hedge wrote:This kind of shit annoys the hell out of me:
“Those last three minutes were remarkable,” Theo Pinson said. “We’ve talked about that all year, just talking about locking in defensively, and we did at a perfect time.”
No, jackus, the perfect time to lock down on defense would've been at the end of the first half, when you were up 13. Then you either maintain or build on that lead and you're up double digits at half. Or, barring that, another perfect time would've been, oh, any time in the second half when Arkansas was erasing and then surmounting your lead and going up 5 with barely 3 minutes left in the game. Waiting until then to lock down on defense was not "the perfect time", it was pure desperation. If you think you can wait until desperation kicks in over the next 4 games, you're going home...
It had much more to do with Ark. doing as eCat predicted and completely turning to shit with the prospect of a massive upset staring them in the face than with any heightened defensive effort from UNC. When that kid jacked up a 3 from 26 feet with time on the shot clock, I began to believe in what eCat was selling and I'll give him credit, he was completely right. Arkansas reminded me of a high school team with a coach who is a reverend (or bishop, if you will) on the side that has been preaching to his team all year, in Avery Johnson style: "Y'all work hard and we'll go to states!" And they do, except when they get to states and they get a big lead, they collapse, with the jeers of fat black girls (like the ones who jeered at me when I tripped and fell in the cafeteria in 10th grade) ringing in their ears.
They were good enough to win but just didn't know how to win, so they got back on the bus, went to Arby's and then went home.
