Long Distance Jayhawk

A good old fashioned showdown. The Sun King vs. the Traitor.

What a crazy first three days. After trying their hardest to shit the bed against the plucky Southern team, Gonzaga ended up getting punted from the tournament last night. Anyone who watched them struggle down the stretch against Southern only to get bailed out by the refs knew this was coming. That Gonzaga team really was overated. Now the whole country knows. That it came at the hands of a Shocker team that has been quietly making waves over the last couple of years and finally broke through on Saturday night made it that much sweeter.

Friday night was a bit of a nervewracking affair, since I went to BAM during the first half of the game to see Planetarium. I definitely shouldn’t have jeoporadized my sanity that way. When they finished going through all the planets, they decided to come back out and do an encore. For an orchestral piece. It was made doubly ridiculous by the fact that they played “Somewhere Over the Rainbow.” You know, like Sufjan, Bryce Dessner, and Niko Mulahy were trying to troll me.

What I watched on Friday night didn’t inspire a whole lot of confidence in us making it super far in the tournament. It wasn’t just that we were flat coming out of the gate and Western Kentucky was playing like they had nothing to lose. Of course, they really didn’t have anything to lose, which might explain that attitude. We, however, didn’t even play like we were going through the motions. We didn’t look like ourselves at any point in the game that I watched. We’re lucky that the Hilltoppers didn’t pull off the improbable 16-1 upset this year. It really could have happened.

So, we survived to fight another day. And that day is today. Here are the important parts of the game.

North Carolina: Benedict Williams left us after telling the world “I don’t give a damn about North Carolina.” Most of us held a pretty bitter grudge, but much like the real Benedict Arnold’s percetpion in American memory, the betrayal is starting to fade. Sure, it’s always fun to knock off your old coach, but I don’t think I hate the way he left us as much as I did from 2003-08. Of course, my parents are huge Tar Heels, which might speak to that. Besides, there isn’t a hell of a lot of pleasure in beating a Carolina team that’s running 4 guards with James Michael McAdoo on the inside, and not really playing it all that well. Coming into the Big Dance, they were clearly playing with a backs to the wall mentality and that can only carry you so far. Like the Second Round.

Kansas: We have the ever-successful Sun King Toupee prowling our sidelines. Why would I ever want a guy who managed to miss the tournament a year after winning it? Why would I want a guy who was, until the last two weeks, in very real danger of having coached a flagship Blue Blood to two NITs in five years? Why would I want that when I can be assured of 83% success on the court, ten straight regular seeason titles, a slew of conference tournament titles, and always making the dance? I wouldn’t trade the Sun King for anything, let alone Benedict Williams.

Advantage: Kansas. Also, Zubaz shorts, which I will be wearing this evening in solidarity.