The best game you've ever covered ...

it was 1989, Patriots vs. the Raiders. I saw Bo Jackson run 99 yards to the other end of the field before turning around and running back to his own end zone. Then run another 99 yards to a touchdown. What a great game!

 

Damn Moddy, how could you forget Tate George? I was the only kid in Connecticut rooting against the Huskies. I was pisssssssssed when that shot went thru the hoop. My dad was going bonkers. That shot made Tate a couple million dollars. He was drafted by--appropriately--the Nets that spring. His profile wasn't nearly as high before the shot.

I thought Laettner's shot was a 15-foot or so leaner. And didn't Tate come this close to making a steal that would have ended the game immediately before Laettner's winning shot? I thought Tate fell out of bounds or lost the ball out of bounds and that's why Duke got the ball one more time.

I was doing some kind of volunteer work at a nursing home for that game. You never heard a place go so silent so fast as you did when Laettner's shot went thru the net.

And I think Laettner was a sophomore. That was 1990 and he was a senior when he beat Kentucky in 1992.

 

That was an amazing pass. Almost as amazing as the fact Grant Hill did almost the exact same thing two years later, albeit with an extra second-plus on the clock.

I hate Duke and, particularly, Laettner with just about every fiber of my being, but that four-year run with Laettner was amazing. Final Four in 1989 (when they blew a huge lead against Seton Hall in the semis), got waxed by UNLV in the 1990 final, beat unbeaten and seemingly impenetrable UNLV in the Final Four and then beat Kansas in 1991 (making this UNC fan incredibly pissed...first that Kansas beat UNC and then that the rat bastards won it all) and beat Michigan in the 1992 final. Not sure you'll ever see a run like that again, at least with one player as the focal point.

(thanks to the birdie who pointed out Michigan only lost to Duke once)

 

I never thought he'd amount to shit, but I freely admit my judgment was clouded by all-consuming hatred.

He did make the All-Star team once. So yay, him.

I thought Hurley would be a solid pro if not for his near-death experience.

 

Parks was definitely after Laettner. And he was definitely a stiff. And quite quirky for a pukie. His sister was in a band called Nashville Pussy and Parks ended up having some kind of funky haircut as a pro.

It wasn't just the success that Laettner enjoyed that made him eminently hateable. He was a punk (see his punkout of Rod Sellers in the 1991 tourney and Sellers' subsequent chest stomp, which is still one of the most popular photos in Connecticut) and he seemed to whine all the goddamn time. And he was a Dukie. And fuck, he was clutch. Never missed when it counted.

 

Not so much with a late shot or anything, but Krum vs. Italy in a 1998 Texas 2A regional hoop semi. Krum (the 1996 and 1994 state champ) beats Italy (1997 champ) 77-74. Krum fell behind 17-5 and then outscored Italy 72-57 the rest of the way. Committed 32 turnovers -- but shot 65 percent from the field. Italy kid had the coolest triple-double ever: 12 points, 10 assists, 10 steals. Another Italy kid had 32 points and 15 boards. Krum went on to win it all for the third time in five years.

Also, state swim meet a couple years back. The school I was covering had its medley relay DQed. It then proceeded to climb all the way back to the point where all it had to do was win the last relay. My team won the last relay to win the whole damned meet by one point. Hell of a comeback.

 

I don't know if it's the greatest I've covered, but it was great in how unusual it was ...

In last year's MVC Tournament, Indiana State scored 10 points and shot 15 percent in the first half against Drake. In the second half, Indiana State scored 62 points and shot 77 percent to come back and win.

Indiana State set the MVC tournament record for most and least points scored in a half in the same game, as well as lowest and highest shooting percentage for a half.

Needless to say, my halftime lede was toast.