college basketball

camera (the lights) everywhere ~


flags...wish 2008 one was up there~





camera everywhere.. at a point whenever the camera went, the cheers start..


hard to take a decent picture of anything.. tried a dozen modes..


weird camera mode.. really in carolina blue aint it.. the entire stadium was essentially in blue anyways, blue bathroom doors, blue seats and cushions, blue flags hanging everywhere...


the carolina blue ice cream~


the dean dome

the thing about sports, even if you don't play it, even if you can't understand all the rules (the fouls never make much sense to you), even if you don't have that gift to take part in the magic, even if you don't watch it being play on tv/live... it has this natural ability to make you feel this sense of belonging, to make you feel like you are part of something bigger and stronger than who you really are...

I have been a proud supporter of manchester united since the treble (if you are a fan, you know when that is, if you are not, then forget it...) and it is NOT because of db.. gosh... before he was sold, I was so sick of trying to tell people that he is not the reason I like manchester... he was the reason why I noticed the team and come on, after the world cup 98 and the treble later on, it's hard not to know who the red devils are..

I have been with them so much , through the best, the worst, the ugly, the disappointment, the frustration, the anxiety, the glory, the honour, the pain, the saddness. The arrival of promise(wayne, ronaldo, nani, anderson, erwin), the departure of legends (ole, roy, ruud (?), teddy, cole, yoke, peter), the blossoming of legacy (wayne, ronaldo), the disappearance of favourites (db, nicky, neville), the anger of new owners (malcolm), the speculations of retirement, the upsetting of morale, the plunging in faith, the vanishing sense of hope, the generation of hype for more silverware.. I have been through all of that and more..half way around the globe...

I am not raised there, not seen the old trafford, not been any where near the theatre of dreams... just like how it is not all the players' boyhood dreams to play there, not the first club they have been with and yet they play with all their pride...and I support with all my might..

college basketball is some thing the US students are more interested in than the soccer.. and somehow, I think I am beginning to see why..

the more I see it, the more different these 2 are.. closer to the values I hold, college basketball is (sounds like yoda for a second there... don't I...lol if you get what I mean *nudge, nudge, smile, smiles*)

that place is not just the place they play for, it is not just a team, it is more than that, a community, a school for the boys, the place they live, spent most of the time at, the place they make friends, have meals, study, have fun, practice together.. Unlike football clubs, the college means more to them in these 3/4 years..

now for the game review...

the game ended horribly.. it was a playing catchup all along(yes since the 1st sec) there was bad defense (sometimes none to speak of) there was bad attacking (even if the nine hundredth times showed that their 3-pointers were all off, the turn overs are not working, kanas defense were much tighter and more effective, the lose balls were punishing them too heavily, the jumpshots are their best chance, the fouls are not the way to win a game, at least not against a strong, admirable team that plays rough, tough and dirty)

yes, it was all that, not forgetting the(probably)1st in history 28 points gap (at least in NC's tournement this season), the sloppy first half and last several minutes of 2nd half..

I am a fan, but I am not blind, not in the eyes, nor in the mind or heart.. I judge, I criticise, I speak poorly of my team's performances.. but I never give up on them, never lose my faith in them, never lose hope, never abandon them nor ditch them in troubled times.. because I know the team I chose to fall in love with and support is more than that.. we crawled our way back from the 1st half to a really close 4 points gap.. but could never get close enough to kill the game eventually..

it was sad, disappointing and the atmosphere was immediate.. those who left early, the dejected that slowly streamed out of the dean's dome, the angry shouting afterwards.. it is heart-wrenching to say the least, like all loss are... but we win some, we lose some, just that some losses are worst, more heavily penalty than others, more heart breaking...

it must be harder on the players.. cause we cursed, we swore, we blamed, we cried at the injust, shouted at the fouls, cheered at the goals, grinced at the lack of defense.. and they? they are right in the middle of all of these... and it must be hard on individuals like hansbrough, green and ginyard.. to have it all, to earn all the credits, the praise, the tropheys, the mvps, the cheers and yet lose in the big games, to not win the vital match, to not be able to celebrate the ulitmate glory as a player with his team..

just like how roy, ole, scholes, beckham, giggs never won with their country, just like how zidane never got that world cup in his last year...all great players have that moment of anguish.. but I wish only the best for the boys...

had to go watch some clips of man u matches so i dont get too upset... need something to cheer me up... other than a finance project or problem set..