Wednesday, April 06, 2005

Congrats To UNC

Congratulations to North Carolina for winning the title last night, in an exciting game. The difference was coaching. Roy Williams had his team prepared to come out and dictate the flow of the game and they did it. Illinois could only muster a few short bursts here and there, while the Tar Heels met every attempted run with stiff resistance.

You could play this game 20 times and probably see it split pretty even. But on this night, the experienced coach had the upper hand. If I were Weber, I would have taken the ball at Felton just as soon as he picked up #4, to try and get him out of there. I believe Williams would have, if the roles had been reversed.

We can prognosticate all we want. The major factors that affected the outcome of this game were:

1. Preparation and Game Plan. Williams got them ready to overpower and overrun the Illini. They put them on their heels and they never seemed to be able to get any momentum going.

2. Illinois had no answer for May. Sean May put forth the kind of performance his father once did. But the question being asked now is will he be a star or a role player in the pros?

3. NC's Defense and Transition Game. They executed it, Illinois didn't.

For now, NC Reigns. But rest assured, Illinois will be back next year and will be in contention for another shot at the title. So will others.

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