Acceptance | Syracusefan.com
.

Acceptance

SWC75

Bored Historian
Joined
Aug 26, 2011
Messages
34,525
Like
67,277
I always dread waking up the morning after our last loss, remembering what happened and saying "Oh, ". It didn't happen this time and I wondered why.

- I prepared myself over the previous week by looking the possibly of defeat in the eye and not being afraid of it. I thought we would win but if we didn't, I was emotionally prepared for it. I focused on how tired I was of worrying about games and that we'd either win or "spring" would begin when watching sports is just for fun again.

- I kept in mind that I really never expected this team to get this far. A 7-2 post season is pretty good for a team with so many limitations that had been playing so poorly at the end of the regular season.

- Michigan is a very good team who could win the national title. I will be rooting for them (Beilein > Pitino and I want to have lost to the National Champs after giving them a good battle).

- The calls at the end were frustrating but we should never have allowed the game to come down to them. If we'd played defense from the beginning the way we did in the second half, (and the rest of the tournament) and/or if we'd made some big shots in the second half when we were on the verge of catching up, we could have made the officials irrelevant. I'd rather blame (1) the other team and (2) us than (3) the refs and I think we need to do that here.
 
The one thing that really stands out for me is just how much luck had a play in this game. There were at least three or four possessions where Michigan gained possession by the slimmest of margins. The ball just misses going out of bounds, a tip of a toe on the side line, etc. Michigan got all of those lucky plays. The two long threes where I am shouting "Yes, Syracuse fast break starter!" and miraculously the bad shot goes in. A few rebounds tipped around that just wind up in the hands of a Michigan player when we easily could have gotten the ball.

Normally these type of lucky plays balance out in the course of a game, but it sure seemed like the Fates were trying to keep the Wolverines in a game where they were clearly the worse team. Even the normal reason for the "luck disparity" didn't seem to be in evidence, neither team seemed to want it more, or be faster to the ball. Just plain old luck went their way. I hate feeling like my team was the better team and yet we still lost. I went to bed with that horrible feeling.

A combination of bad offense, lucky shooting by our opponents and just dumb old luck cost us this game against a team we should have beaten.

The blown calls didn't cost us the game, but they didn't help either.
 
It was such a great unexpected ride, such a high with each win, that you don't want it to end. Syracuse basketball is the best. From the start of the BET to last night...3 1/2 weeks... the run occupied a great deal of mental time and provided a lot of excitement. In a moment it's over and you have to return to "ordinary" everyday life.
 

Forum statistics

Threads
173,911
Messages
5,120,573
Members
6,074
Latest member
CheerMom12

Online statistics

Members online
188
Guests online
1,087
Total visitors
1,275


...
Top Bottom