Spring Break
Basketball Fever? Turn to college hoops this season
Issue date: 11/20/08
College basketball is also the sport where the term "upset" is best exemplified. The term is not used much in professional sports in general, where the idea that any team, no matter how strong, can beat any other team is not such a novel idea, since most teams have equal payrolls.
But in Division I college basketball, where there seems to be a direct link between the size of the student body and the strength of the basketball program, and where some programs are traditionally powerhouses year after year, upsets take on a new realm of excitement. This comes to a head during "March Madness," where teams from big and small schools alike are combined into a 65-field, one game elimination, winner-take-all tournament. Many consider this to be the most exciting playoff in sports, either college or professional (and certainly much better than the overly long and drawn out four best-of-seven game series NBA playoffs, which take more than two months to complete).
With every game, more is at stake in college basketball. Teams may only meet one another once a year, with only one opportunity to compete for a win. The NBA gives countless opportunities for teams to play each other. A loss is not as much of a blow because of the next playoff game or next month's match-up. College players have to fight more for their win, and the victory is so much sweeter, because it truly is a win. There is not another chance. There is only that moment in which the game is happening.
It's always fun to root for the underdog, and college basketball provides ample opportunities for that. Look no further than last year's "March Madness," where tiny Davidson College in North Carolina, (1,700 undergraduates), led by Stephen Curry, a 6-foot 2-inch, 175-pound sharpshooter who has the boyish looks of a middle schooler, knocked off West Coast Conference hegemon Gonzaga (4,515 undergraduates), traditional college basketball power Georgetown (6,853 undergraduates) and Big Ten champion Wisconsin (29,000 undergraduates). In their last game, with seconds to go, Davidson's three-pointer fell short against eventual champion Kansas (20,000 undergraduates).
But in Division I college basketball, where there seems to be a direct link between the size of the student body and the strength of the basketball program, and where some programs are traditionally powerhouses year after year, upsets take on a new realm of excitement. This comes to a head during "March Madness," where teams from big and small schools alike are combined into a 65-field, one game elimination, winner-take-all tournament. Many consider this to be the most exciting playoff in sports, either college or professional (and certainly much better than the overly long and drawn out four best-of-seven game series NBA playoffs, which take more than two months to complete).
With every game, more is at stake in college basketball. Teams may only meet one another once a year, with only one opportunity to compete for a win. The NBA gives countless opportunities for teams to play each other. A loss is not as much of a blow because of the next playoff game or next month's match-up. College players have to fight more for their win, and the victory is so much sweeter, because it truly is a win. There is not another chance. There is only that moment in which the game is happening.
It's always fun to root for the underdog, and college basketball provides ample opportunities for that. Look no further than last year's "March Madness," where tiny Davidson College in North Carolina, (1,700 undergraduates), led by Stephen Curry, a 6-foot 2-inch, 175-pound sharpshooter who has the boyish looks of a middle schooler, knocked off West Coast Conference hegemon Gonzaga (4,515 undergraduates), traditional college basketball power Georgetown (6,853 undergraduates) and Big Ten champion Wisconsin (29,000 undergraduates). In their last game, with seconds to go, Davidson's three-pointer fell short against eventual champion Kansas (20,000 undergraduates).
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