The annual March Madness tournament isn’t kicking off this week, so let’s take a trip down memory lane with Syracuse basketball in the Big Dance.
Those who know me would readily acknowledge that I’m passionately fervent about two things in the world of sports: Syracuse basketball and the NCAA Tournament.
Nothing beats the few weeks every year when the Big Dance transpires. Of course, the Orange’s inclusion is extremely important within that context, but even in the seasons when the ‘Cuse doesn’t make the cut, I find myself giddy like a little kid throughout the duration of March Madness.
As soon as the brackets are unveiled, it’s pure bliss. The boatload of intriguing matchups that fill the opening rounds, commencing at noon (and at 9 a.m. for those occurrences when my buddies and I have traversed to Las Vegas), is an unrivaled delight.
The upsets. The Cinderella stories. The powerhouses that fall early, or stay around late. Dreams, for some, are shattered. For others, they are made. I love it all, including One Shining Moment.
That the NCAA Tournament isn’t beginning its journey this week dejects me, and millions of other college-basketball fans, to no end. Without question, the canceling of this event had to happen, and we all must band together to keep this planet as safe as entirely possible.
I firmly believe that holding this sort of competition with student-athletes, coaches and their staff, and family members, even without the tens of thousands of fans who would have filled the various arenas, couldn’t ensue given the escalation of the novel coronavirus pandemic. Undoubtedly, it proved a tough decision for NCAA officials, but the right one.
Once word broke that the Big Dance wouldn’t go on, it got me daydreaming about the abundance of fond memories – both the highs and the lows – that I’ve curated since I graduated from Syracuse University in 2000.
My how quickly 20 years have passed.
Since I’m in a nostalgic frame of mind, I figured it might prove fun – and, on occasion, heart-wrenching – to share my own personal thoughts of the Orange’s involvement in March Madness over the last two decades. Here goes nothing.