I don't know about you, but I was a nervous wreck for weeks during the NCAAs, and it only got worse. With the men, you knew if this team -- with undoubtedly the most dominant player in college ball in Okefor -- played up to its ability, it would win. If they didn't, there would be no "we'll get 'em next year." Despite the fact they were a #2 seed, most experts and most people in our pool had them winning it all, so it wasn't like they were going to be take anyone by surprise. When they somehow beat Duke (in a game that didn't resemble college basketball as we know it), even though Georgia Tech has beaten UConn in the pre-season NIT, you knew that if they lost to the team that Duke had beaten by 14 in the ACC semi-finals it would have been a tragic defeat.
Then, after the men won, you still had the women to fret over. First you had the drama of it being Taurasi's last game. Then you had the whole 3-peat thing going, something only one other women's team had ever done. Then you had the whole possibility of a school capturing both men's and women's title in the same year, something that never been done. To top it all off, you were facing your "hated" rival, Tennessee, the one team you just had to beat at all costs. The fact Tennessee had gotten to the finals by winning three times in a row by a basket in the last seconds of games while UConn had won convincingly would have made it unbearable to lose to the as well.
Nevertheless, it all worked out in the end and we are all fortunate to have witnessed it.
- Jeff |
