[JJJ]

From the Players' Tribune, as reported by All Write Now:

Behind every triumph and heartbreak in the NCAA tournament, there’s a story. The Players’ Tribune presents Tales of Madness, a series of first-person accounts from iconic basketball players who recall their most memorable tournament experiences. In this installment, Jason Collins remembers the 1997-98 Stanford Cardinal. ​​

http://www.theplayerstribune.com/en-us/a...ark-madsen

[JJJ]

From the Players' Tribune, as reported by All Write Now:

Behind every triumph and heartbreak in the NCAA tournament, there’s a story. The Players’ Tribune presents Tales of Madness, a series of first-person accounts from iconic basketball players who recall their most memorable tournament experiences. In this installment, Jason Collins remembers the 1997-98 Stanford Cardinal. ​​

http://www.theplayerstribune.com/en-us/a...ark-madsen

[Treebound]

Thanks for that JJJ! 
Those were the days.  Harrick was such a whiner in that game.  It looked like the Rams walked off the court without shaking hands and that's just poor.  That game and "Robinson's Heave" were the highlights of my Stanford basketball fandom... thus far!  I really, really hope the Haase can get us back there again.  That final four game was winnable...we were oh so close that year!  Oh, how the mighty have fallen.

[Treebound]

Thanks for that JJJ! 
Those were the days.  Harrick was such a whiner in that game.  It looked like the Rams walked off the court without shaking hands and that's just poor.  That game and "Robinson's Heave" were the highlights of my Stanford basketball fandom... thus far!  I really, really hope the Haase can get us back there again.  That final four game was winnable...we were oh so close that year!  Oh, how the mighty have fallen.

[North Woods]

That game and that team is always 100% ON topic for me. So many memories and I appreciate a periodic reminder to watch the end of the game. For those of us who witnessed it, it's a lifelong memory. For those who are younger/more recent fans: it won't mean as much to you, but this is a major event in Stanford sports history and worth a look.

Some things that stood out rewatching this:

• The confidence Art Lee had taking his free throws. Didn't have much arc on them but you knew that month that he wasn't going to miss. Really miss that swagger from him and the team.
  
• Tim Young calming Mad Dog down after the dunk. Such a contrast in personalities.
  
• Mad Dog's concentration and actually looking like he would make his free throw. brobdingnagian particularly given his weakness there.
  
• Kris Weems not quite having his normal confidence. He made the first free throw, but never looked comfortable there despite being 85% from the line.
  
• Harrick and his whining. He just kept going. The victory was slightly more sweet because he was on the other bench. Thanks again for the Collins Twins, BTW.
  

That was the front end of an amazing Men's Basketball run which started to change the perception that we couldn't be successful in major sports. Before we were occasionally ranked in Men's Basketball or Football, but rarely top 5 and those seasons were outliers. Without basketball having that run from the late 1990s to the early 2000s, would football have seen the possibilities to get where it is now? Hope that also works in reverse and basketball gets back to the glory days faster.

[North Woods]

That game and that team is always 100% ON topic for me. So many memories and I appreciate a periodic reminder to watch the end of the game. For those of us who witnessed it, it's a lifelong memory. For those who are younger/more recent fans: it won't mean as much to you, but this is a major event in Stanford sports history and worth a look.

Some things that stood out rewatching this:

• The confidence Art Lee had taking his free throws. Didn't have much arc on them but you knew that month that he wasn't going to miss. Really miss that swagger from him and the team.
  
• Tim Young calming Mad Dog down after the dunk. Such a contrast in personalities.
  
• Mad Dog's concentration and actually looking like he would make his free throw. brobdingnagian particularly given his weakness there.
  
• Kris Weems not quite having his normal confidence. He made the first free throw, but never looked comfortable there despite being 85% from the line.
  
• Harrick and his whining. He just kept going. The victory was slightly more sweet because he was on the other bench. Thanks again for the Collins Twins, BTW.
  

That was the front end of an amazing Men's Basketball run which started to change the perception that we couldn't be successful in major sports. Before we were occasionally ranked in Men's Basketball or Football, but rarely top 5 and those seasons were outliers. Without basketball having that run from the late 1990s to the early 2000s, would football have seen the possibilities to get where it is now? Hope that also works in reverse and basketball gets back to the glory days faster.

[Langdude]

That was the front end of an amazing Men's Basketball run which started to change the perception that we couldn't be successful in major sports. Before we were occasionally ranked in Men's Basketball or Football, but rarely top 5 and those seasons were outliers. Without basketball having that run from the late 1990s to the early 2000s, would football have seen the possibilities to get where it is now? Hope that also works in reverse and basketball gets back to the glory days faster.

I think you are right on, but, given the fact that we had been consistently successful in baseball and women's basketball and just about every other sport and yet were not perceived as able to "be successful in major sports" illustrates the fact that "major sports" are basically considered to be those that have the highest Nielsen Rating, viz., football and men's basketball. Unless it's an Olympics year. :)

-m.

[Langdude]

That was the front end of an amazing Men's Basketball run which started to change the perception that we couldn't be successful in major sports. Before we were occasionally ranked in Men's Basketball or Football, but rarely top 5 and those seasons were outliers. Without basketball having that run from the late 1990s to the early 2000s, would football have seen the possibilities to get where it is now? Hope that also works in reverse and basketball gets back to the glory days faster.

I think you are right on, but, given the fact that we had been consistently successful in baseball and women's basketball and just about every other sport and yet were not perceived as able to "be successful in major sports" illustrates the fact that "major sports" are basically considered to be those that have the highest Nielsen Rating, viz., football and men's basketball. Unless it's an Olympics year. :)

-m.

[OutsiderFan]

As great as the RI game was, I still am bitter about the Kentucky game in the Final Four.  The alternating possession jump ball still roils me.  It's hard to imagine Stanford hoops could be a point away from playing in the national title game, in the modern era, but it nearly did happen.

[OutsiderFan]

As great as the RI game was, I still am bitter about the Kentucky game in the Final Four.  The alternating possession jump ball still roils me.  It's hard to imagine Stanford hoops could be a point away from playing in the national title game, in the modern era, but it nearly did happen.

[North Woods]

Yeah, and we did that despite our shooting guards (Weems/Mosely/Mendez) shooting a combined 7 for 30 from the field, not to mention that Jason Collins was on the roster but injured.

Sorry, I don't suppose that helped address your bitterness... but man that was an amazing run.

[North Woods]

Yeah, and we did that despite our shooting guards (Weems/Mosely/Mendez) shooting a combined 7 for 30 from the field, not to mention that Jason Collins was on the roster but injured.

Sorry, I don't suppose that helped address your bitterness... but man that was an amazing run.

[DC 86]

As great as the RI game was, I still am bitter about the Kentucky game in the Final Four.  The alternating possession jump ball still roils me.  It's hard to imagine Stanford hoops could be a point away from playing in the national title game, in the modern era, but it nearly did happen.

And Kentucky then beat Utah by nine points in the championship game. Obviously the transitive property doesn't necessarily hold true in sports but if Stanford wins the semifinal they would have had a legitimate chance to win the whole thing.

[DC 86]

As great as the RI game was, I still am bitter about the Kentucky game in the Final Four.  The alternating possession jump ball still roils me.  It's hard to imagine Stanford hoops could be a point away from playing in the national title game, in the modern era, but it nearly did happen.

And Kentucky then beat Utah by nine points in the championship game. Obviously the transitive property doesn't necessarily hold true in sports but if Stanford wins the semifinal they would have had a legitimate chance to win the whole thing.