First off, I came here a couple nights ago challenging ND fans to bring their best game and your team damn sure did. There is something about NCAA tourney regional finals. That is where the magic reaches it's peak and hearts break the most. Kentucky fans know all about it and we're still seeing that damn Laetner shot 23 long years after it went in. Please accept my meaningless condolences.
But damn, what a fine game. Beautiful performance by your team. We will remember your players for a very long time.
Here is how the game should have ended:
Instead of giving Notre Dame the ball with 1 sec. on the shot clock at approx. 34 sec. left on the game clock, a foul should have been called on whichever Notre Dame defender caught Tyler Ulis across the face during his rebound attempt prior to the ball going out of bounds. Ulis had position and the ball in both hands. But incidental contact prevented Ulis from ever being able to fully secure the ball and it went out of bounds before a change of possession. The contact was pretty severe, and worthy of a whistle.
This should have resulted in Mr. Ulis being on the foul line and he likely would have made two, but ND would have had the ball with more than 30 seconds left on the clock. The result of the game at that point is to anybody's imagination.
Just wanted to share those thoughts as I'm sure there are plenty of fans challenging the validity of the final foul call. I'm willing to take that a step further by going back to the previous play which, in my mind, is where the refs really got the game wrong by putting ND in a situation with 1 second on the shot clock when they SHOULD HAVE called a foul, yet did not.
But damn, what a fine game. Beautiful performance by your team. We will remember your players for a very long time.
Here is how the game should have ended:
Instead of giving Notre Dame the ball with 1 sec. on the shot clock at approx. 34 sec. left on the game clock, a foul should have been called on whichever Notre Dame defender caught Tyler Ulis across the face during his rebound attempt prior to the ball going out of bounds. Ulis had position and the ball in both hands. But incidental contact prevented Ulis from ever being able to fully secure the ball and it went out of bounds before a change of possession. The contact was pretty severe, and worthy of a whistle.
This should have resulted in Mr. Ulis being on the foul line and he likely would have made two, but ND would have had the ball with more than 30 seconds left on the clock. The result of the game at that point is to anybody's imagination.
Just wanted to share those thoughts as I'm sure there are plenty of fans challenging the validity of the final foul call. I'm willing to take that a step further by going back to the previous play which, in my mind, is where the refs really got the game wrong by putting ND in a situation with 1 second on the shot clock when they SHOULD HAVE called a foul, yet did not.
