March Madness Moments

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One of the sweetest times of the year for basketball fans, especially those that are into the dramatics and competitive nature of college hoops.

The NCAA ‘March Madness’ tournament returns in 2021 following a year in 2020 where the COVID-19 pandemic came just in time to foil the plans for last year’s tournament. One of the first very high-profile events to be canceled due to the virus, setting the tone for what were many cancellations and postponements in the year 2020.

Now in 2021 after a long-awaited absence from the world stage, the NCAA and the 68 teams selected to enter the bubble in Indianapolis will compete for a national title, something they attributed countless hours towards during this entire unique season, and their whole individual lives.

With today being the final day of the conference tournaments as well as ‘Selection Sunday’, you can’t help but glance at the field and notice how different it may look than in tournaments past.

The usual top teams from the power conferences of NCAA basketball are nowhere to be found. Teams such as Duke and Kentucky saw their teams go through many rough stretches of this strenuous season, resulting in both teams missing the cut for the first time since 1976.

A strange season it was, as it was for every other professional sport that has made an effort to put forth a product during the pandemic. There are some of the regulars near the top of the regions in Gonzaga and Michigan, but the likes of Illinois and Baylor have seen themselves progress as programs this season, resulting in top seeds respectively.

The first four will kick off this year’s competition in Indiana on Thursday morning, as eight teams will faceoff in their own matchups to fill out the rest of the round of 64. Some big names looking to punch their tickets to the next round include a pristine matchup of Michigan State and UCLA.

The signature round of 64 all begins on Friday morning, where the trail of a national champion will begin for one squad ready to make their dream a reality.

In honor of this year’s tournament beginning this week, we should take a look at some of the best ‘March Madness’ moments that have made this tournament what it is known for, craziness.

From massive upsets to other-worldly solo performances on the main stage, big names are made in this tournament, and those who make the most of this opportunity immediately put their name on NBA radars.

The Best March Madness Moments –

Bird vs Magic: The First of Many

In the 1979 tournament NCAA tournament, a special one-on-one rivalry was born into basketball that would be a sign of what was to come for an entire generation. The national championship game saw Magic Johnson and the Michigan State Spartans face off against the previously undefeated Indiana State Sycamores, led by Larry Bird.

A game that included both players carrying their squads, it truly ended up being the smallest of stories looking back at it. Johnson’s Spartans won the tournament, but this was a moment where both players got to go head to head for the first of many classic games.

This game was also the highest-rated and most-watched basketball game in history, professional or collegiate. In 2021 with both men in the hall of fame and have faced each other in three NBA Finals, it is quite crazy to see how far the rivalry went from where it began.

UMBC Goes Dancing:

You never see a perfect bracket in this tournament, no matter how hard people try. Predicting the outcomes of all these games is a near-impossible task no matter which games go your way.

In 2018, there was one special bracket busting upset that shocked the world, and it was one we had never seen before in the long, storied history of March Madness.

A #16 seed defeating a #1. Not only did they beat them, they BEAT them.

From the opening tip-off, it felt like the seeds were incorrect and that the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) were the true number one seed against the top-ranked Virginia Cavaliers. A final score of 74-54, the lowest amount of points scored by the Cavs all season long, was truly the perfect storm for the underdog.

As one of my favorite Canadian hockey announcers put perfectly in 2011, “it’s a wonderful day for an exorcism.”

Villanova Defines Drama:

There is the insane feeling of watching a buzzer-beating, game-winning shot go down and the entire team going into a frenzy in any situation.

In the 2016 national championship, Villanova’s Kris Jenkins didn’t just call game, he called TOURNEY.  In the game between Villanova and North Carolina, Jenkins hit the shot that every child dreams of hitting when they are playing alone on their hoop outside.

North Carolina hit a game-tying three with under 5 seconds to play, forcing everyone in the arena and watching at home to believe that the game was headed for overtime, but Villanova’s Jenkins did him one better on the next possession, sinking a buzzer-beating three to win the game and the tournament for the Wildcats.

A wild way to close out an amazing national championship matchup, and a shot that will go down in history as one of the biggest shots the NCAA tournament has ever seen.

Coach Goes for a Ride:

Not a moment that is known for its greatness, but definitely one deserving of recognition every once in a while.

Georgia State was the heavy underdog, a 14 seed taking on number 3 Baylor in what was suppose to be an easy win for the Bears.

R.J. Hunter had other plans that night, ones that would eventually send his own father and head coach of Georgia State off his seat and onto the sideline floor.

Evan Power, Evolution 107.9

 

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