If you thought this was the one shining moment…
…you must not have watched much of the Madness this year
I’m trying so hard to not be a prisoner of the moment.
To not be that guy — that sports writer.
When amazing things happen, it’s all too easy to call them “the greatest this” or “the best that.”
A few will hedge by saying “one of the” in front of those monstrous statements, but that’s mostly a throw-away line.
You start hearing phrases like “all-time” and “ever” thrown around all too casually.
What people usually mean is “in recent memory” — and “recent” is becoming shorter and shorter in the so-called “Snap Chat Generation.”
One of the greatest finishes in the history of sports. #NationalChampionship pic.twitter.com/A4TUKU2k7g
— NCAA March Madness (@marchmadness) April 5, 2016
But here’s the deal: I want to be a prisoner of this moment.
I have no idea if this was the best championship game ever or the best championship finish of all-time, and what does it really matter? All I know is it was all a heckuva lot of fun to watch.
The final 90 seconds — particularly the last two shots during the final five — will receive most of the attention, of course, but don’t forget what a great game we saw before all that went down.
Back-and-forth action all game long.
Lead changes left and right.
Both teams threatening to break it open, with the other refusing to let that happen.
North Carolina’s furious late comeback.
THEN…
Marcus Paige’s “how in the world did he make that” shot to tie it.
MARCUS PAIGE!!! #NationalChampionship
https://t.co/y9RVKpoz5i— NCAA March Madness (@marchmadness) April 5, 2016
Kris Jenkins’ clutch buzzer beater to win it seconds later.
UNBELIEVABLE!!!!!! #NationalChampionship https://t.co/POLVkUJnpj
— NCAA March Madness (@marchmadness) April 5, 2016
Wow.
It certainly feels like the best championship game ever — certainly the best final five seconds of all-time, right?
Who knows? Who cares?
That was awesome.
I’m a Tar Heel fan and my wife missed out on an extra $220 in winnings, yet I still can’t get over that game and that finish.
If using phrases like “best ever” and “greatest of all-time” make me a prisoner of the moment, chain me to the wall!
One Shining Moment? That wasn’t one shining moment. That was a whole game of shining moments, and the last two shined brightest.
The perfect ending to a whole tournament of shining moments.
One Shining Moment. https://t.co/lA2hl6uxOo
— March Madness TV (@MarchMadnessTV) April 5, 2016
Remember the last three games of the first Friday? Notre Dame’s rally. UNI’s half-court miracle (and everything that happened before it). Cincy’s game-winning dunk denied by a fingertip (after the Joe’s and Bearcats gave us their own back-and-forth finish).
Let’s just pause a second — okay, a few seconds — to let that all sink in.
Keep in mind these three games ended within minutes of each other.
And keep in mind that these were mostly one-possession games during the sekond half with ekception of a few brief moments of separation.
And keep in mind that these were all swing games in most March Madness pools, with plenty of people on both sides of the aktion. If you won or lost all three, that was a 51-point swing (by KUBE skoring) in either the right or wrong direktion.
Yes, I lost all three.
And I loved it!
Oh, the Madness!
Down went #2 Sparty.
Down went the #3 Mountaineers.
Down went the #4 Golden Bears.
Two 12’s, three 11’s, two 10’s and three 9’s all moved on.
Providence won on an inbound layup with 1.5 seconds left.
Wisconsin X-ed out Xavier with a fade-away 3 in the corner.
Oh, the Madness!
The luck of the Irish tipped in a game-winner to cap a frantic comeback against #14 SFA.
Texas A&M came back from a 12-point deficit with 44 seconds left.
Oregon, Oklahoma and Maryland all needed late comebacks to avoid upsets heading into the Sweet 16.
ND vs Wisc.
Orange vs Zags.
Buddy Hield!
Syracuse’s crushing comeback over top seeded Virginia to make the Final Four when they weren’t even supposed to be in the tournament at all.
Got all those shining moments? Not even the iconic “One Shining Moment” highlight package could capture them all.
Here it is again. Because I love you.
One Shining Moment. https://t.co/lA2hl6uxOo
— March Madness TV (@MarchMadnessTV) April 5, 2016
Yes, that tournament ended with that championship game on those final two plays in the last five seconds.
Like I said, “chain me to the wall!”
Look, of course I wasn’t around for UNC’s first title in ’57, a triple-OT win over KU in Kansas City.
Sad to say I didn’t really appreciate Jimmy V’s frantic run around “The Pit” in ’83 until ESPN’s “Survive and Advance.”
Who needs a hug?
Still wasn’t around for Villanova’s first championship in ’85, a two-point upset over G-Town known as “The Perfect Game,” and I was only just being born as the next four title bouts all finished with four-point spreads or less.
But I do know this was better than the ’99 meeting of my two least favorite coaches when UConn downed Duke, 77-74.
Better than Syracuse-Kansas in ’03.
Yes, better than the Mario Chalmers’ 3 with 2.1 seconds left to take Kansas-Memphis to OT in ’08.
Why do all the great moments involve teams I hate?
And only because Gordon Hayward’s half-court heave rimmed out, better than Duke-Butler in ’10.
WHY?!?!
So was this One Shining Moment the best ever? Greatest of all time?
The verdict is in and I’m guilty as charged.