Final Four: Villanova/North Carolina Preview, Part 2 - UNC's Starters

To the Villanova Wildcats faithful-

Here is Part 2 of the Final Four: Villanova/North Carolina Preview, in which I'll take a look at the Tar Heels' Starters...

(Note: I'm going to constantly add more content to this post throughout the day, so if you feel you haven't gotten enough detail on the Tar Heels starters, please check back for more details as they are added in...)

Before we begin -

Thanks to the Michigan State blog - Sparty and Friends - for unearthing the Sports Illustrated cover dated April 8, 1985, of Ed Pinckney scoring while surrounded by Georgetown Hoyas, with Patrick Ewing falling at his feet. If it looks familiar - it's mounted on the wall at the Pavilion. The publisher of Sparty and Friends has a great, blown-up image of it - so check it out... And not just the cover. Sparty has a great substantive analysis of the Wildcats from a Michigan State perspective, that's well worth reading...

Before I get started on the Tar Heels' key players, I've already posted a great deal of content on Villanova/North Carolina, and so here's a concise collection of the links thus far (and there will be more...) Enjoy...

1. I look back at the 1985 Villanova/Georgetown national championship game, 24 years later...
2. Villanova/North Carolina Rivalry History - how the Wildcats upset the Tar Heels in the 1985 Elite Eight, en route to that national championship...
3. Everyone wants to know about Jay Wright's "lucky pigs", which have been instrumental in getting the Wildcats to the Final Four - Wright himself has kidded that "Those Pigs Are Important to Our Team's Success"...
4. Looking back at the 2005 NCAA Sweet 16, which was the last time Villanova and North Carolina battled in the tournament - what has become known in Villanova lore as the "Allan Ray Travel Game"....
5. Villanova/North Carolina Rivalry History - How Michael Jordan stopped Villanova in the 1982 tournament and the Wildcats' upset of the Tar Heels in the regular season, the following year...
6. Villanova/North Carolina Rivalry History - The first three meetings, prior to the 1982 tournament...
7. My initial post that the Wildcats would face North Carolina in the national semifinal...
8. The first part of the preview - Final Four: Villanova/North Carolina Preview, Part 1 - UNC's Road to Detroit...
   

Part 2 - Final Four: Villanova/North Carolina Preview - North Carolina Tar Heels Starters

Here are the starters - my analysis, in turn..

Overall Analysis of the Starting Lineup

The major reason why North Carolina was viewed as a significant national championship contender this season, is the fact that they returned all five starters from last season's Final Four appearance. Last year, the Tar Heels reached the Final Four, after receiving a #1 seed (rendering last year the statistical oddity of being the first one in the then-24 64/65-team tournaments, where all of the top seeds reached the Final Four), before being thrashed by Kansas in the national semifinals.

Ironically, one of those five starters, senior swingman Marcus Ginyard, isn't starting this year. He played only three games and scored just one basket, due to injury, and he's redshirting as a result. Danny Green, another senior, has taken his place in the lineup.

Tyler Hansbrough - #50 - Forward - 6/9 - Senior

21.4 pts/game, 52.2% FG%, 85.6% FT%, 47.4% 3FG%, 8.2 rebounds/game, 28 steals, 12 blocks

Hansbrough is clearly North Carolina's best player - as he is arguably the best player in the nation. He also is the single biggest (both literally and figuratively) obstacle, in the way to the national championship game on Monday evening. Because of his abilities, he causes an enormous matchup problem for the Wildcats underneath. When the defense sags, upon his arrival at the post in order to help out Dante Cunningham, he opens up a great deal of opportunities for the Tar Heels on the perimeter. And North Carolina has three significant perimeter weapons, just in their starting lineup - Ellington, Lawson, and Green.

The back cover of the North Carolina media guide - which was published prior to the season, obviously - lists these superlatives, which are a concise summary to Hansbrough's abilities:

• 2007-08 National Player of the Year
• 2007-08 ACC Player of the Year
• 2007-08 ACC Male Athlete of the Year
• 2008 NCAA East Regional MVP
• 2008 ACC Tournament MVP
• Three-time first-team All-America
• Two-time consensus first-team All-America
• Three-time unanimous first-team All-ACC

You get the idea. And he has undoubtedly piled up many similar accolades for this season... The back cover shows Hansbrough surrounded by trophies (I assume that after he goes to the NBA, he might need an entire room in his mansion, just to display all of the hardware...)

Some personal facts on Hansbrough:

• "Talents I have outside of basketball" - "Ping Pong and golf".
• "Non-basketball skill (or activity) I wish I could do better": "Dancing."
• "My SportsCenter dream highlight would be": "Winning the NCAA tournament." (One that we hope won't be fulfilled... as with Deon Thompson, below.)

Wayne Ellington - #22 - Shooting Guard - 6/4 - Junior

15.2 pts/game, 46.8% FG%, 77.8% FT%, 39.5.% 3FG%, 4.8 rebounds/game, 34 steals, 4 blocks

A local product from Wynnewood, Pa. (just down the Main Line, of course, from Villanova), who attended Episcopal Academy, Ellington has been an impact player in all three years he's been at Chapel Hill. He's started nearly every Tar Heel game since he arrived. As a freshman, Ellington started all but one contest, averaged 23.9 minutes/game and 11.7 points. As a sophomore, he also started all but one contest, logged 31.1 minutes/game and boosted his scoring all the way to 16.6 points/game.

Jay Wright and his staff wanted Ellington very badly to play his college hoops on the Main Line (and were very disappointed when they couldn't land him), Ellington is a very significant three-point threat and a key cog in the North Carolina offensive engine. One enormous irony is the fact that Ellington is good friends with Gerald Henderson, who opted to go the other way on Tobacco Road to Duke. And Villanova had extensively courted them both while in high school.

This shows that the basketball gods have a sense of humor. Villanova does not land Henderson, then faces him in the Sweet 16, and shuts him down completely. Now Wright and the staff have the same opportunity with Ellington.

I speculate that due to their advanced and comprehensive knowledge of Henderson, Wright and the staff knew his weaknesses very well, and it was the major reason why they were able to effectively neutralize him. Time will tell, if it will also be the same outcome with Ellington, whom they know equally well.

Some personal facts on Ellington, from the North Carolina media guide:

• On "I chose my jersey number because", Ellington answered, "A friend of mine, who passed away, wore 22."
• On "The best player I ever guarded": "Gilbert Arenas."
• Unsurprisingly, "My best friend on another college team:" "Gerald Henderson (Duke)."
• "Non-basketball skill (or activity) I wish I could do better": "Play tennis."
• "Favorite food": "My grandmom's shrimp linguine."
  

Ty Lawson - #5 - Point Guard - 5/11 - Junior

15.9 pts/game, 53.8% FG%, 80.9% FT%, 46.7.% 3FG%, 2.8 rebounds/game, 59 steals, 4 blocks, 6.5 Asst/Game, 2.0 Turnovers/Game

Lawson against Scottie Reynolds will be one of the most important matchups. Lawson's lethality on the perimeter means that he must be constantly defended, as he is always a threat to score. Lawson ranks a distant third in three-point shots attempted (90) to Ellington (172) and Green (154), but he is far more accurate than either of them. One thing that does work in Villanova's favor is the fact that this is a rare situation, where Reynolds will actually be bigger than the guy he's assigned to guard.

Lawson has always played a great deal while at Chapel Hill. He started 31 out of 38 games as a freshman two years ago, averaging 25.7 minutes and 10.2 points a game. Last year, despite an injury in February, he started all but three games, averaging 25.3 minutes and 12.7 points. Heading into the season, he was already 16th on North Carolina's all-time assists list, with 378, and had an assist/turnover ration of 2.47/1, with just 153 miscues... Lawson has improved upon that assist/turnover ratio this year, dealing 196 assists to 59 turnovers, a ratio of 3.3/1.

Some personal facts on Lawson, from the North Carolina media guide, including two interesting Philadelphia connections, although Lawson is from Clinton, Maryland, and went to Oak Hill Academy in Virginia (which produced, among many others, former Villanova guard Jermaine Medley).

• "If I could play another sport at Carolina" - "Soccer".
• "The best player I ever guarded" - "LeBron James."
• In a related answer - "My favorite NBA player" - "LeBron James".
• "Talent I have outside of basketball" - "everything."
• Philadelphia connection, first - "I pretended to be (this player) as a kid" - "Allen Iverson".
• Philadelphia connection, second - "Person in history I'd most like to meet" - "Ben Franklin... Always wondered what he was thinking..."

Danny Green - #14 - Guard/Forward - 6/6 - Senior

13.3 pts/game, 47.6% FG%, 83.3% FT%, 41.6% 3FG%, 4.7 rebounds/game, 56 steals, 43 blocks

Despite being just 6/6, Green is second on the team in blocks, as only reserve Ed Davis has more (57). Green averages 1.3 blocks a contest. Green ranks second to Ellington in both triples made and attempted, although Green is slightly more accurate.

In terms of playing time, Green's minutes have vacillated, since he arrived in Chapel Hill four years ago. As a freshman, he came off the bench, averaging an impressive 7.5 points/game and 3.7 rebounds/game, in spite of the fact that he averaged only 15.3 minutes a contest.

However, as a sophomore, he regressed slightly, as he played fewer minutes (13.6), and had fewer points (5.2), and fewer rebounds (3.7). Nonetheless, he was still North Carolina's top scorer off the bench. It wasn't anticipated that Green would start this season, but he began doing so due to the injury to Hilyard. And the move has paid off, as Green is averaging over 13 points a contest and getting his share of rebounds for a swingman.

Some personal facts on Green:

• "Nobody can believe I watch": "The Discovery Channel".
• "The best part about being a Tar Heel basketball player is": "Being able to run out of the tunnel and playing in front of 22,000 people."
• "Talent(s) I have outside of basketball": "Dancing"
• "Non-basketball activity that I wish I could do better": "Sing."

Deon Thompson - #21 - Power Forward - 6/8 - Junior

11.2 pts/game, 50.3% FG%, 65.7% FT%, 6.1 rebounds/game, 32 steals, 36 blocks

Unlike most of the Tar Heels, Thompson is not a perimeter threat. However, he is a solid interior defender, rebounder, and shot blocker. Thompson has not been a starter for as long as the others. His first season, 2006-07, he started only one game and averaged 12.4 minutes off the bench, with 4.7 points and 2.4 rebounds a contest.

Last year, he moved into the starting lineup and started all but one game, with his minutes moving up accordingly - up to 21.4, low for a starter, but nearly double those of his freshman year. His rebounding doubled, from 2.4 to 4.8 per contest, and his scoring increased also, to 8.4 points. Perhaps most importantly, though, he led the Tar Heels in blocked shots with 51, up from 17 blocks as a freshman. Interestingly, Thompson's blocks have dipped this year, and he ranks third on the squad, behind Green and 6/10 freshman Ed Davis.

Some personal facts on Thompson:

• "I chose my jersey number because": "It was Kevin Garnett's number."
• "My SportsCenter dream highlight would be": "Game-winning shot in the Final Four." (Hopefully, this is a dream highlight that won't be fulfilled on Saturday.)
• "Talent I have outside of basketball": "Playing the guitar."
• A probably related answer - "Non-basketball skill or activity I wish I could do better": "Play the guitar."
  

In Part 3, I'll take a look at the North Carolina reserves, as bench strength could make the difference on Saturday... so check back for that...

Of course, there will also be more content, both on Villanova's 1985 tournament run, and the Villanova/North Carolina Rivalry History as well...

Over the course of the week, I'll be writing up previous games in the all-time Villanova/North Carolina series, culminating the complete Villanova/North Carolina Rivalry History. And of course, there will be a comprehensive preview of Saturday's Final Four clash - so please check back for more...

In the meantime...

You can also take a look at the other Villanova blogs included in Various Viewpoints on the right sidebar, for their takes...

Go Wildcats! Beat North Carolina!

There are two ways you can contact Villanova Viewpoint. One is by commenting on this blog. Comments are encouraged. Also, you can e-mail villanova.viewpoint@yahoo.com (Important note: This is a different e-mail address than before. Please use this new one.)

24 Years Later, April Fool's Day - Reflections on HBO's "The Perfect Upset" - Villanova over Georgetown in 1985

To the Villanova Wildcats faithful-

To put myself in the proper perspective for April Fool's Day, 2009, I re-watched the outstanding HBO documentary, The Perfect Upset, to immerse myself in the atmosphere of the stunning Villanova victory over Georgetown, 24 years ago, today... It is but one of the greatest ironies that it took place on April Fool's Day....

Simply put, The Perfect Upset is outstanding. I highly recommend it, for anyone who wants to dive deeply not only into the game itself, but Villanova's entire NCAA tournament run, as well as the social atmosphere and upheavals that were convulsing American life and society in the 1980s.

I had previously seen it, but of course, it has particular resonance in light of the highly unexpected Final Four run by the 2009 Wildcats... here are some observations, on the game that took place two dozen years ago...

Villanova - as a #8 seed - winning the NCAA tournament in 1985, is probably the second-greatest upset in the history of North American sports.

(The only one that I believe is clearly greater, was the U.S. hockey team capturing the gold medal against the Soviet Union in 1980.) Nor does that primarily stem from my being a Villanova alumnus and fan. For sports enthusiasts of any partisan stripe, Villanova/Georgetown is a magnificent story, enormously entertaining, filled with unique, memorable, flamboyant characters, richly textured, with a thrilling plot and spectacular ending. It's so great that no fiction writer could ever have contrived it.

No other team seeded that low has ever come close to repeating the feat. Granted, Villanova is not the lowest seed to advance to the Final Four - George Mason in 2006, and LSU two decades earlier - both made it as #11 seeds. But neither won a game in the Final Four. And even if they had, they would not have to face an opponent as formidable as the 1985 Georgetown Hoyas.

Perhaps the most astonishing element of the story of the 1985 Villanova Wildcats, is the fact that the entire story is true and genuine. One interviewee in The Perfect Upset notes that "you can't script the stuff," and he's absolutely right. (His line parallels the slogan Fox Sports used once for its October baseball coverage - "You Can't Script October".)

All of the following classic dramatic elements were present:

• The metaphor of David vs. Goliath;
• Clear villains in John Thompson and the Hoyas;
• Clear heroes in Rollie Massimino and the Wildcats;
• Not one, but two ailing Villanova fixtures - the first being Jake Nevin (who features prominently in The Perfect Upset) and also Alexander Severance, the founding father of Villanova basketball, who died during the Final Four but before the championship game (surprisingly, his passing is not mentioned during The Perfect Upset)...
• A small, private, academically prominent school winning the national championship;
• The first time that school had ever won the national championship;
• An astoundingly high level of play in the game itself - shooting 78.6% from the floor (22/28 overall), including 9/10 in the second half;
• the end of an era - it was the last tournament without a shot clock;
• the beginning of an era - it was the first year of the 64-team field.

That's only a partial list... Had Hollywood come up with a script for a basketball film, that incorporated all of the above elements, it clearly would have been rejected, as too unrealistic and sentimental - the audience would be unable to suspend its disbelief for a story like Villanova's.

But truth is indeed stranger than fiction, and the story really did take place according to the legend. It's all true...

If you haven't seen the outstanding1986 film Hoosiers (or if you haven't seen it recently), you really should go see it. Although its story stems from the true tale of a high school team in 1950s Indiana, the parallels between its plot and the saga of the Villanova Wildcats of 1985 are unmistakable. (I speculate that the script had probably already been written before the 1985 tournament, but it's possible that elements of it might have slipped in.) When telling the story of the 1985 Wildcats to those who are not familiar with it, it's often illustrative to liken it to Hoosiers.

Another aspect to keep in mind, is the distortion of retrospection. We all know the happy ending, about the eventual Villanova victory. In order to truly appreciate the stunning nature, though, we have to put ourselves in the frame of mind of those players, coaches, reporters, broadcasters, fans, etc., who were watching the events as they unfolded. It has to be remembered how improbable it was that Villanova had even reached the Final Four, let alone winning the entire tournament. Moreover, it had been highly improbable, that the Wildcats even reached the Sweet 16, having to play #9 Dayton on its home floor, and then top seed Michigan in the second round.

And as great as this year's team has been - and even if it does capture Villanova's second national crown - it can never match 1985. This year's team is a #3 seed, that had the further advantage of playing two rounds at home. And while North Carolina and either UConn/Michigan State are fine teams, they are not the juggernauts that the 1985 Hoyas were.

Villanova's 1985 championship is too difficult of an act to follow.

In the 24 tournaments since then (including this one), no lower seed has won the championship, or reached the title game. In 2006, as I (along with virtually all of America) rooted for George Mason to further shock the world by winning the national championship, I recognized that there would be one downside to the miracle - it would partially eclipse Villanova's feat. George Mason was an even bigger underdog, from a far less prominent conference, with a lower seed.

But of course, I was pulling for them, because it would have been a great feat on behalf of all the little schools in America, those who don't have the good fortune to play in power conferences or in great facilities or frequently on television. It would have underscored Villanova's triumph, not replaced it.

Although the 1985 team's accomplishment was certainly fully recognized at the time, the legend has only grown in the last two dozen years. As the big public schools, concentrated in the power conferences, continue to gobble up national titles, Final Four appearances, (and most alarmingly) an even greater share of NCAA tournament invitations, the achievement of the 1985 Wildcats has only glimmered that much brighter. Every year that goes by, without the miraculous event being repeated, simply adds to its luster.

So those are my thoughts on this April Fool's Day...

Of course there will be more content, both on Villanova's 1985 tournament run in general and the Villanova/North Carolina Rivalry History as well...

Over the course of the week, I'll be writing up previous games in the all-time Villanova/North Carolina series, culminating the complete Villanova/North Carolina Rivalry History. And of course, there will be a comprehensive preview of Saturday's Final Four clash - so please check back for more...

In the meantime...

You can also take a look at the other Villanova blogs included in Various Viewpoints on the right sidebar, for their takes...

Go Wildcats! Beat North Carolina!

There are two ways you can contact Villanova Viewpoint. One is by commenting on this blog. Comments are encouraged. Also, you can e-mail villanova.viewpoint@yahoo.com (Important note: This is a different e-mail address than before. Please use this new one.)

2009 Final Four: Villanova/North Carolina in the NCAAs - March 24, 1985 - #8 Wildcats Stun #2 Tar Heels, 56-44, in Elite Eight

To the Villanova Wildcats faithful-

Note: I am indebted to the outstanding chronicle of the 1985 magical run, The Year of the 'Cat by Craig A. Miller, the long-time Sports Information Director at Villanova, for nearly all of the information in this post. It is a magnificent book, and I highly recommend it, for any Villanova fan- or even a non-Villanova fan who wants to learn more about the greatest Cinderella run for any NCAA tournament team, before or since...

Harold Pressley scored 15 points on 7/13 shooting from the floor, adding three rebounds and an assist, and led all scorers in #8 Villanova's stunning dozen-point upset of #2 North Carolina in Birmingham, Alabama, on Sunday, March 24, 1985. The Tar Heels had led 22-17 at intermission, but Villanova won the second half by an astonishing 39-22 margin.

Dwayne McClain and Gary McLain each added 11 points, while Harold Jensen - the hero of the championship game eight days later against Georgetown - also reached double figures with 10 points. McClain was 4/11 from the floor but 3/3 from the line and added five rebounds and a pair of assists. McLain played all but one minute, was 3/5 from the floor and 5/6 from the line, with a pair of rebounds and assists.

Ed Pinckney finished with nine points on 3/6 shooting, 3/6 from the line, seven rebounds, and three assists.

Also seeing action was Dwight Wilbur, who struggled in his nine minutes, going 0/3 from the floor, two rebounds and one assist. Mark Plansky played seven minutes, missing one shot, garnering one rebound and one assist. Chuck Everson played two minutes, missing one shot. All three went scoreless.

For North Carolina, Brad Daugherty had a game-high 17 points on 7/9 shooting, 3/6 from the line, and recording a double/double with a dozen rebounds. No other Tar Heels managed more than half a dozen points - R. Smith and Hunter each had six.

The Tar Heels shot a respectable 20/44 from the floor, compared to Villanova's 22/47, but fell.

The Wildcats had shot just 23.1% from the floor in the first half, as well as just 55.6% (5-9) from the line, but trailed just 22-17. A key sequence at the end of the first half:

The Tar Heels held a commanding 22-14 lead and had the ball, and given the lack of a shot clock and coach Dean Smith's ability to hold the ball, it appeared certain that they would take that lead into the locker room. But North Carolina turned it over with seven seconds left. Dwayne McClain rebounded a Wildcat miss, put it in and was fouled with one second remaining. After the three from McClain, the Wildcats trailed by just five, after being soundly outplayed during the first half.

However, after coach Rollie Massimino had some unique observations at halftime, Villanova's accuracy skyrocketed, as the Wildcats hit 16/21 from the floor, a glittering 76.2%.

According to the The Year of the 'Cat, here is an excerpt of Coach Mass's analysis:

"I told them something like 'Do you think I want to be doing this? Do you think I want to be screaming at you? Do you think I really want to go to the Final Four? Listen, there's much more to life than that.

Do you know what I'd really rather be doing now more than anything? Than being here in this room? I'll tell you. I'd rather be at home, sitting behind a big, steaming, heaping plate of spags [spaghetti]. Yeah, that's right. Macaroni. Linguine with clam sauce. I'd rather do that than be losing this game."

The second half was a different story. The Wildcats embarked on a 14-4 run during the first eight minutes of the second stanza to take a 31-26 advantage (it was a 17-4 run, going back to the end of the first half). A Daugherty hook shot lifted the Tar Heels to within one, 31-30, with less than 14 minutes to play.

But Villanova put the game away after the Daugherty bucket, jetting out of reach with a 12-3 run, with half of those points coming from Jensen. By the 8:13 mark, the Wildcats now had a 43-33 advantage. That might not seem like a big deal today, with the shot clock and three-point shot, but this was the last tournament without those rules. And Rollie Massimino was just as good at killing the clock as Dean Smith. A 10-point deficit, facing Rollie, under those rules - that margin was an abyss, something that offered very little hope for the trailing team.

And Villanova made its free throws down the stretch, hitting all but one of their eight attempts.

Coach Mass made an eerily prescient statement after the game, amidst the celebration marking Villanova's third trip to the Final Four and first since 1971:

"This is one of the nicest things that has ever happened to me. This is such an incredible feeling. But I hope this isn't it. We might as well hang in there, fool around and win a couple more."

The Wildcats, of course, went on to capture the national championship that season, winning their final two games in the national semifinals....

Of course there will be more content, both on Villanova's 1985 tournament run in general and the Villanova/North Carolina Rivalry History as well...

Over the course of the week, I'll be writing up previous games in the all-time Villanova/North Carolina series, culminating the complete Villanova/North Carolina Rivalry History. And of course, there will be a comprehensive preview of Saturday's Final Four clash - so please check back for more...

In the meantime...

You can also take a look at the other Villanova blogs included in Various Viewpoints on the right sidebar, for their takes...

Go Wildcats! Beat North Carolina!

There are two ways you can contact Villanova Viewpoint. One is by commenting on this blog. Comments are encouraged. Also, you can e-mail villanova.viewpoint@yahoo.com (Important note: This is a different e-mail address than before. Please use this new one.)

20 Years Later: Still 66-64, But Georgetown Wins This Time, In First-Ever Visit to Pavilion and First Trip to Villanova Campus Since 1950

All the elements were in place for another storybook ending, on Saturday afternoon. There was a raucous, emotionally expressive crowd and the authors of the miraculous victory, at halfcourt at halftime. (For more on the significance of 1985 and the presence of the former players, please see the subsequent article on that topic. )

And instead of being sent to the Pavilion parking lot happy with another victory over one of its long-time Big East rivals, the Villanova fans were shocked, dismayed and consternated by one of 'Nova's most bizarre losses in the last decade. After Will "Bump" Sheridan dunked to tie the game at 64, overtime seemed inevitable: five more minutes of exciting basketball. That is, until Georgetown whisked the ball up the court, catching the Villanova players flat-footed. Without calling a timeout, Georgetown's Ashanti Cook flung the ball straight up the middle of the floor, neatly splitting the Wildcats' defenders, and Darrel Owens broke away for what would have been an easy, game-winning basket at the buzzer. Curtis Sumpter wisely fouled him to prevent his doing so, with just one-tenth of a second gleaming from the Pavilion scoreboard.

At this point, a long delay ensued. Coach Jay Wright vociferously asserted to the officials that Cook had been over the end line when he inbounded the ball. Therefore, not only should Georgetown not have the chance to go to the line, but it would be a turnover, and Villanova would resume possession under the Hoyas' hoop with 2 seconds to play with a chance to WIN, an attractive feature of Wright's argument. Also, it had the beneficial effect that even if Wright's plea failed, it iced Owens. He is a 57% free throw shooter and even with two guaranteed shots and needing just one, a Georgetown victory was far from assured.

During this delay, I kept trying to figure out what the basketball "book" dictated in this unusual situation. Should the Wildcats be pulled off the foul line? (That's what I decided I would do.) Nothing positive could come from their being there. There wouldn't be enough time to for Villanova to score, since the clock would start by rule when the ball re-entered play, or to grab it and call timeout. (Of course, Georgetown could score on a tip-in, if they got the rebound, but if the ball re-entered play and there was a rebound to be had, the game was over ANYWAY, whether they tipped it in or not.) All that could happen would be a potential lane violation (real or imagined) that could give the Hoya an extra shot. Plus, it's harder to shoot free throws with the lane half-empty because it's unusual.

Anyhow, Owens rendered the point moot by sinking the first one to put Georgetown up by one, 65-64. Then, for reasons which I still cannot figure out, he inexplicably made the second one, eschewing the opportunity to let the clock run out by just hitting the ball with the rim. In an instant, Villanova's chances of victory had increased from nil (65-64) to 1% (66-64). Maybe you could throw it long, and someone could get fouled going for it. Or someone could tip it in. It's important to note that in these buzzer-beater situations, the team trying to score will always have a little longer than the clock indicates. There's "reaction time" - the official has to see the ball touch something/someone, lower his hand, the scorer has to see that signal, touch the mechanism, and the electrical impulses have to go to the scoreboard to set off the horn - and by the time all that stuff happens you've ended with up with an extra couple of tenths of a second.

That almost happened, as it turned out. The ball was heaved long, and there was a collision going for it. Wright vociferously demanded a foul, but it wouldn't have been reasonable to call one there. Game over. 'Nova loses, 66-64. (Perhaps this fiasco was the "alternate ending" for the 1985 game, since neither DVD technology nor clocks which measured tenths of seconds were in common use in the Reagan era.)

It was Georgetown's first-ever visit to the Pavilion and the Hoyas' first visit to the Villanova campus in over half a century - since March 6, 1950, when Villanova triumphed 82-72 at the Fieldhouse. Since then, Georgetown has always come to the Palestra, Spectrum, or CoreStates/First Union/Wachovia Center for Villanova home games. Villanova had won five of the last six games in the series, which Georgetown now leads 34-24.

The loss was a substantial setback to Villanova's NCAA hopes. Granted, usually when you have only three losses by the middle of January, you're in pretty good shape. But with a weak out-of-conference schedule and just six Big East games at the Pavilion, Villanova could hardly afford this particular loss. One, or perhaps two, Pavilion losses were manageable, and they were allotted for Pittsburgh and/or Boston College and/or West Virginia. Everyone in the Wildcat community looked at this game, looked at the crowd that would be on hand for it, the ceremony, the weak Georgetown squad expected this season under the younger John Thompson, and BANKED on it as a victory. Villanova is now going to have beat someone really good (whether it be Kansas, or Syracuse, or Connecticut) to make up for this loss on its true home floor. The loss lowered the Wildcats to 9-3 overall, 2-2 Big East. To a degree, Villanova bought itself some breathing room with the surprising victory at Providence, where the Wildcats never win. But with the possibility of no emerging Jason Fraser for the next 3-6 weeks, Villanova's NCAA chances remain highly suspect after this loss. It was announced that Fraser will miss 3-6 weeks after breaking a bone in his hand against Providence. It remains to be seen if this will be a true 3-6 weeks or a Sumpter-knee-sprain 3-6 weeks, which turned out to be one week. So for all we know, Fraser might be back next week. Or not at all this year. Time will tell. (The sooner the better. 'Nova needs him in the paint. Bad.)

The Hoyas have been surprising this season. After loading up with their traditional creampuffs in December, Georgetown has now won at Pittsburgh, lost a close game to Connecticut, and won at the Pavilion in their first-ever trip there. The Hoyas are now 11-4 overall, 3-1 Big East. (They might be getting on the bubble soon, with a great loss to Illinois and a respectable loss to Temple also on the schedule).

There were two bright spots to the loss: the far more important one was the unexpected return of Curtis Sumpter, well ahead of schedule. Sumpter sprained his knee on Friday, January 7, while at Notre Dame as a result of a collision in practice. It was originally announced that he would be out 3-6 weeks, but clearly the injury didn't turn out to be as severe as was feared. And he not only came back, he was extraordinary. Braced to the hilt, Sumpter scored 14 points and grabbed seven boards in 34 minutes; other than the brace, he seemed none the worse for wear, especially when he blocked three Hoya shots, to the delight of the assembled crowd. The students serenaded him with chants of his name.

The other bright spot was Mike Nardi, who finally seems to have broken through on the offensive end, after struggling most of the season. The sophomore guard turned in a fine performance, scoring a dozen points while manning the point for 39 minutes. Under Nardi's superb direction, Villanova's turnover-prone offense coughed it up only eight times. Nardi himself dealt four assists against a single turnover.

Allan Ray scored a game-high 17 points, although he did it on abysmal 4-13 shooting and had to rely on going 8-9 from the line. For Georgetown, freshman forward Jeff Green was a highly formidable opponent, finishing with a double-double of 16 points and a dozen rebounds, tops for the Hoyas in both categories. (This guy seems to save it for tough opponents: he had 20 points against Illinois and a career-high 22 points against Connecticut).

Even leaving the 1985 hoopla aside, Villanova undoubtedly should have won this game. The Wildcats took control early and certainly conveyed the impression that the Washington, DC-based Hoyas would play the role of Washington Generals to the Wildcats' Globetrotters today. After trading baskets in the early going, Georgetown trailed just 20-18. However, the Wildcats sailed to a 33-20 lead, blasting the Hoyas with a 13-2 run which ended on a pair of free throws from Marcus Austin. The Wildcats took a 36-27 lead into the locker room, making way for the ceremonies honoring the 1985 team, and there was every indication that the lead would hold up. Sumpter's layup put 'Nova up by seven at 41-34, but Georgetown charged, tying the game at 46 with 11:50 to play. It took the Hoyas a while, but they took the lead finally at 57-56 on two free throws with 5:53 to go. Villanova would never see the lead again. The Wildcats forced ties, but never led after that point.

Neither team executed well in the final two minutes, and the score stayed locked on 63-62 GU after Ray hit two free throws with 2:32 to play. 'Nova missed THREE separate shots, all of which would have given them the lead, before Rayshawn Reed made one of two free throws with 14 seconds to play. On the ensuing possession, Sheridan dunked to tie it, and the crowd went ballistic - and was just as quickly deflated by subsequent events.

The Wildcats will try to rebound, when they visit Boston College on Wednesday. It will likely be Villanova's final visit to Conte Forum for many years, if not decades, in light of the acrimony surrounding BC's departure from the Big East after this season.