A Classic That Almost Was...

Write it down, April 5, 2010, was "almost" a date in infamy.

It was "almost" the most talked about sporting event of this newly born decade.

It was "almost" the famous, "Do you remember when..." moments.

It was "almost" the witnessing of dreams coming true.

"Almost".

For three weeks, we were taken on the annual ride called "March Madness". We're witness to 64 games which include blowouts, nail biters, overtimes, coaches yelling at refs, fans yelling at refs, me yelling at the tv with desperate pleas for Syracuse to "Run Your Offense", you get the drift.

Well, it's over now. But, not without some drama.

You see, a small Indiana school named Butler University "almost" did the unthinkable. They "almost" beat Goliath. Little schools, anywhere, aren't supposed to make a huge impact in the tournament. One problem: Butler didn't get the memo.

Granted, they had a 20 game winning streak entering the tournament and were ranked in the Top 25 all year, so people knew about them, but they didn't have any highly recruited players, big athletic school budget, or famous basketball alumni. How have they been doing this? In the tourney, they beat their first opponent UTEP by 18, including making 13 3's, a tournament record. Second round, they squeeked out a win against Murray State 54-52 (you'll see a trend coming soon) by forcing a late turnover (14 total) to seal the deal.

Turnovers were the key as they beat my Syracuse team 63-59, creating 18 turnovers, and crushed my hopes of winning a National Championship. Crushed was an understatement as Kristen's friend came over to watch the game. Did I mention she went to Butler? Imagine my delight after the game listening to her talk to her family about how shocked and excited she was. I had to walk outside Kristen's place without my sneakers, in the rain, just to get some fresh air.
I didn't want to hear an emotional play by play while I was riding a different kind of "feelings roller coaster".

I digress...not really, but emotionally I HAVE to move on. Butler did the upset dance again, this time beating Kansas State 63-56, in the Regional Finals, causing another 13 turnovers. See the trend here. Little mid major school beating big time schools, while playing stringent defense and causing turnovers. I thought I would have wanted Butler to make the Final Four, but the more I watched their style of play, the more I wanted them to lose. Defense isn't sexy to me. I want points, and ball movement, and three pointers and fast breaks, and I wanted Butler to lose. Plain and simple.

Now, they're in the Final Four, playing essentially a home game, in Indianapolis, six miles away from their campus in a football stadium that seats 70,000. Surely, they're going to lose to a big time school at some point, right?

Michigan State, Tom Izzo, five Final Four appearances. They'll take them down. Nope, Butler 52-50 in another game that set back college basketball thirty years. 16 more turnovers. I got the joy of watching Kristen's friend celebrate AGAIN. The motto of Butler should be...Butler, where points go to die.

Now, they play Duke in the Finals. Vaunted Duke. One of the best coaches in college basketball history Mike Krzyzewski. Don't worry about knowing how to say his last name, even he's not sure. He does know how to win though. 867 wins, three national championships, eleven Final Fours, one Olympic Gold Medal. Meanwhile, Butler's head coach Brad Stevens is 33 years old, and looks so young he probably gets carded every time he wants to buy cigarettes.

What happens made a believer out of me for Butler basketball. I thought I would need a shower after saying those words, but I dislike Duke that much. It could be because they always get McDonald's All Americans (best of the best high school recruits), or I feel they play dirty when they need to. Butler lulled Duke into their "Allergic to Offense" routine, slowed the game down, forced 12 turnovers, kept the score low and hoped to pull it out in the end.

All game, the lead was never more than six for any team, and there were 16 different lead changes. The more the game progresed, watching these kids who we may never hear from again, compete against the powerhouse and stay in it, the more I wanted to see a 21st Century David beat Goliath And so did the crowd. We were witnessing something we may never see again. That's why college basketball is so great. One game, 40 minutes, anything can happen. I mean, Hoosiers was shot in the Butler gym, and Butler was living out this version, thirty years later.

Down 60-59 with five seconds left, Butler's Gordon Hayward missed an eight footer off the back of the rim, and really looked like it was going in. Should have gone in, so we can always, "remember when". But, it didn't. Duke basketball, three seconds left and going to the free throw line. They make one, go up two points. They miss the second, rebound Butler, no timeouts and running up the court as fast as their Indiana legs can take them. Hayward again, another chance to be a national legend, a chance to make Letterman/Leno/Kimmel and even Carson (not Johnny, but Daly). A chance to make believers out of all of us that we can see movies play out in the real world, not just on the screen with popcorn in our hands.

Hayward launches it from half court as the buzzer sounds, and your heart stops, his heart stops, 70,000 hearts stop, while the ball caroms in mid air. It has to come down at some point. The moment of truth, the ball bounces off the backboard, hits the rim and hits the floor. Unfortunately, it didn't pass through the net. Duke celebrates. They won their fourth national championship. Coach K wins again.

And for Butler, our real life Hoosiers moment "almost" happened. A chance to tell our grandkids about the best shot in college basketball history. Nothing would have beaten it. Would have completed the most improbable run in NCAA history. A team that would have beaten Syracuse, Kansas State, Michigan State and Duke, finishing with 26 straight victories. David would have slayed Goliath at home in front of all its hometown fans on the grandest stage of all, from a half court buzzer beater. A bunch of kids who never saw the light of day on a national stage three weeks ago, would have become the darlings of every water cooler for weeks to come.

"Almost"

That's why they play the game. For those moments, for those chances of greatness, for those stories to tell your grandkids. In that moment, Butler even made a fan out of me, one of it's most ardent haters since that crushing defeat. They made me believe in a fairy tale. Maybe that's why they call it a fairy tale. Or maybe we'll truly see it. One day. It's possible. But for now, I'll take an "Almost" because without an "Almost", what's the point in trying at all?