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Home > Mark Bradley > Archives > 2008 > March > 29 > Entry
DEL.ICIO.USTar Heels withstand toughest test
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Charlotte — We celebrate the winners at this time of year, the players with the nets around their necks and the trophy in their hands. But here’s a word about a noble loser. Here’s a word about a Louisville team that played about as well as it could play — “We did exactly what we needed to do to win,” Rick Pitino would say — and lost simply because the other guys were a tad better.
Especially one other guy.
Louisville had North Carolina on its Tar Heels here Saturday night. Louisville had surged from 12 points down at halftime to tie the score with a little more than 10 minutes to go, and the roaring throng in Charlotte Bobcats Arena had developed a catch in its collective throat. But over the next nine minutes one Heel would score 11 of his team’s 16 points, and surely you know his name even before you see it written.
“Tyler Hansbrough made two shots you pray they’re going to take,” Pitino said. “I was following the ball on both of them, and he couldn’t even see the basket. But that’s what an All-American does — he makes those shots … Rarely have I seen a player who plays as hard as he does.”
Then this: “I’ve never seen one, actually.”
Carolina has been the best team in this tournament, but its first three games were a case of a splendid squad running free and easy. (Aggregate margin of victory in those three games: 91 points.) What unfolded in this frantic East Regional final was something different. It was a shining example of a really good opponent posing a series of difficult questions and great team having every single answer.
Said Marcus Ginyard, the Carolina forward: “When we need to dig deeper, to play harder, to play smarter, we always do.”
Said Pitino: “They were a little bit better. But our guys hung tough in a very difficult environment.”
Yes. Not many teams could have played Carolina so well in this city. Of the 19,902 on hand, surely 18,092 came wearing powder blue. Not since March 1 — nine games ago — have the Heels played a game beyond the state border, and familiarity has bred such confidence that it seemed unthinkable they could lose here.
But then it was 59-all and the unthinkable was becoming a distinct possibility. And then Hansbrough, who finished with 28 points and 13 rebounds, seized the ball and the game and flung his team all the way to San Antonio.
He scored underneath. He hit from the perimeter. He made three free throws. He hit a long jumper with his team ahead by five inside the final three minutes. He hit a longer one 55 seconds later. Said Roy Williams, Hansbrough’s coach: “He made those shots because he’s made them hundreds of times [in practice].”
Said Hansbrough: “Marcus said something walking over here [to the news conference]: ‘It feels like we did something big, but we can do something bigger.’ “
A year ago Carolina had carried a fat lead into the waning minutes of the East Regional against Georgetown, only to lose in overtime. “That was in the back of a lot of our minds,” Hansbrough said. “The difference this year is that we handled that [opposing] run better.”
We know now that Carolina, which has scarcely been challenged over the past month, can hit back when somebody does happen to land a blow. We know now that a team with Tyler Hansbrough is a team with an asset nobody else can match. We know now that, no matter who else shows up in San Antonio, the Heels will have as much going for them as anybody.
And we wouldn’t have known all that without the contribution of a game band of Cardinals. Said Pitino, proud in defeat: “We don’t like to lose, but we’ve got to give credit to a great basketball player.”
Permalink | Comments (13) | Post your comment | Categories: Tech/ACC, UGA/SEC
Comments
By BB
March 30, 2008 12:00 AM | Link to this
Mark,
I apologize for attempting to hijack this thread. I respect your thoughts and your writing. I appreciate your efforts involved in creating this article. Dadgummit, there are bigger issues involved in this world right now than sports,
I will once again post my thoughts from an earlier thread because I BELIEVE them.
http://www.ajc.com/news/content/news/stories/2008/03/28/marines_0329.html
Welcome home, devil dogs. I do not have ANY idea why the ajc would not allow us to publish comments welcoming you back.
Well done, Marines. I do not agree with you having been there, but I am very happy that you did your job and that you ALL came home safely.
Well done.
You did your job with honor and dignity. You have done the job ordered and expected of you to the best of your ability. I would like to offer my personal thanks to you for carrying out your mission, I appreciate the sacrifices that you and your family have made on my behalf. I offer my personal prayers of thanks for your safe return.
To paraphrase from my time in the Corps, “I have served my time in hell”. You can now wear this badge proudly. You have been there.
Thank you.
By BB
March 30, 2008 12:07 AM | Link to this
And now, back to your regularly scheduled sports discussion……
Don’t forget those that made it possible though
By Tarheel Blue
March 30, 2008 1:05 AM | Link to this
BB… Nice comments, wrong section. Because, in the sports world, there is nothing more important than the NCAA tourney!
Hansbrough has been amazing to watch. I’ve never seen anyone play the game as hard. And, when everyone else took the day off, he took the opportunity to shoot 500 shots in the gym.
It should be no surprise that he hit those two jumpers.
Tyler teaches us a lesson. Work hard, develop your skills and give it all you’ve got and you have a chance to be great!
Along the same lines, I just saw Ric Flair inducted into the WWE wrestling hall of fame. The man loves his profession, gives it all he’s got every time, and spends two hours in the gym working hard every day so that he can give the fans their money’s worth.
He said that whether there was a crowd of 100 or 10,000, no one ever left disappointed for spending their money to see Ric Flair.
That’s right. Tyler Hanbrough and Ric Flair…two great Tar Heels..each teaching us the same lesson in life.
What would America be if we all approached life and our professions in the way that Tyler and Ric do?
Sometimes sports is important as a metaphor for life.
Go Heels! I’d love to see Tyler and his teammates go all the way!
By tarheel fan
March 30, 2008 9:45 AM | Link to this
GO HEELS! There is no I in team—they all play together to win—the Carolina Way! No question though Tyler IS awesome.
By Titus
March 30, 2008 9:49 AM | Link to this
Win it all for the great state of North Carolina!
By old Tech fan (in NC)
March 30, 2008 9:55 AM | Link to this
Davidson vs heels.
A game I’d love to see…I could not lose!
By Nate
March 30, 2008 11:39 AM | Link to this
Thanks, Mark. The Cards played great. Carolina, especially Hansbrough, was just a little bit better. I just wish those early no-calls against Hansbrough had been foul calls. Maybe he wouldn’t have been in the game to hit those shots???
By Ima Norcross Punk
March 30, 2008 11:58 AM | Link to this
I see where that,er,little christian college in NC got them a real winner in BB (thats not basketball)shooting. Also what a winner in the victims husband who feels sorry for the little criminal punks. Also to the moron criminal coddlers who say “that happens with high schoolers”. Well let me tell you something, you running idiots, that happens with the CRIMINAL ELEMENT of high schoolers, not the good ones-get it???
By tar heel born and bred
March 30, 2008 12:47 PM | Link to this
No doubt it was a confidence builder for the Heels to play in Charlotte but remember the two games they lost this year were in the Dean Dome. I think a team can oftentimes be more focused on the road than at home before a partisan crowd, so I think the home court advantage can be overstated.
By country boy
March 30, 2008 1:11 PM | Link to this
Mark, Mark, Mark - my little writer buddy. I am so confused by your columns. Just a week ago Duke and the ACC were dead according to your article and the Big East conf. bloggers. Now you write an article on the Tarheels kicking out the ONLY remaining Big East team and once again sending an ACC school to the final 4. The ACC did not have a great tournament but the Big East teams pulled huge chokes re.- San Diego over uconn, Davidson over gtown and Xavier over wva, ect. Please have enough integrity to retract your misguided article about Duke basketball now being just another college basketball program. The silly column just gets shortsighted yankee bloggers excited over nothing. Duke split with UNC and overacheived all year with a young and short team.
By Brian
March 30, 2008 4:28 PM | Link to this
As a Louisville fan for my entire 45 years, I have never been more proud of the effort of their team this year. Through all kinds of adversity (injuries and discipline issues), they fought to improve every day and were just beaten by a better team.
Hansborough is the best college player since Bill Walton and that is saying something. He carried their team on his back, and performed like a true All American.
I hate that Louisville lost, but when you lose and give everything possible, there is nothing to be ashamed of.
This is why college athletics is so much better than professional athletics. Players care more and emotion and heart are what sports are all about.
Louisville senior David Padgett does not get the credit he deserves. This is a kid that risked a future in pro ball to participate in his college senior year. In an era of multi million dollar athletes, this is just not done today.
I am proud of Louisville and admire the Tarheels on their surperior effort. They were the better team, and deserve what they have accomplished.
BTW, playing in Charlotte is NOT fair, but they did earn it due to their fine season.
By old Tech fan (in NC)
March 30, 2008 7:23 PM | Link to this
I almost had my wish…one missed shot! Tech fan since…a long time, but a heel fan for next week.
By addicted
March 31, 2008 4:10 AM | Link to this
I cant stand Hansborough coz we play against him at least once a year, but you gotta have respect for someone who plays the game as hard as he does.
Also, I think the whole “no call” complaining that we fans (including me) do against Hansborough, are directly a result of his hard play, which are not fouls, but since you are not used to seeing someone play that hard, you feel “there must be something wrong!”