March Madness 2008

For the first time since seeding began four number one teams made the Final Four. A little school from nowhere started beating everyone, not that this was new but for a 10 seed, which barely anyone had ever heard of, to make it to the Elite Eight, it’s a big deal. They had a scorer named Stephen Curry who was dropping buckets like it was his job, he single handily beat Gonzaga and Georgetown, had a huge role in the defeat of Wisconsin, and had eventual National Champion Kansas shaking in their boots. Upsets were at a premium and last second heroics were present this year more than they have ever been before. The Final Four was one of the most boring in years as Kansas blew out overall number one seed North Carolina and Memphis didn’t even give UCLA a chance. With that being said however, Memphis and Kansas met up for one of the best National Championship games in years. With last year’s football and basketball championships being complete blowouts, as with this year’s football championship game as well, America needed a good game. It got one. Coming down to the final possession Mario Chalmers hit a clutch three with seconds remaining to force overtime. Memphis had an eternal enemy all year long, they disguised it during the NCAA Tournament, but it showed itself in the Championship game. Memphis couldn’t shoot free throws, in their two losses to Tennessee and to Kansas; they shot less then 60 percent from the line. You can have the best point guard in the game (and the did for a while, freshman Derrick Rose) you are still going to lose if you can’t shoot free throws. Memphis’s collapse down the stretch will be remembered for years, and the old saying was proven true again John Calipari cannot win the big one. This years bracket here.