First of all, I apologize for the prolonged absence. These have been a strange last few weeks, and I haven't really been in the mood for blogging. However, I AM in the mood to gush about my beloved Hoyas' win over Syracuse on Saturday! For those of you who are unaware, we beat the evil Orange 57-46 in the Carrier Dome, arguably one of the most hostile and toughest places to play. The win alone was enough for me, but the way we did it- a MONSTER game from Otto Porter, who proved in a big way with his 33-point effort that he deserves to be in contention for National Player of the Year- made it all that much sweeter. This rivalry, between my Hoyas and the Evil Empire that is, as Hoya fans call it, Southern Canada, is something for the ages, and part of me is kind of sad that that the dynamic of the rivalry will change once Cuse defects to the ACC at the end of the season.
In Casual Hoya's article "Reflections on 21 Casual Hours in Syracuse", I loved the following quote:
There were two moments that perhaps didn't make the broadcast, which graphically make this last point...The first happened while Thompson huddled with his other coaches comparing notes before talking to the players. Nate Lubick was passionately making some point to his teammates when he grabbed Thompson's whiteboard from a student manager. For the next 30 seconds or so, Nate drew up plays on the board while the rest of the players calmly listened and talked about whatever point Nate was trying to make. For the last 15 seconds, Thompson stood behind Nate and rather than interrupt to make his point, listened to Nate and his player's work through it. Nothing like that was happening on the Syracuse bench where the conversation was all one sided badgering.
I also imagine that this wouldn't have happened even three or four years ago on the Georgetown team. I just don't see Austin Freeman or any other of our high school all American recruits listening and working together the way this team did. Team chemistry may be intangible, but it is real and this team has it.It makes me smile to think that our players are so invested in being part of the process and helping each other succeed. With so many teams acting as mere yearlong stopovers for players whose aspirations lie in the NBA, our players prove day in and day out that they actually care about each other. Take Mikhail Hopkins, our deplorable center who was replaced by Moses Ayegba (rightly so) early in the first. Moses had the game of his life, and, even beyond Otto, players stepped up. There was one photo in particular, where Otto was fouled upon shooting a three, when you see Mikhail going NUTS. The fact that he can be excited for his teammates when he a) sucks, and b) had a terrible game, is really a testament to the program that we have been able to create.
via Casual Hoya
So there you have it. No matter how much I may complain about this team, I love them to pieces, especially when they show up for big games like this one. I can't wait for Syracuse Hate Week: Part 2, all leading up to the rematch at Verizon next Saturday, March 9th. You had better believe I'll be there!
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