Lest we forget - 20 years ago

Unless or until (hopefully until) Illinois wins a national championship, this is the best sporting moment of my lifetime. I was sitting behind the basket where Deron Williams hit that tying 3. The explosion of noise when that ball went in the basket was something I will remember for the rest of my life.

When my brother and I left Allstate Arena, he could only say, "I feel like I played". We were exhausted, and we were only fans! I drove back to my parents house in the Quad Cities that night before heading back home the next morning, and I could not go to sleep until about 3 AM because I was so wound up even after driving 3 hours all by myself on I-88 (which many of us know is a desolate stretch of road).

I can only hope we get an experience like that - and maybe even better - sometime in my lifetime.

Side note - This photo of Bruce is Exhibit B of why coaches now enjoy the golf shirt/half zip/sneaker look so much more than the old suit and tie look. I know it was hot inside of Allstate Arena that night. I couldn't imagine what it felt like on the floor with the pressure of that game.

Exhibit A is pretty much any Sean Miller-era Arizona game. (I'll save everyone the "ick" factor of Sean completely sweating through his dress shirt.)

Other than being the greatest game I have ever seen, this game made me lose a lot of respect for the tallest player in Illinois history.

What shorts? I saw skorts.