@packers

4mo

Wichita State Basketball 2013-2014 (Part 1)

Leading up to Wichita State’s historic seasons in 2013 and 2014, they won the NIT Championship in 2011, beating Alabama, but lost in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in a 5v12 upset to VCU. Heading into the 2013 NCAA Tournament, they were a 9 seed having just lost to Creighton in the MVC conference tournament. Nobody really had much expectations for this team, led by Carl Hall, Cleanthony Early, Ron Baker, and a young Fred VanVleet, many people thought this team would at most only win a game then lose to the #1 seed Gonzaga Bulldogs, who only lost twice all season and went undefeated in the WCC. They were also led by future NBA player Kelly Olynyk. Wichita State would beat Pittsburgh, who was a solid 8 seed, then upset Gonzaga. 9 seeds beating 1 seeds is very rare, as only 8 have been able to do it (2 of them beat 16 seeds). They would get lucky and play LaSalle in the sweet 16, who went on a Cinderella run as a 13 seed. Then they would shock the world and knock off 2 seeded Ohio State to make it to their first Final Four since 1965 and their second ever. Although they did lose to Louisville in a heartbreaker (who later got their championship vacated by the ncaa), the future looked bright for this team as they returned most of their impactful players, only losing Carl Hall. Fred VanVleet also developed into a leading role on the team. Many people expected this team to do well in 2014, but not as well as they did. They would finish the season perfect, going 33-0 and winning their conference tournament. Many people were skeptical about how far this team could make it in the tournament however because of their strength of schedule. Playing in the MVC, you aren’t going to be playing the greatest opponents. Their best win was Tennessee, who was an 11 seed that made the sweet 16 that year. They still got the 1 seed though. I think them making the final four the year before definitely helped. They would destroy the 16 seed Cal Poly and then lose to Kentucky.

CBB

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Small but Mighty

In the game of basketball you are often judged on your hight. In today’s collage basketball, If your under 6’1 your considered a small guard who is going to have to fight for every minute and every shot. Well, in 2017 a man named Darnell Rogers joined Florida Gulf Coast University for the 2017-2018 season. Darnell Rogers came in as a major underdog, he stood at 5’2 140 pounds. As you might expect, he saw very little playing time throughout his freshman year at FGC. So he hit the portal and went up to Maryland to UMBC. He would stay at UMBC for his remaining three years in college. He would continue to prove everyone wrong averaging up to 14 points, 3.4 rebounds, 4.3 assists, 0.7 steals, and 0.0 blocks in 2019-2020 season. At the end of his career he averaged 8.6 points, 2.4 assists and 1.5 rebounds. Roger’s faced a greater challenge from the start, a challenge many face but little persevere. He faced and beat the battle of hight in Division One basketball. It goes to show that no matter how big and strong you are as long as you work hard and stay consistent you can get your flowers.

@zach

UConn Sweeps Top 3 of WNBA Draft: Today in Sports History

On April 14th, 2016, Breanna Stewart lead a UConn sweep of the first three picks in the WNBA draft, going first overall to the Seattle Storm. Moriah Jefferson went second to the San Antonio Stars (now the Las Vegas Aces) and Morgan Tuck third to the Connecticut Sun, the first time in draft history that three players from the same school went 1-2-3. It’s a first in any major sport. Stewart is now a 2x WNBA MVP, 3x WNBA Champion, 2x Finals MVP, 7x All-Star, 6x All-WNBA First Team member, 2016 ROTY, and is considered one of the Top 25 WNBA players of all-time. Jefferson made the 2016 All-Rookie team and finished as the ROTY runner-up behind Stewart. She's become a career journeyman, playing for five teams since 2020. Tuck didn't do much in the WNBA, but won the 2020 WNBA championship with Seattle. She is currently the general manager of the Connecticut Sun.

@FlameRaptorRaven

What does this Final Four appearance mean to Arizona?

With their win over Purdue, Arizona returns to the Final Four for the first time since 2001. Future NBA all-stars and podcast hosts Gilbert Arenas and Richard Jefferson led that 2001 team. They eventually made it to the championship game, where they lost to Shane Battier and Duke. That is their most recent appearance in the championship game and 1 of just 4 times Arizona has ever made the final. The Wildcats have exactly 1 National Championship, thanks to the 1996-97 team that included Jason Terry, Mike Bibby, Michael Dickerson, and Miles Simon. To this day, that is Arizona’s only National Championship, and it is not for lack of trying. Out of every D1 men’s basketball team, Arizona has the 5th most wins in its entire history. The only schools ahead of them: Kentucky, North Carolina, Kansas and Duke. That’s it. UConn, UCLA, Florida and every other school sit behind them. If we close the timeline to since their National Championship, it's a similar story. They are 6th, only behind the aforementioned schools plus Gonzaga. On top of all this, before the Elite 8, Arizona had the most wins ever in 5 years without a Final Four appearance. Now they have a Final 4 appearance. Arizona’s journey isn’t about overcoming deficiencies. It’s about proving they belong with the elites of college basketball. For decades, they have won as many games as the best programs in the country; all they’re missing is the sheer number of titles. Each team ahead of them in wins during the shot clock era has multiple National Championships. If the Wildcats can cross the finish line this year, they will put themselves in rare air. Only 3 teams in NCAA history have finished a season with 38 wins: 2008 Memphis with Derrick Rose, 2012 Kentucky with Anthony Davis, and 2015 Kentucky with Karl-Anthony Towns. Of those teams, only the 2012 Kentucky team won its national championship. Arizona currently has 36 wins. With everything Tommy Lloyd has accomplished, getting over the Sweet 16 hump could be the catalyst for a return to glory and a place among the greatest teams ever.