ncaa winner

SAN ANTONIO — This NCAA Tournament needed Mario Chalmers. It needed his shot.
Whether the shot had to go in or not depended upon the point of view.
For Memphis supporters, the resounding answer was no. But for those Kansas fans thirsting for a national title after a 20-season drought at the tradition-rich school, the shot had to fall Monday night at the Alamodome.
Chalmers knocked down an incredible fadeaway 3-pointer with 2.1 seconds remaining in regulation to tie the national championship game at 63 and send it into overtime.
Every kid who picks up a basketball dreams of hitting the title-winning shot at the buzzer. Chalmers’ shot was not the game-winner. It was far more important, coming eight seconds after Memphis had stretched its lead to three.
“I got a good look,” said Chalmers, who was obviously named the tournament’s most outstanding player. “They gave me a good pass. When it left my hand, it felt good. I was just glad it went in.”
The player from faraway, frozen Alaska added some heat to the tournament.
Without it, there would have been no overtime, no 75-68 victory, no third national title banner to hang in Allen Fieldhouse and definitely no relieved chants of “Rock Chalk Jayhawk” afterward.
And the 2008 tournament always would be remembered as the one with all the blowouts.
Instead, it will be thought of as the one where Chalmers saved his team, this season’s tournament and the sanity of all the Kansas fans who collectively exhaled and let out an eardrum-shattering scream as the ball ripped through the net.
It wasn’t a game-winner, but the air drained out of the Tigers as soon as that shot went through and dropped to the floor. A jolt rolled through the Kansas fans and surged to the dome floor.

caller.com


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