No, I am not an alumni of the University of Kansas. And no, I've never been a resident of the state of Kansas. But I bleed Crimson and Blue. I adhere to the doctrines of Naismith and Allen; and I study the art of Self respect. For it is true what Hampton Stevens recently reported: "To grow up a Jayhawk is to grow up indoctrinated. It's like being raised in a strict fundamentalist church—but the only fundamentals that matter are footwork, hustle, shot selection, and knowing how to guard the pick-and-roll." So to me, Kansas basketball is not only a team, but a way of life. (I can already see my girlfriend rolling her eyes when she reads this but it is what it is.) And when the season comes to a close prematurely, it's like losing a dear friend.
So today as I sit in my house writing this, after what felt like a slap in the face when #11 seed VCU upset the #1 seed Kansas Jayhawks by 10 points, I am processing the loss. I must grieve over a season that I poured my heart and soul into. Surprisingly, only an hour after the upset, I find myself reaching the stage of acceptance on the Kübler-Ross model. Partly because I went through the other four stages during the game itself. First came anger: I was frustrated by KU's inability to play solid defense, the one-sided calling from the referees, and the uncharacteristically poor shooting percentage by the Jayhawks (.355). Then when the second half came around I was in denial when Kansas cut the VCU lead down to 4 points. And when the Rams continued to make their three's I was bargaining: Just let us play our very best and we can win this thing. And as the final minute rolled around I was hit hard with depression. I watched time expire and the weight of our loss left me short of breath. So how is it that only an hour afterwards, I am able to accept such a loss? Easy, I saw it coming.
Now to the Jayhawk faithful, please refrain from defriending me on Facebook, or worse cursing me for betraying the Jayhawks like I'm Roy Williams headed for North Carolina. You can rest assured that I had Kansas winning it all in every bracket I made. I'm only saying, I saw it coming because we did not do as our beloved coach told us over and over again: PLAY DEFENSE. Just the other day Self admitted that our team this year might be the worst team, defensively, he's coached at Kansas. So that, coupled with our arrogance, kept me from denying the reality that we could fall. I was not about ready to let myself be as vulnerable as I was when Kansas played UNI. No one can deny that the lost last year makes our loss in the Elite 8 so much easier to swallow. I LOVE my Jayhawks. Believe me, I missed maybe 4 games all season long. But I couldn't disagree with my coach who's motto has always been "Defense wins Championships." And who can argue with a coach like Bill Self... honestly.
So now, I will look forward to the coming weeks to see if any of our boys decide to enter the draft or stick it out for another year. I will undoubtably miss Tyrel Reed, Mario Little, and (I can't believe I'm admitting this) Uncle Brady. But a new era must dawn where 25 year old Morningstar is no longer wearing a Jersey. And I will no doubt miss the Twins if they go to the draft and anyone else who transfers, gets drafted or what have you. But next year holds new possibilities, new challenges, and new players. So I hang my hat for now and say goodbye the game I love so much (no, I'm not done watching basketball for the season, but from my perspective Kansas IS Basketball, so what's the difference). I anxiously await the arrival of November 15th when Kansas meets Kentucky in the Champions Classic on the first day of the 2011-2012 season... until then, I'll have to find a new obsession.
No comments:
Post a Comment