Butler Redux

The Butler Bulldogs have an opportunity tonight to win the 2011 NCAA Men’s Championship as a #8 seed. If they do so, they will match the Villanova Wildcat’s victory in 1985 (as an #8 seed) over John Thompson’s and Patrick Ewing’s Georgetown Hoya’s as the highest seeded (and to date the only 8-seed) to win the tournament.

I believe right now, that if Butler wins the game tonight, it will be the greatest achievement in the history of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament. The reason why is that Butler barely lost last year to Duke as a #5 seed, then lost their best player (Gordon Heyward) to the NBA, yet managed to come all the way back to be on the stage again tonight.

The Wildcats won that game 26 years ago by two points, and shot 78.6% from the field for the game, including 90% in the second half. Yeah, that’s right, they made 9 of 10 from the field as an 8-seed versus a #1. It was an incredible game, and the very last NCAA Men’s basketball game without a 35-second shot clock.

I’ve been following college basketball since the early 1960’s, and can remember Bill Bradley taking Princeton Tigers to the Final Four in 1965. At that time, it wasn’t nearly as enormous an achievement as it would be even 10 years later, but it was still an incredible story, even with Princeton losing their semi-final game to Michigan. Back then the teams losing in the semi-finals would play a preliminary game before the championship. Bradley scored 58 in that one, against Wichita State, then went to England for two years. I think we all know how the rest of his life has gone.

Jim Valvano imbedded himself into the National consciousness initially by winning as a #6 seed with North Carolina State over the #1 Houston Cougars in 1983. There are few college hoops fans that haven’t seen the clip of Jimmy V running around looking to hug someone once the game was over. How could it be that Derek Wittenburg could jimmer up a desperation 30 footer and have his teammate, Lorenzo Charles catch and dunk it for the win?

1983 was also the last time a player (Hakeem Olajuwon) from a losing team won the "Outstanding Player Award," and the final time the championship game was held on a college campus ("The Pit" in Albuquerque, New Mexico).

The Arizona Wildcats became the only #4 seed to win the tournament in 1997, and the only one to have beaten all three #3 seeds they faced. No #5, #7, or any other seeded team has generally ever won except a series of #1’s and #2’s.

Only four #3 seeds have won, since all the seeds were first made public in 1979. The Connecticut Huskies have a chance to join that group tonight, but not as an underdog.

I think the difference in picking winners in these games is often finding the team with the most players likely to play in the NBA, and going with them. That should mean UConn, as Kemba Walker is an obvious NBA player, and there is not an obvious counter on Butler.

All that, and I keep thinking Butler will do this year what they couldn’t quite get done last year, but I’ll promise you this -- what ever does happen, enjoy the ride once again, because it’ll be one of those memories you’ll carry for a long time, and if Butler does win, it will be the best story in NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament history.

I’d really like to see that.

Butler redux.