Friday, March 13, 2009

Greatest game I’ve ever seen?

by: Frank Carpano

Greatest game I’ve ever seen?

I have had the honor and pleasure to see some memorable games in person. The Patriots winning the Super Bowl in the final seconds on an AdamVinitieri field goal, the Red Sox ending an 86 year drought to win the World Series, the Friars beating Georgetown to advance to the Final Four in 1987. The one thing they all had in common was that I was there working as a member of the media

But the UCONN-Syracuse 6 overtime game at the Big East Tournament is the first time I have attended such an historical event as a fan.

It was an amazing experience. Complete with mind blowing performances by players who refused to give up.

Think about this; the typical college basketball is 2 halves, 20 minutes each. In the Syracuse-UCONN 6 overtime game, they played a total of 70 minutes. Syracuse’s Jonny Flynn wins the ironman award, he played 67 of those 70 minutes. It’s not that the other players ran out of gas, they would have loved to been out there. But 8 players (4 for each team) fouled out!

Every fan watching inside Madison Square Garden knew they were witnessing something special. The vast majority of the 19,375 fans stayed in their seats for the entire 3 hours and 46 minutes. And the person handling the public address system music selection was right on with his picks. After each overtime picking the perfect song to help describe the situation. For example after the second overtime, they played “AfterMidnight”. And after the fifth overtime, the song “All Night Long” blasted from the speakers.

The players may have been getting tired, but the fans seemed to get a burst of adrenaline with each overtime. Some got too much. There were more than a few fights in the stands during the game. But even that couldn’t spoil this special occasion.

And when it was all over (at 1:22am), the fans didn’t want to leave. I saw many taking pictures holding 6 fingers up. They were there for one of the greatest college basketball games ever played.

I texted a friend of mine, a Syracuse fan, who was watching elsewhere in the Garden.
I told him in the 4th overtime that this game would be on ESPN Classic in the morning.
His response: “If it’s over”.

I’m not sure how you could ever top it