April 1, 2042
The Final Four has been set, and it's an intriguing one.
We're representing the East, as we were seeded to do. We'll face Kansas State, the Midwest champion, who beat Pitt when the final shot of
Roland Goodnight's collegiate career bounced off the front of the rim.
I was rooting for Vanderbilt to return to the glory of the last weekend of the season, but the nine-seed Commodores fell before three-seed Houston. The South Region champion Cougars will face Nebraska, a twelve-seed who just ended Georgetown's season.
April 5, 2042
NCAA Semifinal: the Final Four
Code:
(1) #1 Villanova 80, (5) #20 Kansas State 62
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Villanova (37-1, 15-1):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Dan O'Halloran C 29 3-7 3-5 3 11 0 4 9
Forrest Curl PF 22 3-4 2-2 2 5 1 3 8
Israel Moody SF 21 5-17 1-1 1 3 3 4 11
John Cannon SG 19 5-6 2-2 0 0 3 4 14
Kai Smith PG 31 3-6 2-2 0 4 8 1 9
Asaad Richardson SF 27 3-10 2-2 0 3 2 1 11
Tyson Lien SG 20 1-3 3-4 0 3 3 1 6
Weston Wagner C 15 2-2 0-0 1 7 1 3 5
Immanuel Bahr PF 8 1-1 0-0 0 0 0 0 2
Nick O'Brien PG 6 1-2 2-2 0 0 0 1 5
Turnovers: 16 (D.O'Halloran 2, F.Curl 1, I.Moody 2,
J.Cannon 3, K.Smith 1, A.Richardson 3, T.Lien 2,
W.Wagner 1, I.Bahr 1)
Blocked Shots: 1 (W.Wagner 1)
Steals: 10 (D.O'Halloran 1, F.Curl 2, J.Cannon 4,
K.Smith 2, W.Wagner 1)
3P FGs: 9-21 (J.Cannon 2-3, K.Smith 1-4, A.Richardson
3-9, T.Lien 1-3, W.Wagner 1-1, N.O'Brien 1-1)
Kansas State (28-8, 10-4):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Mike Sharp C 31 0-2 1-4 0 6 3 2 1
Jose Matthews PF 31 4-11 5-9 3 10 1 2 13
Gabriel Johnson SF 27 5-15 0-0 4 7 3 3 12
James Higa SG 30 3-8 3-4 4 9 0 1 12
Robert Smithers PG 19 1-3 0-0 0 2 3 3 2
Arthur Rader C 11 3-6 3-3 1 2 0 4 9
Damion Joyce PF 7 1-4 0-0 1 3 0 1 2
Logan Witherspoon PG 17 1-3 4-4 0 0 1 2 7
Bert Honaker SG 18 0-3 1-2 0 0 1 1 1
Paul Zinn PF 1 0-1 0-0 1 1 1 0 0
Richard Rodman SF 5 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 1 0
Bert Thies SF 1 1-1 0-0 0 0 0 0 3
Brian Chaffee PG 4 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0
Turnovers: 22 (M.Sharp 2, J.Matthews 4, G.Johnson 6,
J.Higa 5, R.Smithers 2, A.Rader 1, L.Witherspoon 2)
Blocked Shots: 1 (J.Higa 1)
Steals: 5 (J.Higa 1, L.Witherspoon 2, B.Honaker 2)
3P FGs: 7-25 (G.Johnson 2-8, J.Higa 3-6, R.Smithers
0-2, D.Joyce 0-1, L.Witherspoon 1-3, B.Honaker 0-3,
P.Zinn 0-1, B.Thies 1-1)
Player of Game: PG Kai Smith (VLNV)
"I'm not ready to say goodbye to you guys yet," an emotional
John Cannon told his teammates in the locker room before tonight's national semifinal. Whether John was suggesting this was his final season or not, his teammates nodded their agreement; they weren't ready for this ride to end.
Kai Smith has broad shoulders for a man his size, and he puts the Wildcats on those shoulders tonight. His 9-point, 8-assist, 2-steal, 1-turnover game is unremarkable for him, but that's how good he is.
Now John, Kai, and their teammates and coaches will play for the national championship once again. It's the tenth trip to the final for the Wildcats and the third for each of the players on the roster. And, for
Graham Sims, it's his eleventh championship game.
Again, we'll be cast as the bad guys, because Nebraska continues their improbable run with a 72-71 victory over Houston.
Record: 37-1.
April 7, 2042
NCAA Championship Game
Code:
(1) #1 Villanova 82, (12) Nebraska 53
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Villanova (38-1, 15-1):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Dan O'Halloran C 31 7-13 5-7 4 17 2 2 19
Forrest Curl PF 20 1-2 0-0 0 2 2 4 2
Israel Moody SF 18 2-6 0-0 0 1 1 4 4
John Cannon SG 31 8-13 1-1 4 4 1 0 20
Kai Smith PG 31 4-6 2-2 1 1 6 2 11
Asaad Richardson SF 25 4-11 1-2 1 2 0 1 11
Tyson Lien SG 13 0-0 2-2 0 0 3 1 2
Weston Wagner C 16 2-4 5-5 1 6 0 2 10
Immanuel Bahr PF 8 0-3 0-0 0 3 1 0 0
Nick O'Brien PG 8 1-3 0-1 1 1 1 0 3
Turnovers: 9 (D.O'Halloran 1, F.Curl 1, I.Moody 1,
J.Cannon 2, K.Smith 1, T.Lien 1, I.Bahr 1, N.O'Brien 1)
Blocked Shots: 7 (D.O'Halloran 3, F.Curl 4)
Steals: 13 (F.Curl 1, I.Moody 1, J.Cannon 3, K.Smith 4,
T.Lien 3, N.O'Brien 1)
3P FGs: 8-21 (J.Cannon 3-5, K.Smith 1-2, A.Richardson
2-9, W.Wagner 1-3, I.Bahr 0-1, N.O'Brien 1-1)
Nebraska (23-14, 6-8):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Justin Sterner C 26 0-2 2-2 1 11 0 3 2
Tom Real PF 28 2-9 4-5 1 5 2 2 8
Travis Forte SF 26 6-6 2-2 2 5 1 2 18
Eric Kohler SG 32 4-9 1-2 0 1 3 1 11
John Ybarra PG 32 1-9 2-2 3 4 1 2 4
Carmelo Byrum SF 18 1-6 3-4 0 2 0 1 6
David McLaughlin PF 21 1-4 2-2 2 3 0 2 4
Lyndon Boyett PF 5 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 1 0
Jewel Berube SG 8 0-1 0-0 0 1 0 1 0
Paul Stevenson SF 3 0-2 0-0 0 1 0 1 0
Turnovers: 19 (J.Sterner 1, T.Real 2, T.Forte 2,
E.Kohler 4, J.Ybarra 4, C.Byrum 4, J.Berube 1,
P.Stevenson 1)
Blocked Shots: 2 (J.Sterner 1, J.Ybarra 1)
Steals: 5 (T.Real 1, E.Kohler 1, J.Ybarra 1, C.Byrum 2)
3P FGs: 7-21 (T.Forte 4-4, E.Kohler 2-3, J.Ybarra 0-5,
C.Byrum 1-5, D.McLaughlin 0-1, J.Berube 0-1,
P.Stevenson 0-2)
Player of Game: C Dan O'Halloran (VLNV)
Wilt Chamberlain once said, "Everybody pulls for David. Nobody roots for Goliath." This might not be absolutely true.
Kansas coach
Blaine Boyd is one of
Graham Sims' best friends. "I'm absolutely rooting for Villanova," he candidly admits. It was Boyd's team that the Cornhuskers beat to earn their tournament berth.
Creighton senior
Emily Rossiter is an avid basketball fan. She plays the clarinet in the Blue Jays pep band. "None of us like Nebraska," she states. "I went to the Villanova game back in December. The atmosphere there was amazing. I didn't like the outcome [VU 81, CU 61], but I left with a lot of respect for their program. I want them to win. Big."
Boyd, Rossiter, and thousands of Wildcat fans are happy now, as Villanova storms to a 47-26 halftime lead and rolls the rest of the way to their third consecutive national championship. The team's four juniors--
John Cannon, Kai Smith, Nick O'Brien, and
Forrest Curl--have never known any other outcome. Only Forrest, who redshirted his first season, has experienced a season that didn't end with One Shining Moment.
It's a sophomore,
Dan O'Halloran, who provides the Wildcats with our greatest advantage. He faces a full-grown man in
Justin Sterner, a 7'0", 251-pound redshirt junior, and won't let Justin touch the ball unless he grabs a defensive rebound.
John Cannon scores 20 points, leading all scorers. After the game, he announces that he will enter the professional draft.
Kai Smith, however, has other news.
"I have three rings now," Kai points out. "I'd really love a fourth."
Record: 38-1.