NEWARK, N.J.–The journey for the three seniors on Ohio State’s team was supposed to end with cutting down the nets in Houston. Instead, it came to a sudden halt in Newark, N.J. as Kentucky’s game-winning shot with 5.4 seconds left dashed the Buckeyes’ hopes of a national championship.
“You never think about it ending,” said David Lighty, a Villa-Angela St. Joseph’s graduate. “Especially the way that it did.”
Sometimes it’s easy to overlook the recent success of Ohio sports. People have grown accustomed to the championships, post-season runs and individual accolades, almost to the extent that we take them for granted.
Bobcats fans have been spoiled lately.
The past four years have truly been a golden era for Ohio Athletics. With post-season berths, national attention and individuals going on to play professionally, the Bobcats have enjoyed team and individual success on an unprecedented level for Ohio athletics.
It started with a surprising overtime victory in Muncie, Ind. It ended with cutting down the nets in Cleveland.
In between, there was plenty of excitement, as the Ohio men’s basketball team carved its way through the Mid-American Conference Tournament and punched its ticket to the Big Dance for the first time since 2005. Ohio is slated to play Georgetown in the Midwest Bracket on Thursday. Ohio is a 14th seed while Georgetown, which lost the Big East final in a heartbreaker to West Virginia on Saturday, is a third seed.
John Groce knew the kid had talent.
He had the raw skills — shooting, ball handling, quickness — but his understanding of the game caught the attention of Ohio’s basketball coach. It took only a couple of quarters, but as Groce watched from the high-school bleachers of an Illinois gym, he saw something special in the smooth point guard from Seton Academy.
Lawrence Borha could do nothing but watch and wait. With his Utah Utes tied against TCU in the final seconds of the Mountain West Conference tournament quarterfinals, Borha camped out in the corner and waited for a chance.
The Utes’ Luka Drca dribbled at the top of the key, letting the clock tick down to about 10 seconds, then started his drive to the hoop. As Drca made his move to the basket, everyone collapsed on the ball.
Lawrence Borha could do nothing but watch and wait. With his Utah Utes tied against TCU in the final seconds of the Mountain West Conference tournament quarterfinals, Borha camped out in the corner and waited for a chance.
The Utes’ Luka Drca dribbled at the top of the key, letting the clock tick down to about 10 seconds, then started his drive to the hoop. As Drca made his move to the basket, everyone collapsed on the ball.
As the final buzzer sounded in Heritage’s 68-57 victory over Dominion Thursday night, the Pride briefly celebrated their accomplishment as home fans began chanting “district champs.”
Winning the AA Dulles District championship is nothing new to Heritage, which has captured the crown for three consecutive seasons. But Thursday’s win makes the Pride the first team to three-peat in the history of the district.
Dominion’s Deandre Albritton proved why he is one of the top players in the area on Thursday night.
Trailing Freedom by one with 2.2 seconds left, Dominion had enough time for one more play. Everybody in the gym knew who was taking the last shot.
I have a background in sports media and marketing and I work on the digital team of the Baltimore Ravens. I’ve spent nearly a decade in the NFL, focused on building and expanding the team brand through digital and social media.
Cavs give fans what they always wanted
CLEVELAND–This was what Cleveland fans wanted all along.
Hustle. Energy. Hard fouls.
It all showed something that Cavs fans didn’t see during that first game against LeBron James and the Miami Heat. Heart.