I'm "The Pearl" and You Are Willie Glass

SOMEWHERE BETWEEN NEW YORK AND PROVIDENCE – Maybe it was the moment I first boarded the train in Providence.

Madison Square Garden and Empire State Building

Maybe it was when I stepped outside Penn Station and gazed up at the “World’s Most Famous Arena” amid the noise and commotion on Seventh Avenue.

Or maybe it was after I worked my way to my seat the lights dimmed and mesmerizing opening rhythmic beats of Muse blaring over the pa speakers; I knew I was wide awake within a dream.

UConn and Pitt were moments from tipping off in front of 19,000 plus fans at Madison Garden were juiced and ready for two great quarterfinal round games of the 2011 Big East Basketball Championship. 

And it was only noon!

 

Growing up, college basketball was always my favorite. Not just college basketball, but Big East basketball.  Back when my brother and I would watch Syracuse’s Dwayne “The Pearl” Washington and St. Johns’ Walter Berry and Chris Mullin wage epic battles in The Garden, that we would literally “take it outside” at our hoop in the driveway.

A capacity crowd erupts following UConn's win over top-seeded Pit

He was Willie Glass.  I was “The Pearl.” And we would play well after sundown shooting hoops well into darkness.  I love the Big East.  Villanova, Georgetown, West Virginia, Notre Dame, Marquette, Louisville, Pitt, Syracuse, St. John’s, and Connecticut.  Throw the names in a hat and it’s guaranteed to be a great game.

Early round games are exciting with teams battling hard to get to the next round.  But sometimes they do not have the cache or the matchups of storied basketball program that those of later round games usually produce.  

Like what I saw today.

Pitt and UConn battled down to the wire with Kemba Walker, the acrobatic, scoring machine for the Huskies, drained a 15-footer at the buzzer to give UConn the win and eliminating the regular season champion and top-seeded Panthers.

There’s something special about a moment in sports when a buzz still lingers in among the capacity crowd long after the play actually happened.   I could feel the excitement already generating on the streets when leaving Penn Station, and that electricity was still in the air with UConn fans whirled into a frenzy, Pitt fans stunned, and Syracuse – St. John’s fans ready for the second act.

Seventh Avenue was buzzing in anticipation of Thursday's matinee.

And yes, there was still a second act to come.  20 minutes until tip, UConn players were still being interviewed on live TV while the Orange and Red Storm went through their warmups, but the battle of New York was next on the docket.

There was a lot of pride at stake on the part of the Red Storm. MSG is technically its home court, but judging by the droves and drove Syracuse fans, it felt more like a home game for the Orange.

Syracuse would prevail in the final minute setting up a semifinal with UConn. 

If the last time these two teams met on the Garden floor – the instant classic six overtime (yes, six overtimes) game two years ago, this tourney will have to find its place among the long line of great ones.

At least for this hoops nut.