DanMcQ
Moderator
Posts: 30,557
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Post by DanMcQ on Apr 19, 2020 23:02:45 GMT -5
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iowa80
Golden Hoya (over 1000 posts)
Posts: 2,402
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Post by iowa80 on Apr 22, 2020 17:00:35 GMT -5
There's a reason I took a loss for a handle. The video gives insight into why.
While, on balance, I guess the loss to 'Nove in Lexington was "bigger," I found it less gut-wrenching, being at both. By then we had a title and Final Fours in our pocket.
Against Iowa the program was clearly a force on the rise, but an unproven one. A Final Four would have solidified it. But it was not to be. I drove back to DC crushed. But I knew I was hooked for life.
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hoyarooter
Blue & Gray (over 10,000 posts)
Posts: 10,212
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Post by hoyarooter on Apr 22, 2020 19:53:03 GMT -5
There can be no debate that the Villanova loss was the most difficult in program history. None. That team deserved to be ranked with the great college programs ever, and that loss denied us what was rightfully ours.
That said, for me Iowa 1980 wasn't far behind. Only Laker fans are likely to know this, but Chick Hearn picked Georgetown to win the national title that year at the start of the tournament, and the Maryland win in the Sweet 16 game was the greatest win in program history up to that time. That team could have easily won the title, and if they had, they would have beaten UCLA in the finals, and there's my dream game. There was no way to know if we would ever reach that level again, and to lose the way we did was devastating. It was like Villanova Jr. before Villanova. Of the other regional final losses, I thought Providence was the worst because that was a game I really thought we would win. I wasn't confident about the other two. While the 1989 team looked like a national champion in the BET, they obviously peaked there, and were fortunate to beat both Princeton and LSU, and even the Notre Dame win wasn't particularly convincing. It just seemed we had lost our mojo, and that figured to not serve us well against Duke, and it didn't.
Oh, and I have no desire to watch this game again. None.
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Elvado
Blue & Gray (over 10,000 posts)
Posts: 10,485
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Post by Elvado on Apr 22, 2020 20:00:01 GMT -5
There can be no debate that the Villanova loss was the most difficult in program history. None. That team deserved to be ranked with the great college programs ever, and that loss denied us what was rightfully ours. That said, for me Iowa 1980 wasn't far behind. Only Laker fans are likely to know this, but Chick Hearn picked Georgetown to win the national title that year at the start of the tournament, and the Maryland win in the Sweet 16 game was the greatest win in program history up to that time. That team could have easily won the title, and if they had, they would have beaten UCLA in the finals, and there's my dream game. There was no way to know if we would ever reach that level again, and to lose the way we did was devastating. It was like Villanova Jr. before Villanova. Of the other regional final losses, I thought Providence was the worst because that was a game I really thought we would win. I wasn't confident about the other two. While the 1989 team looked like a national champion in the BET, they obviously peaked there, and were fortunate to beat both Princeton and LSU, and even the Notre Dame win wasn't particularly convincing. It just seemed we had lost our mojo, and that figured to not serve us well against Duke, and it didn't. Oh, and I have no desire to watch this game again. None. All great points but it was N.C. State. LSU was the Smitty bank shot in ‘88
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hoyarooter
Blue & Gray (over 10,000 posts)
Posts: 10,212
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Post by hoyarooter on Apr 22, 2020 20:09:39 GMT -5
There can be no debate that the Villanova loss was the most difficult in program history. None. That team deserved to be ranked with the great college programs ever, and that loss denied us what was rightfully ours. That said, for me Iowa 1980 wasn't far behind. Only Laker fans are likely to know this, but Chick Hearn picked Georgetown to win the national title that year at the start of the tournament, and the Maryland win in the Sweet 16 game was the greatest win in program history up to that time. That team could have easily won the title, and if they had, they would have beaten UCLA in the finals, and there's my dream game. There was no way to know if we would ever reach that level again, and to lose the way we did was devastating. It was like Villanova Jr. before Villanova. Of the other regional final losses, I thought Providence was the worst because that was a game I really thought we would win. I wasn't confident about the other two. While the 1989 team looked like a national champion in the BET, they obviously peaked there, and were fortunate to beat both Princeton and LSU, and even the Notre Dame win wasn't particularly convincing. It just seemed we had lost our mojo, and that figured to not serve us well against Duke, and it didn't. Oh, and I have no desire to watch this game again. None. All great points but it was N.C. State. LSU was the Smitty bank shot in ‘88 Right you are. Definitely NC State. Just another sign that I'm getting old.
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Bigs"R"Us
Platinum Hoya (over 5000 posts)
Posts: 6,642
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Post by Bigs"R"Us on Apr 22, 2020 20:28:37 GMT -5
That NC State team had a great backcourt with Chris Corchiani and Rodney Monroe, aka., Fire & Ice. They were awesome.
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