Be it Cinderella refusing to leave the ball early or a high-seed rescuing its season from epic disaster at the hands of a mid or low-major, memorable finishes reside in NCAA lore forever.
Following a first half in which Villanova only trailed 8-5 because it won the faceoff battle (9-5), the third quarter belonged to Syracuse as they ran past the ‘Cats to go up 11-6 entering the final period.
Once again the Orange took the field in front of a national television audience against a team with a big ranking and looked dominant, dispatching Notre Dame, 10-4, Saturday night at Met Life Stadium.
Just like that, we thought watching the scene, 34 years in the Big East, 31 years of tournament games at Madison Square Garden was officially over, and we’ve been part, in some way shape or form, of everyone one of them, but it’s ended.
A complete and total meltdown is the easiest way to describe what happened on Saturday night in the Big East Tournament championship game at Madison Square Garden in New York.
Despite Syracuse playing its worst half of basketball in four days, head coach Jim Boeheim still left New York (for the final time) pleased with his team.
Less than eight minutes later, the Cardinals turned that 16 point deficit into a 56-48 lead, thanks to a 27-3 run and a mercilessly attacking full court press. Louisville would go on to a 78-61 win, their third Big East title since 2009.