I swear I'm not that picky. I swear I would've been happy with a loss in the Sweet 16, or even a loss to New Mexico in the second round. Am I asking too much here? Am I asking too much to not lose to a team seeded at least 8 lines lower? AGAIN? I dunno, maybe I'm being greedy.
For me personally, it definitely turned into the ol' "Be careful what you wish for" (one of the best 'Goosebumps' books of all time, btdubs) in that I was terrified of New Mexico, KU got Stanford like I wanted....and KU still lost. I wasn't cocky about the matchup or anything-- VCU in 2011 solved that forever-- but I was definitely feeling good when New Mexico got knocked out.
After the initial shock and depression, I've been pretty level-headed about the loss. Any time you lose your second-best player and top 5 draft pick to injury, you're gonna be vulnerable. But still, it's just.....it's Stanford, man. And they didn't even play well. It's one thing to lose to a low seed when they come out like gangbusters, or have the best game of their season (the aforementioned VCU game, Northern Iowa in 2010, Rhode Island in '98.) It's another when the low seed brings, at best, their B- game, and it's still enough to knock you off (Stanford, Bucknell in '05, UTEP in '92.)
And so concludes a weird season in Lawrence. After the entire starting five left last year, I thought it was just going to be a nice bridge season, watching the kids get better, just trying to keep the conference title streak alive, getting a 4 seed at best in the tourney, and looking forward to 2015. In a weird way (and I know I'll get crucified for saying this), after this stretch of six out of seven years being serious title contenders, it was going to be a relief to just chill out and have a more relaxing "down" year. Then we got Wiggins. Oh. Then Embiid turned out to be a monster right away, not two years from now. Oh. Then we beat Duke in the second game of the year, in spectacular fashion. Oh. So the ceiling is removed now. I get it.
And honestly, that's where the season peaked for me. Watching that game, watching the players play well, and play with smiles on their faces, I was sitting there thinking "However the season ends up, this is definitely gonna be one of my favorite squads of all time." But it never really materialized that way. I'll take the Dancing McLemores, or the shit-talking 'Family Over Everything' Morris Twins, or even the on-court nerdiness of Hinrich & Collison, over the relative lack of personality that this year's team had.
And now, since Tarik Black, Wiggins and most likely Embiid are leaving, this year was national title or bust. It's unfortunate, but that's life in the one-and-done era. Potential Wall of Fame inductee Andrew White III is sure to transfer too, but I'm gonna pull a Forrest Gump and say that's all I have to say about that, lest I spin off into a huge rant against Bill Self that I really don't want to do right now. I'll just say that between Self's handling of White, and the amount of times KU looked like they'd never seen a 1-3-1 zone or a 1-2-2 trap before...it hasn't been my favorite coaching job ever.
This isn't to say there aren't bright spots in the future; far from it. My boy Conner Frankamp had his coming out party in the tournament, and I look forward to three more years of meaningful moments with him (inside joke.) Jamari Traylor is already better than I ever thought he would be, and he's still got two years left. Frank Mason has more than a little Sherron Collins in him. Perry Ellis, another year older and better (hopefully he learns how to play some fucking defense though.) Incoming freshman Cliff Alexander looks like a MONSTER, and will hopefully bring some of the swag that's been missing since Tyshawn and T-Rob left a couple years ago. So we'll be back. F.O.E.
Speaking of Alexander, I know that tricking a fanbase by pulling the hat switcheroo is about as big a douche move as there is (KU has been on the opposite end a few times, and I hate it-- still mad at ya, Baron Davis) but you know what? Screw it. Like I said, we need a little swag next year. Plus, videos like this are just too funny. Sorry for partying.
Wanna know the greatest thing about the end of college basketball season? The Masters, the NBA playoffs, and Major League Baseball are right here to fill the void. And don't cry for me Argentina, cause the Red Sox are DEFENDING CHAMPS, SON.
Coming tomorrow (or sometime soon, who am I, the Answer Man?): March Madness Weekend Part Deux, when I talk about how drunk we all got.
