March 28, 1992: Laettner, part 3

PHILADELPHIA - Anybody who watched will always remember where they were. Just close your eyes, and it comes back to you. The ending is transfixing: Antonio Lang watches the ball fall through the hoop at the buzzer and collapses in a heap in the lane, completely in shock. Thomas Hill walks in shock toward the sideline, hands on his head. When he turns around, you can see the tears.

But here's the amazing thing: Lang and Hill were on the winning team. Their reaction wasn't one of players who just had their souls ripped out, but rather of players so happy, in such a state of celebration, that they went into shock.

It was that kind of game.

Rewind your memory now. Remember the incredible, mind-blowing play between Duke and Kentucky that day in Philadelphia. Remember that, despite all the pressure in the game itself, the teams combined to shoot 61 percent from the floor. Or that, in the second half and overtime, when the game stayed tight and each possession had added importance, they upped that percentage to 63 percent.

Remember the time out late in the game, when Duke point guard Bobby Hurley reminded his players, "if they score, remember to call time out." You could say he was showing a lack of confidence in his teammates. Or you could say that he simply knew how the game was going to turn out. Because when Sean Woods fired that off-balance 13-footer with less than five seconds to play, it should have come as no surprise that it barely cleared the outstretched fingertips of Christian Laettner and somehow found the bottom of the net. Kentucky was up 103-102 with 2.1 seconds left. And Hurley remembered to call time out.

In all reality, that's how it should have been remembered. Woods' shot should have been the biggest shot in the history of Kentucky basketball, the miracle shot that ended the greatest game ever played and knocked the defending champions out of the tournament.

But Duke still had 2.1 seconds. Sure, they had to go the length of the floor, but they still had 2.1 seconds. And they still had Laettner, the greatest clutch player in NCAA tournament history, and one who, if he got his hands on the ball, you knew damn well he was going to make the shot.

And so close your eyes again. Watch Grant Hill throw a 75-foot pass that somehow hit a double-teamed Laettner in the hands as he stood on the free-throw line. Watch as Laettner somehow found the time to fake to the right and dribble once before spinning to his left, falling away, and hitting the most famous shot in college basketball history.

And Lang is forever laying on the floor in shock. And Thomas Hill is forever crying on the sideline. And the rest of the Duke players and coaches are piled on Laettner somewhere near midcourt, celebrating the most improbable ending to the greatest college basketball game ever played.

March 25, 2010: Kansas State hangs on

SALT LAKE CITY - One of the things that has made the NCAA Tournament such a must-see event over the years has been the early-round games. Often times, a game that happened in the first four rounds lives on in the memory far longer than the Final Four or championship games. Sometimes, they live on even if the Final Four ends up being as memorable as possible.

Such might be the case with the Sweet 16 game between Xavier and Kansas State in 2010. Granted, it's only been a year, so the memories of that game might not live on forever, but they deserve to. Any game with that much at stake, with that many great clutch shots at the end, deserves to go down in the record books.

And it all could have ended so simply. Fouled while taking a 3-point attempt, Xavier's Terrell Holloway found himself needing to make all three free-throws to tie the game with 5 seconds left in overtime. For many college kids - heck, even for many pros - needing to make three free throws for a tie would be far too much to ask. The pressure would be too great. But not for Holloway. He calmly and easily drained all three free throws, keeping Xavier's season alive. Jacob Pullen got a good look for Kansas State at the other end, but missed his 3-pointer, and the game went to overtime, where it belonged all along.

In overtime, what had been a relatively low-scoring game turned into an up-and-down affair, with Kansas State and Xavier playing a game of one-upmanship the entire five minutes. Once again, Kansas State was up three with five seconds left, and once again, Xavier needed a hero. This time, it was Jordan Crawford who came through, nailing a jaw-dropping 30-foot 3-pointer. When Denis Clemente couldn't answer for Kansas State, the game went to a second overtime.

There, the plot changed courses. Where in the previous two periods it was Xavier making the must-make shots, this time it was Kansas State delivering. Pullen's 3 from the top of the key made it 97-94, and for once, Xavier didn't have an answer. Where before it seemed like their shots would miraculously find the bottom of the net when they needed them the most, now they were rattling out. Kansas State held on, 101-96, to win a game that nobody who watched it would ever forget.

March 24, 1990: Laettner, Part 1

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - All great players must start somewhere. All reputations for great clutch ability have to come from one original, trend-setting performance.

Entering the 1990 NCAA tournament, the Duke Blue Devils hadn't yet become the team that struck fear in all teams who played them in the NCAA tournament. Sure, they had been to the Final Four three of the previous four seasons, but they hadn't yet won the title, and so weren't quite yet considered among college basketball's elite.

One of Duke's top players in 1990 was a sophomore forward named Christian Laettner. Though he would become later known as one of the best college basketball players of all time, in 1990, he was simply an overachieving sophomore, starting on a top-10 team.

The Blue Devils advanced to the East Regional final in 1990, winning their first three tournament games fairly easily. Their opponent in the regional final was top-seeded Connecticut. UConn had advanced to this game on the strength of a last-second shot off of a length-of-the-floor pass to beat Clemson in its previous game, so the Huskies should have been used to playing tight games.

Duke and Connecticut played a classic game that night in the Meadowlands, with the game going to overtime. With Connecticut ahead by one with 2.6 seconds left, Duke sent Laettner in to inbound the basketball. UConn made the fatal mistake of taking their eyes off the inbounds passer for only a moment, but it was enough. Laettner caught the return pass, dribbled to the free-throw line, pumped once, then drained the jumper that sent Duke back to the Final Four.

Though a shot like that would have been the highlight of the career for most players, for Laettner, the shot has almost come to be forgotten. Since Duke got trounced in the 1990 title game by UNLV, his heroics to get them there have been overshadowed by shots he made the subsequent two years. But it was his shot against Connecticut that started his reputation as the best big-game player in college basketball history.

The shot (no sound):
http://www.thoughtequity.com/video/clip/306073_008.do

March 23, 1957: Wilt's lost opportunity

KANSAS CITY - It should have been a classic college basketball game. The Kansas Jayhawks, led by the often-unstoppable Wilt Chamberlain, were up against top ranked North Carolina for the national championship. Everything pointed to this game being a college basketball classic, and for 30 minutes, it was. And while it's still remembered as one of the more memorable college basketball games ever played, it could have been so much more.

Led by all-American Lennie Rosenbluth, the Tar Heels took a 29-22 lead at halftime against Kansas, but Chamberlain started leading the Jayhawks back. In fact, it took Kansas only 3:20 to take the lead, going ahead 36-35. Kansas had outscored North Carolina 14-6 in only 3:20, a great display of scoring prowess.

And then, the game slowed down. Kansas was ahead 40-37 with 10:00 left in the game when both teams decided to start stalling. In the days before the shot clock, stalling was a perfectly legal strategy, and it was used often in close games, as coaches often held the ball for a final possession. And so, what had been a great, tight, often tense game was ruined by two coaches stalling.

From the 10:00 mark to the 5:00 mark, neither team attempted a shot. They finally started to pick up the play with 5:00 left, but not by much, and the game was tied 46-46 after regulation. From there, it looked like Kansas would have the advantage, as they still had Wilt, and North Carolina's great Rosenbluth had fouled out with 20 points.

Instead, both teams continued their stalling ways. Each team scored just one basket in the first overtime and didn't score at all in the second. It was 48-48 entering the third overtime when the two teams finally started to try scoring again. And once they did, the game returned to its legendary status.

A pair of free-throws put Kansas up 53-52 with :20 left in the third overtime. North Carolina's Tommy Kearns tried for a game-winning basket but had his shot blocked by Chamberlain. However, Chamberlain was called for the foul, putting Kearns on the line. Kearns made both free throws to give the Tar Heels a 54-53 lead with six seconds left. From there, there was little doubt what Kansas would try to do. As the Jayhawks tried to get the pass in to Chamberlain for a game-winning shot, Kearns tipped the pass away, clinching the national title for North Carolina.

As Wilt got older and turned into the most dominant force in basketball, he considered the 1957 national championship game to be his biggest failure as an athlete. For their part, the Kansas fans never blamed him for losing that game. It's probably best that they didn't. If their coach had just let the team play instead of ordering the stalling tactic, perhaps there wouldn't have been a reason for Wilt to feel shame.

March 22, 1975: Hoosiers go down

DAYTON, Ohio - Despite entering the Mideast Regional final undefeated at 30-0 and ranked No. 1 in the nation, Indiana wasn't flying as high as it should have been on March 22, 1975. Scott May, their leading scorer, had broken his arm in a late-season victory over archrival Purdue, leaving the Hoosiers shorthanded entering the tournament.

Still, the Hoosiers had talent, with six future NBA draft picks on the roster, and they won their first two tournament games fairly easily, leading to a highly anticipated matchup with No. 2 Kentucky in the regional final. Kentucky wasn't as talented, but would still have four players drafted into the NBA that summer.

The game was a matchup between contrasting styles, as Kentucky's big and brawny players went up against Indiana's quick team. Indiana coach Bob Knight hoped to add even more speed to his lineup and took a risk by starting May, despite May having a cast on his arm. Despite the surprise start, May had little impact, playing only seven minutes.

In a bit of a surprise, Kentucky's size and strength carried the day. Using their obvious height advantage, the Wildcats pushed around the Hoosiers, causing the Hoosiers to lose their composure and make uncharacteristic mistakes. Indiana center Ken Benson did what he could, scoring 33 points and grabbing 22 rebounds, but Indiana still trailed 89-81 with five minutes to play.

The Hoosiers tried to come back, even cutting the deficit to two points with 1:45 left, but they couldn't get over the hump, and Kentucky advanced to the Final Four with a 92-90 victory. The Wildcats won one more game in the tournament before losing the final to UCLA.

For Indiana, meanwhile, the loss was significant. After losing a Big Ten playoff game the previous March, the Hoosiers hadn't lost a game since. After losing to Kentucky, the Hoosiers wouldn't lose again until December of 1976, winning the national championship in 1976 with college basketball's last undefeated team. That meant that the Hoosiers' loss to Kentucky was their only defeat in a span of 34 months.

March 21, 2010: Lucious in for Lucas

SPOKANE, Wash. - Sometimes, you don't need to call time out. Just let the players play and sometimes, they'll surprise you.

In a second round game in the 2010 NCAA Tournament, Michigan State coach Tom Izzo could have called a time out after Maryland's Greivis Vasquez scored to put the Terrapins ahead 83-82 with six seconds left. In fact, Izzo was prepared, standing next to the official with one hand hovering above the other waiting to call time out. But he wanted to see what his team would do next. He gave them a chance.

The Spartans made their coach's confidence pay off. After Vasquez's basket, the Spartans immediately inbounded the ball to Draymond Green, who dribbled up court. After Green passed half court, he looked for someone to pass to. No point guard himself, he almost hit a teammate in the head as he passed over to Korie Lucious. Lucious got the ball, though, gave a quick pump fake, dribbled once to the top of the key, and drained the 3-pointer at the buzzer to give the Spartans an improbable win.

What made the victory even more improbable was that the Spartans had won despite an injury to starting point guard Kalin Lucas early in the second half. When Lucas went down, the Spartans were cruising with a 16-point lead, but Maryland took advantage of his absence to cut into the lead. It seemed like they had come all the way back after Vasquez's basket in the lane, but the Spartans had one final answer. It was fitting, too, that Lucious made that shot. He was the one who took over the point guard duties after Lucas went down.

After the game, the Spartans learned that Lucas would be out for the year with an Achilles injury. Undeterred, they won two more games anyway to advance to the Final Four.

March 19, 1966: Black and White

COLLEGE PARK, Maryland - Their names were Orsten Artis, Harry Flournoy Bobby Joe Hill, David Lattin, and Willie Worsley. If not for the color of their skin, they would be but a footnote in the annals of college basketball history, remembered only on the campus of Texas Western University (now Texas-El Paso). But, because they were black, they are remembered forever. For those are the five starters Texas Western put on the floor in the 1966 NCAA Championship Game, the five starters that sped up integration in NCAA basketball.

Coach Don Haskins wasn't trying to make history by starting five black players in the national championship game. All he thought he was doing was putting his five best players on the court to start the game. But in picking those five players, Haskins became the first coach to have an all-black starting lineup in an NCAA championship game. That he was doing so against Kentucky, coached by the pro-segregation Adolph Rupp, made the game even more monumental.

The game is also sometimes viewed as a sort of David vs. Goliath affair, as tiny, unknown Texas Western was going up against national powerhouse Kentucky. In reality, though, the Miners entered the game with a 27-1 record, the same as Kentucky's, and the Miners had a decided height advantage over the Wildcats in the game. Plus, a flu bug had gone through the Kentucky starting lineup before the game, leaving the Wildcats wounded and sick in the final.

Still, though, it was quite a surprise that Texas Western won, and fairly easily at that. The Miners took the lead halfway through the first half and never relinquished it. Though Kentucky got within two in the second half, the Miners pulled away for a 72-65 victory, winning the national championship.

Though proud of the victory, Haskins later admitted that for a long time, he thought winning the national championship was the worst thing to happen to him. He didn't like all the attention his team and players were given after the victory. As he wrote, he "didn't expect to become a racial pioneer or to change the world." But by beating the all-white Wildcats, that's exactly what he did. By using an all-black starting lineup, he showed the basketball powers from the traditionally racist SEC and other southern schools that they should ignore black players at their peril.

Don Haskins and his Texas Western Miners didn't set out to change the world. They just wanted to win the national championship. By winning that game, though, they became immortal.

March 18, 1990: Shooting lefty

LONG BEACH, Calif. - Bo Kimble was hurt more than most.

For sure, the death of Hank Gathers shocked and hurt most people who heard about it, or worse yet, saw it happen. It would be impossible not to be affected by that. But it was different for Kimble. He and Gathers were childhood friends from Philadelphia, had been recruited to Southern California together, had transferred to Loyola Marymount together. They had done everything together.

But now Kimble was on his own. His friend was taken from him right before his eyes. So yah, he was hurt.

And he had to do something. The Lions were just about to start an NCAA tournament run without Gathers, and as the new leader of the team, the guy everybody would be looking to to set an example, Kimble had to find some way to lead his team and honor his friend.

Then he thought of the free throws.

See, as gifted as Gathers was, he struggled with his free throws. He struggled so much, in fact, that, though normally right-handed, he tried shooting them left-handed for a while to see if that would help. So that's what Kimble did. Normally right-handed, he shot his first free-throw attempt of every 1990 NCAA tournament game left-handed, in honor of his friend.

He made them all. And he inspired. Sure, his team already had all the inspiration they needed as they played the tournament for Hank, but those free-throws just added to it. You can watch them lined up at the lane while Kimble shot, and see them pump their fists and genuinely celebrate as the free-throws went in.

Maybe that was the players' sign that Gathers was with them in those games. Who knows? Maybe the free throws had nothing to do with their run at all. But you had to believe it had some effect. After a first round defeat of New Mexico, Loyola went off in the second-round matchup against Michigan, the defending national champions. Kimble made his lefty free throw, and the Lions delivered a world-class ass kicking to the Wolverines. They played as perfect a game as they ever had, completely running Michigan off the floor. No team had ever been as inspired, as focused, as Loyola had been that day. By the time the dust settled and the scoreboard operator's fingers had finally gotten a break, the Lions were 149-115 victors and were moving on to the Sweet 16.

Look at that score again. 149-115. They let the defending national champions score 115 points, and they still beat them by 34. This coming just two weeks after their leading scorer and best friend had died in front of them. There had never been a higher scoring NCAA tournament game, and there had never been a single game that meant more to a team, to a school, to a nation.

Did they win because Bo Kimble made a free-throw left-handed? Probably not. But because of those free-throws, because of "44" memorial patches on their jerseys, the 1990 Loyola Marymount Lions will never be forgotten.

March 17, 1989: Mourning saves the day

PROVIDENCE, R.I. - "A 16 seed has never beaten a 1 seed in the NCAA tournament." That's the common refrain every year as basketball fans fill out their tournament brackets. That's the one piece of advice that even those who don't know about basketball can give. A 16 has never beaten a 1. The 1's are 104-0 against the 16's.

In 1989, though, that wasn't such a big deal. The tournament had been expanded to 64 teams only four years earlier, so at that point, the 0-16 record of the 16 seeds didn't seem that important. When the 1989 tournament started and East Tennessee State scared Oklahoma on the very first day, there were probably many people who thought it was just a matter of time before a 16 got that victory over a 1.

But nobody expected it to be this game.

A 30-point underdog to the powerful Georgetown Hoyas, the Ivy League champion Princeton Tigers went into Providence for their first round game hoping to just stay with the top seed. They did more than that. As a nation watched transfixed in Irish pubs around the country, the Ivy Leaguers used backdoor cuts and quick passing to stick with the Hoyas all game long. Everybody was waiting for when Georgetown would make its run, only the run never came.

But Princeton's gameplan was executed perfectly. The Tigers spread the floor, giving their center the ball at the top of the circle and forcing Georgetown's all-america center Alonzo Mourning up to the free-throw line. With the shot-blocking Mourning out of harm's way, the Tigers could run their backdoor passes all day long.

In the final minutes, when it was obvious that Princeton wasn't going away, Mourning took over. He scored seven of Georgetown's final nine points, including the free throw that gave them a 50-49 lead in the final minute. Princeton got the ball for a final opportunity, but Mourning blocked two final attempts in the final eight seconds, saving Georgetown from the ultimate embarrassment.

That wasn't quite the whole story, though. Most people watching felt that Mourning committed a foul on his final block attempt, that Princeton should have been at the free-throw line to try to win. The referees didn't see it that way, and the no-call is still viewed as one of the more controversial finishes in tournament history.

While Princeton didn't get the job done, they had established themselves as the team nobody wanted to play in the first round. Coach Pete Carril became a household name for his wonderful gameplan and game management against the Hoyas. And Princeton's close call set the stage for the game just seven years later, when the Tigers shocked the world and finished the upset against UCLA.

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HONORABLE MENTION
March 17, 1886: ST. LOUIS - The first story on the front page of the very first issue of The Sporting News talked about how the defending National League Champion Chicago White Stockings (now Cubs) had just arrived in Hot Springs, Arkansas, for an early form of spring training. From that simple beginning, the paper grew to become the preeminient sports publication in the United States for decades to come. While its importance is diminished quite a bit by the advent of the Internet and scores of sports information papers and magazines, for years, The Sporting News was it. For decades, TSN was the only place where every boxscore of every Major League game was published, and the newspaper was as much a part of the American sports fabric as baseball and football. Without the success of The Sporting News, there is no Sports Illustrated, no ESPN, nothing. It was the original, the one of a kind. And 125 years later, it is still being published.

March 16, 1989: One point

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The Oklahoma Sooners were the defending national runners-up, a team thirsty to take that one final step. After a dominating regular season the year before, they had lost to unranked Kansas in the national championship game. Instead of folding, however, the Sooners simply bounced back the next year, winning another Big 8 championship and earning another No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament.

The East Tennessee State Buccaneers were making just the second NCAA Tournament appearance in school history, the first since 1968, which was before many of its players were born. They could have been forgiven if they had slipped into "happy to be here" mode and gotten run off the court by the powerful Sooners.

So of course, it was East Tennessee State that had a 17-point lead in the first half.

It was a surprising scoreline, to be sure, but what followed was not surprising. It has happened so many times in past NCAA tournaments; maybe the pressure of the moment starts to get to the underdog holding the lead, and they start to watch the clock rather than pay attention to the game; or maybe the favorite realizes that they actually have a game on their hands and starts taking this upstart seriously. Whatever the cause, Oklahoma started the comeback, started chipping away at the East Tennessee lead.

But it took them a while. Well past halftime, deep into the second half, Oklahoma still hadn't come all the way back. Finally, with 1:21 left in the game, Oklahoma guard Mookie Blaylock scored on a baseline drive to give the Sooners a 72-71 lead. Order had been restored for the moment, but East Tennessee still had a chance at the lead, but two Buccaneer misses gave the ball back to Oklahoma, and eventually Blaylock ended up with a one-and-one situation.

Hoping to give the Sooners a three-point lead, the soon-to-be NBA point guard instead missed the first free throw with six seconds left, giving the Buccaneers one more shot at a miracle. It had to be a miracle, as Oklahoma's tight inbounds defense prevented East Tennessee from getting anything better than a near-halfcourt heave by Alvin West. When Mike Bell got his finger on the shot, the ball fell harmlessly away, and Oklahoma had averted the largest kind of upset.

Fresh off their great escape, the Sooners hoped to regroup for another Final Four run. Instead, their season ended after only one more victory, as they fell to Virginia in the Sweet 16.

March 15, 2001: The Pirates stop a Cyclone

BOISE, Idaho - The cheerleaders and band members and students were swarming the court, with the purple-colored jerseys of the Hampton University basketball team lost somewhere in the shuffle. There, on the sideline near the scorer's table, was coach Steve Merfeld, being carried around the court by player David Johnson, with Merfeld pumping his arms and legs in unabashed joy. There, somewhere in the mob, was Travis Williams, the latest Hampton hero, the man who had thrown the stone that had slain Goliath. And there, on the opposite bench, sat the Iowa State Cyclones, including two future NBA players, sitting in stunned silence, some with tears streaming down their faces.

Flash back now to the 7:00 mark of the second half. Martin Rancik had just made a basket to put Iowa State ahead 57-48. After trailing 31-27 at halftime, the second-seeded Cyclones were starting to assert themselves. Those pesky Pirates from Hampton - what conference did they play in again? Did it even matter? - were finally going to go away.

Not so fast. Little did anybody realize it at the time, but Rancik's basket would represent the last points Iowa State would score in the 2000-01 season.

Hampton's comeback would be slow and steady, but nonetheless amazing. It took them just more than four minutes to score six points, as an Isaac Jefferson basket cut the deficit to 57-54 with 2:53 left. Another minute, and Travis Williams was blocking a shot by Rancik and Marseilles Brown was turning the subsequent fast break into a layup to make it 57-56. Hampton was 1:44 away from the unthinkable.

It was unthinkable, but not unprecidented. After all, a 15 seed had beaten a 2 seed three previous times. But this game, against a team that was a breath from the Final Four a year ago, didn't seem a likely candidate to be the fourth time. Iowa State was big and deep, and Hampton was ... well, did anybody figure out yet what conference they played in? We could at least confirm they're from Virginia, right?

Hampton needed nearly all of that final 1:44 to get their go ahead basket. It came when Brown found Williams inside, and Williams hit that little four-foot leaner to give Hampton a shocking 58-57 lead. From there, it the chaos of last-second defending, and watching Jamaal Tinsley, the future NBA point guard, miss a makeable layup on the final play.

And then it was over. And there was dancing and jumping and smiling and celebrating by Hampton, and that famous, now-iconic image of the coach being carried around the floor. And there was sadness and shock for Iowa State. And there was the sound, nationwide, of NCAA brackets being ripped up or burned or tossed away, including one bracket in one dorm room in the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire.

It was March Madness in a nutshell.

March 14, 1996: Through the back door

INDIANAPOLIS - Princeton coach Pete Carril was about as decorated as a basketball coach could be in the Ivy League. He became Princeton's head coach in 1967 and led the Tigers on a run of absolute brilliance, at least as far as the Ivy League was concerned. He never saw his Tigers finish below fourth in the Ivy League and had become the only coach in Division I history to win 500 games without the benefit of scholarships to give his athletes.

The only thing Carril was missing in his long and luxerious career was an NCAA tournament victory. He had plenty of chances, having taken the Tigers to the tournament 10 times, but they always seemed to fall just short, most famously in 1989, when they lost to top-seeded Georgetown by one point, still the closest a 16 seed has ever come to beating a 1 seed. Now, in 1996, Carril's 11th NCAA tournament would be his last chance to get that elusive NCAA victory.

On the other sideline, UCLA had the pedigree, wore the most regal four letters in college basketball across its chest. You didn't need much prompting to be reminded of what they had done in the past: 11 national championships (including the most recent), 15 Final Four appeareances (at that time), 32 NCAA tournament appearances. It was all there. They were a formidable opponent for Princeton to be facing as the Tigers tried to give Carril an NCAA victory to go out on.

Carril's Princeton teams were known for two things: a precision passing offense featuring a lot of movement without the basketball and back cuts toward the basket, and a suffocating, relentless defense that didn't give opposing offenses a chance to breathe. That defense was on in full force in the first round game against UCLA, as the Tigers hounded the defending champions from the opening tip. And while the defense was dominating, Princeton's offense was doing just enough to stay in the game, making shots nobody expected them to make, keeping things close.

Still, though, it was a surprise to everybody when Princeton brought the ball down court with 20 seconds left in the game, holding the ball with the game tied at 41. From there, UCLA had to know what was coming - the backdoor pass along the baseline for a layup. Carril's teams had been running that play since 1967, the year UCLA won the first of their seven straight national championships.

But there's a difference between knowing what play was coming and knowing how to stop it. And when Gabe Lewullis got the perfect bounce pass from the high post and laid the ball up beautifully, giving Princeton a 43-41 lead, Carril couldn't help but jump up and down, his thinning hair getting messy, his face unable to hide joy. UCLA had one more chance, but when they missed, the Princeton players mobbed their coach, as if to say thank you for the 30 seasons of greatness on the bench.

Carril's hands were in the air, and tears were streaming down his face. After 30 years, and so many near-misses, he had been given the greatest retirement present of all.

March 13, 1998: Bryce Drew

OKLAHOMA CITY - Homer Drew had been a coach in some capacity since 1971. Whether as an assistant coach or as the head man, he had been in many huddles, had drawn up countless plays. But this one was the one he would always remember, the one that would make him known across the country.

Drew's Valparaiso Crusaders were trailing Mississippi 69-67 in the first round of the NCAA tournament, and had to inbound the ball under their own basket, 94 feet away, with 2.5 seconds to go. Drew diagrammed a play called "Pacer," which called Jamie Sykes to throw a long pass to Bill Jenkins, who would then quickly pass the ball to the wing for a hopefully open 3-pointer for Bryce Drew.

See, that was the kicker right there. Not only was Homer drawing up a potential NCAA tournament game-winning shot, but he was drawing it up for his own son. You couldn't fault the man if he felt a little bit of fatherly pride at that point.

And so Valparaiso went out to try their final play. Sykes' long pass was perfect. Jenkins caught it in the air and, with two defenders on him, slipped it over to Bryce Drew. Just as designed, he was open, and just as his father had dreamed, Bryce hit the shot.

The momentum garnered from Drew's game-winning shot carried the Crusaders through to another win in the second round before they fell in the Sweet 16 to Rhode Island. Those two wins in 1998 are the only two NCAA tournament wins in Valparaiso's history. But the video of Bryce Drew's famous shot, followed by him diving across the floor before being mobbed by his teammates, will live on as the epitome of March Madness, the crazy first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament where anything can and will happen. Including a long-time coach drawing up a game-winning shot for his son, and watching their family's dream come true.