So close. Doggone Hansbrough. What do you call that shot anyway?
"Well we like to think that it is a jump hook, but it's not," North Carolina coach Roy Williams said. "Shot-put, jump hook, Hansbrough special, whatever you want to call it."
First of all, hand it to Hansbrough. That shot to put the Tar Heels up 4 with under a minute remaining was a heck of a shot. If there's anybody in this conference who can compete with Singletary's combination of ability and heart, it's Hansbrough.
Second, hand it to Virginia, even though silver lining is not a theme that Virginia coach Dave Leitao is too interested in talking about.
"To believe in anything like that means that I take a mentality of somebody that doesn't believe in winning," Leitao said. "Competitive sports is a cruel, cruel game. You win and you lose."
Fortunately, I am interested.
Ever heard an athlete say, "They just wanted it more?" No one can say that about Virginia's effort last night. The fact that it took a "Hansbrough special" to clinch the win for the Tar Heels is, if nothing else, a testament to this team's never-quit attitude.
Just when I said in a column in Monday's edition that no one but Singletary was doing anything on offense, the rest of the Cavs woke up. The usually passive Jeff Jones was playing aggressively. Mamadi Diane and Calvin Baker were taking it strong to the rack. Singletary was, of course, Singletary, but then again, that never changes.
And then there was Lars.
Just typing his name gets me fired up. The lively Lithuanian finally got into the action after sitting for most of the season with a shoulder injury. Honestly, I was expecting a pretty sluggish outing from Lars. If you've ever sat the bench with an injury for an extended period and tried to come back, you know how tough it is to regain your stride the first time out.
But from the time he took a charge on Hansbrough less than three minutes after he entered the game, it was clear that the livin'-large Lithuanian hadn't missed a beat. Lars made all the usual Lars plays; on top of the early charge, he hounded Hansbrough defensively and got a tip with the patented fist pump celebration. The lock-and-load Lithuanian even slipped in a Hansbrough-esque spin to the baseline for a bucket.
"It's all those Mighty Shakes," Mikalauskas said. "No, just kidding."
Where can I buy one of those?
The fans gave it up for him, as they should. And Lars loved it.
"It was great," he said. "At least I know they still like me after six weeks."
The crowd was as into this game as any home game this season, and it deserves as big a cheer as any that a Virginia player received. At 1-8 in the conference going into this game, the fans had every reason to quit. Over and over, fans have flocked to John Paul Jones Arena, and over and over, they have been disappointed by 1- and 2-point losses, overtime losses, and finally the culmination in the 31-point embarrassment to Clemson.
Yet, there was the 'Hoo Crew, bouncing up and down to the ritual playing of AC/DC's "Thunderstruck." There were the fans rising to their feet at key possessions in the second half. There was the band doing a jig during a timeout that got everybody into it.
And, Cavalier fans, now is not the time to stop. I'll be the first to admit that Virginia is going nowhere this season, but that doesn't mean the fans shouldn't hang with the Cavs.
Any sports fan will tell you, the good times are always sweeter when you've been there for the down years. For those of you fourth-year students who flocked to U-Hall in your first two years to watch Virginia get pummeled game-in and game-out, remember the excitement of last year's Tournament run? When the fans rushed the court last year after the home victory against Duke, was the celebration only a consequence of the outcome of that game? I don't buy that; it was something more. It was a culminating point of the team's rise from mediocrity.
And so it will be when Virginia rises from the doldrums once more, whether it's one, two, or five years from now.
So stick with 'em, Cavs fans. You can't get to the destination unless you're there for the journey.
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