March 24, 2006
Wow!
Wow! Let me say that again but backward, “Wow!” What a night of college hoops! Last night was probably one of the more exciting nights of basketball that I have ever watched. Here are the highlights according to me:
· Bradley’s miracle run ends. They were overmatched against Memphis.
· Duke loses! Hooray! The Yankees of college basketball have fallen! Much credit to LSU who simply out-muscled the Blue Devils. For example, at the end of the game, Glen “Big Baby” Davis was at the free throw line. All of his LSU teammates had gone to the other end of the floor to guard against a quick basket, leaving “Big Baby alone at the free throw line with four other Dukies. Davis missed the free throw but still got the rebound anyway. Amazing.
· Texas outplayed West Virginia for most of the game. WV made a late charge, actually tying the game on a long three by Kevin Pittsnogle. The Longhorns’ A.J. Abrams took the inbound pass and drove all the way down the court. He finally dished to Kenton Paulino, who sunk a long three at the buzzer to sink WV. Wow!
· Finally, UCLA scored the last eleven points to edge out Gonzaga 73-71. Gonzaga outplayed the Bruins for most of the game. The Bruins went on a furious run at the end of the game, but were still trailing by one point with just seconds left. The Bulldogs had the ball on their own end line. After the inbound pass, Adam Morrison threw cross-court to J.P. Batista. Batista, who was probably the worst free throw shooter on the floor for Gonzaga, held the ball too long. UCLA trapped him, and Darren Collison knocked the ball away. The Bruins’ Jordan Farmar picked up the loose ball and lobbed a pass to a wide-open Mbah a Moute, who sunk the game-winning lay up. Gonzaga tried to push the ball down the floor to tie but turned it over. The Bulldogs had one last desperation fall away at the buzzer that clanked off the side of the backboard. It was one of the most dramatic comebacks (and unbelievable collapses on Gonazaga’s part) that I have ever seen. Amazing!
The Bruins are in the Elite Eight. U… C… L… A… UCLA Fight Fight Fight!
UCLA didn't deserve to win that game, but Gonzaga definitely deserved to be eliminated.
Posted by: Reverend Ref at March 24, 2006 09:28 PMUCLA was lucky to win the game. They did not play well for 35 of the 40 minutes. Those other five minutes, however, were where the game was won.
In a victory like that many things have to fall in place: Gonzaga had a melt down; the ball started bouncing UCLA's way (but it was not determined by the officiating as Morrison suggested); and the Bruins played perfectly down the stretch.
Does UCLA deserve to win? With all of the factors that are involved in winning a basketball game, I'm not sure that any team ever deserves to win. Having said this, there is no doubt that UCLA should get credit for winning. They took advantage of Gonzaga's collapse. Not only did Gonzaga lose a game that they should have won, but UCLA WON that game. To score the last eleven points in a game, both teams have to be involved.
Posted by: Frank at March 25, 2006 04:42 PM