Four … Three…Two…One… And I was There
Villanova's Kris Jenkins shoots the game-winning three-point basket over North Carolina on Monday, April 4, 2016, at NRG Stadium in Houston. (Yong Kim/Philadelphia Inquirer/TNS)
On Monday April 4, 2016, I went to the March Madness championship game in Houston Texas.
My family has always gone to this event. My dad used to go with his dad and now he takes us with him to these great games. He says we go for the games, but it is also a chance to get an experience about the places we go.
Villanova was the second seed in the South part of the bracket. North Carolina was the No. 1 one seed in the East part of the bracket and the No. 2 seed overall. After the number one seed Kansas unexpectedly lost to Villanova everyone was sure that North Carolina was going to win.
Here I am in the stands with a friend from England. And I thought I made a long trip.
In the final four, North Carolina defeated Syracuse by 17 points and Villanova crushed Oklahoma by 45 points. We watched these games on Saturday and they were boring. I spent more time talking to a friend and running around the stadium during the game than watching the action on the court. Yawn.
So, the day of the finals started much better. My dad made us dress up and then look through garbage to get special discarded passes to sneak into a concert with Maroon 5 and PitBull. Yes, it was so worth it.
But back to the big game. Everyone was expecting North Carolina to win the championship, but Villanova fans had high hopes. The first three minutes of the game stayed 0 to 0 and then after that, it was basket after basket, tied u,then one team in front, then the other.
Towards the middle of the second half, Villanova went ahead by 10 points. Soon it was 71 to 74 with 24 seconds left. I just wanted to know what was going to happen, but the coaches kept making timeouts. Finally the last 10 seconds. North Carolina scored a 3-pointer to tie it up with just four seconds left to go.
I can still see it in my mind. The high scorer on Villanova, Ryan Arcidiacono, had the ball and was ready to take the shot. Everyone was hopeful that his last shot would go in, but then he made the selfless move to pass it to Kris Jenkins. Kris Jenkins, a junior from Upper Marlboro, Md. Everyone dreams to have a shot at the exact buzzer, the final second when it all comes down to just one moment, and Kris Jenkins had it.
He then made the shot, and everyone went crazy!
North Carolina fans started crying, Villanova fans started throwing the seat covers from the stands, and at that moment I realized I just witnessed one of the best buzzer beaters in college basketball history.
