April 5, 2043
NCAA National Semifinal: the Final Four
Code:
#1 Villanova 89, #6 Oklahoma 78
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Villanova (34-3, 14-2):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Dan O'Halloran C 30 9-11 6-8 1 7 2 3 24
Forrest Curl PF 29 2-4 2-4 1 9 1 3 6
Israel Moody SF 26 9-15 0-0 1 3 2 3 18
Asaad Richardson SG 29 5-13 3-3 0 3 1 2 14
Kai Smith PG 34 2-6 2-2 0 3 16 4 6
Tyson Lien SG 11 2-3 0-0 0 0 0 1 5
Roman Holloway C 21 2-4 1-2 0 3 2 3 5
Weston Wagner SF 11 3-4 0-0 2 3 0 1 7
Scott McMasters PG 6 1-1 2-2 0 0 3 0 4
Immanuel Bahr PF 3 0-1 0-0 0 1 0 0 0
Turnovers: 14 (D.O'Halloran 2, F.Curl 1, I.Moody 2,
A.Richardson 3, K.Smith 2, T.Lien 1, R.Holloway 2,
W.Wagner 1)
Blocked Shots: 3 (D.O'Halloran 1, I.Moody 1, K.Smith 1)
Steals: 12 (D.O'Halloran 1, F.Curl 1, I.Moody 2,
A.Richardson 4, K.Smith 4)
3P FGs: 3-14 (A.Richardson 1-8, K.Smith 0-2, T.Lien
1-1, R.Holloway 0-1, W.Wagner 1-2)
Oklahoma (34-4, 11-3):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Merrill Williams C 24 3-5 0-0 4 7 1 1 6
M. Caraballo PF 23 3-4 6-8 1 4 0 2 12
Rod Martinez SF 34 5-14 0-5 1 3 0 1 11
Alonzo Moy SG 30 6-15 0-0 1 6 3 4 16
Gil Desouza PG 27 3-9 2-2 0 3 5 1 9
Timothy Martinez PF 25 4-7 0-0 3 8 2 2 8
Bret Shuster PG 20 2-5 2-2 2 5 1 4 7
William McCaslin C 8 1-2 1-1 0 0 0 4 3
Omar Hooks PG 1 1-1 0-0 0 0 0 0 2
Kenny Adam SF 8 1-3 2-2 1 1 1 0 4
Turnovers: 19 (M.Caraballo 1, R.Martinez 2, A.Moy 5,
G.Desouza 2, B.Shuster 6, W.McCaslin 3)
Blocked Shots: 1 (K.Adam 1)
Steals: 7 (R.Martinez 2, A.Moy 2, G.Desouza 1,
T.Martinez 1, K.Adam 1)
3P FGs: 7-27 (R.Martinez 1-5, A.Moy 4-11, G.Desouza
1-5, B.Shuster 1-4, K.Adam 0-2)
Player of Game: C Dan O'Halloran (VLNV)
We're back in the national championship game, after knocking off fellow #1 seed Oklahoma.
Our poor three-point shooting is offset by our excellent performance inside the arc; we make 32 of our 48 two-point attempts. Sixteen of our 35 baskets are assisted by
Kai Smith, who sets a new school record for helpers in a single game.
Justice Stafford handed out 15 assists on two different occasions.
A familiar foe awaits us in the championship game: our former Big East rival, West Virginia.
Record: 34-3.
April 7, 2043
NCAA Championship Game
Code:
#5 West Virginia 117, #1 Villanova 115 (2 OT)
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Villanova (34-4, 14-2):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Dan O'Halloran C 38 4-12 4-4 4 11 3 5 12
Forrest Curl PF 37 3-4 0-0 2 4 3 5 6
Israel Moody SF 38 13-21 1-1 2 9 6 2 27
Asaad Richardson SG 22 3-9 0-0 2 3 1 5 6
Kai Smith PG 42 8-14 2-2 0 2 9 2 23
Tyson Lien SG 27 4-5 3-4 1 3 6 4 13
Roman Holloway C 23 6-8 0-0 0 2 0 2 12
Weston Wagner SF 11 2-3 1-1 0 2 1 1 6
Scott McMasters PG 6 3-5 0-0 1 2 3 1 8
Immanuel Bahr PF 4 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0
Nick O'Brien SG 4 1-1 0-0 0 0 2 0 2
Turnovers: 17 (D.O'Halloran 1, F.Curl 1, I.Moody 3,
A.Richardson 4, T.Lien 6, R.Holloway 1, W.Wagner 1)
Blocked Shots: 9 (D.O'Halloran 2, F.Curl 1, I.Moody 1,
R.Holloway 3, W.Wagner 1, I.Bahr 1)
Steals: 7 (I.Moody 2, A.Richardson 1, K.Smith 2, T.Lien
2)
3P FGs: 10-24 (A.Richardson 0-6, K.Smith 5-10, T.Lien
2-3, W.Wagner 1-2, S.McMasters 2-3)
West Virginia (36-2, 16-2):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
William Ramirez C 43 3-8 4-12 3 10 0 4 10
Jonathan Hamlin PF 38 2-4 0-0 4 10 1 3 4
Lamarcus Hare SF 39 13-21 4-5 4 8 2 2 37
Michael Pepper SG 36 6-17 0-2 3 5 4 2 16
Houston Orosco PG 26 7-11 7-8 2 3 7 4 22
Roderick Estep SG 27 3-7 2-2 0 0 3 2 10
David Hage PG 19 2-2 2-2 2 4 5 0 6
Dennis Holt PF 13 4-6 2-4 2 3 0 0 10
David Gallagher SF 8 0-0 2-3 1 1 1 1 2
Raphael Hensel SG 1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0
Turnovers: 17 (W.Ramirez 4, J.Hamlin 2, L.Hare 7,
M.Pepper 1, H.Orosco 3)
Blocked Shots: 6 (W.Ramirez 5, J.Hamlin 1)
Steals: 8 (W.Ramirez 1, J.Hamlin 1, L.Hare 1, M.Pepper
1, H.Orosco 2, D.Holt 1, D.Gallagher 1)
3P FGs: 14-36 (L.Hare 7-14, M.Pepper 4-14, H.Orosco
1-5, R.Estep 2-3)
Player of Game: SF Lamarcus Hare (WVU)
As soon as the final buzzer sounds, people begin to describe this game as the greatest in the history of college basketball. For Villanova, it is a defeat that leaves us with a complex mixture of heartbreak and pride.
West Virginia takes it to us from the opening tip. The Mountaineers are ahead, 52-37, at halftime. They continue to build their lead; seven minutes into the second half, the score is 70-47.
Then, we come alive, as you might expect a team who's been there before might do. Over the next seven minutes, we unleash an 18-6 run and halve the Mountaineers' lead.
We continue to draw closer. The clock reads 3:05 when
Kai Smith makes a steal and finds
Dan O'Halloran in transition. Dan, who is playing with four fouls, drives hard to the rack and clashes hard with WVU's
Jonathan Hamlin. The official calls a blocking foul on Hamlin, and O'Halloran calmly makes both free throws. We've drawn to within four points; it's 85-81.
With 1:24 remaining,
Israel Moody steals the ball and takes it all the way, finishing with a resounding two-handed slam. Now the score is 87-85, Villanova. It's our first lead of the game.
We trade baskets, and then
Lamarcus Hare scores with 26 ticks left to tie the score at 89. Villanova hearts stop when the Mountaineers' press forces a turnover, and Hare has a chance at a game-winning three. He misses, and we head to overtime.
Three minutes later, Smith finds O'Halloran for an easy basket to put us ahead, 98-93. Now it's the Mountaineers' turn to dig deep. A buzzer-beater by
Houston Orosco ties the score at 100 and makes another extra period necessary.
Despite their fatigue, both teams play the next five minutes at a fast pace.
Dan O'Halloran, Asaad Richardson, and
Forrest Curl all foul out. Curl's fifth personal sends
William Ramirez to the line for two shots with the clock reading 0:36 and the score tied at 113. William hits the first and misses the second...and Orosco beats us to the rebound, puts it back up, and scores.
We move quickly down the floor and get a very desirable shot:
Weston Wagner, a 43 percent shooter from distance, tries a game-tying three. He misses, but
Roman Holloway tips in the rebound, and we pull to within a point. There are five seconds left.
Holloway immediately fouls Orosco. WVU is in the penalty, so Orosco has two foul shots. He makes the first and misses the second. Wagner grabs the rebound and heaves the ball nearly 90 feet as time expires. For a moment it looks like the ball might go in. It's on line, but it falls a foot or so short.
Lamarcus Hare falls to his knees beneath our basket, his face uplifted, wearing a huge smile. This picture of the game's biggest star will be its most iconic scene.
On the Villanova bench,
Forrest Curl and
Dan O'Halloran embrace.
Israel Moody sits on the floor near the center circle, his head in his hands.
Kai Smith rests a comforting hand on Israel's shoulder.
Graham Sims shakes hands with West Virginia's coach,
Kirby Fulcher. This is Coach Fulcher's second season in Morgantown, and it ends with the Mountaineers' second national championship.
Then Coach Sims returns to his players. "So close, Coach,"
Kai Smith says to him, before he begins to sob. Graham simply wraps his arms around his player and nods. "Thank you, Kai," he whispers. "Thank you."
Then he looks at Mary Kate and their family in the stands, manages a smile, and waves. A young fan seated nearby watches this scene. He's about twelve years old and he wears a navy Villanova hoodie. The boy turns to his parents. "Is Coach Sims waving goodbye?"
"I'm not sure," his mother replies. "It looks like he might be."
Record: 34-4.