NIT Basketball!

So, the Heels are in the NIT Semifinals which takes place at MSG on Tuesday night, and while I'm thrilled that they overachieved, I'm faced with a conundrum of sorts: to go, or not to go? Before I get into that, let me give you some background. This year has been particularly awful when it comes to following UNC, but not for the reason you might think. I'm not frustrated because they suck and I am upset about it, I'm frustrated because they suck and I can't get upset about it because they just won last year. If I started acting like a whiney bitch (as I normally would) after a season like this, I'd feel really lame; how often does a team put everything together and win a National Championship? In my case, I've been lucky enough to see them win twice in the last five years and see them come close another five times since I started following them in 1995. For most other schools, they might compete in a real way once every five years and win once every 20 years! Wouldn't they suffer a season like the '09-'10 Heels' to win a championship? Absolutely. I basically have to just accept everything that's happened and move on.



To give you an idea, UNC lost to Dook twice this year and I didn't want to jump out of the window before, during or after either of the games. Normally when the two teams play, I work myself up into a drunken frenzy by tipoff and then ratchet up the intensity exponentially as the game goes on. The game at Cameron Indoor Stadium (sixth circle of hell where the heretics think that Durham, NC is the center of the basketball universe) when they got absolutely wiped-out was off-puttingly ho-hum. Normally, I'd be catatonic after a loss like that and question why I watch sports and put myself through such torment, but not this time. I felt as if I was a neutral party watching Morgan St. get whooped by Kentucky. There were times when I would space-out and think things like, "Wow, Jon Scheyer has a quick release," and "Nolan Smith can make it in the NBA," and "Hey, Kyle Singler look like the little kid from About A Boy!" What the hell is that all about? Normally when I see a white guy on Duke all I see are pasty bodies riddled with zits that couldn't turn the corner on a stationary rubber cone. Now I was actually admiring their "skill" and commenting on how they look like endearing British child actors? What's happening to me???


I went to the Coaches vs. Cancer tournament at MSG earlier this year before I lost my mojo. It was the start of a new season, the Heels were supposed to have reloaded after losing their four best players last year and were expected to make yet another deep tournament run. I was cautiously optimistic; they were young and most of their guys were unproven (guess what, they still are!), but they did have those two enigmatic temptresses: size/length and talent/athleticism. The one thing the pundits (and I) either forgot, didn't realize or chose to ignore is that UNC's point guard was Larry Drew II. If you want to witness a train wreck, there are two ways you can do it: watch the movie WANTED, or watch Larry Drew II. (With WANTED you'll actually get a two-for-one since the movie is atrocious and there is a scene where a train actually gets, well, wrecked.) Drew II plays the position like it's rugby, careening into the waiting arms of seven-foot giants with wreckless abandon often finding himself left with fewer outs than Worm at the end of Rounders.


Anyway, the Heels started Coaches vs Cancer vs Ohio St. (a nationally ranked team with the 2nd best player in the country), dominating the first 35 minutes of the game before nearly blowing a double-digit lead in the last five minutes. It was an alarming sign that they couldn't close it out, but I was just drunk enough to not notice and was looking forward to their next game which was against Syracuse. Let me tell you, it is not going to be fun reliving that experience over the next five minutes. I had to sit there watching UNC get abused like an altar boy with a close friend of mine who grew up in Syracuse (middle finger if you are reading this) in a venue that was filled with Syracuse fans. The place was racously giddy; it was as if they'd been told that they were all going to get to sleep with the entire Victoria's Secret lineup after the game. As for myself, I felt like I was going to die in that place. I would compare it to the eighth circle of hell (Fraud), since I was supporting a team trying to pass itself off as a contender. I got beer poured on me (accident after Cuse's 23rd three-pointer) and felt like I deserved it for wearing powder blue. I had Syracuse fans who had mocked me for two hours actually feel bad for me by the end because I looked like I was going to start crying (didn't want their pity). If I had gotten punched in the face, I would have bowed my head and accepted it. It was one of the low points of my (sports) life and the weird thing is that I would give a whole lot to care that much again. I can't even tell that it's March because my fist hasn't had a single close encounter with a brick wall yet.


The Syracuse game was a microcosm of their entire season as they finished with a .500 record, missed the NCAAs for the first time in seven years and were seeded fourth in their region for the NIT (puke). Talk about falling from grace. So here I am, with UNC having come full-circle returning to The Garden for the NIT Final Four on Tuesday. Their run through the ranks of NCAA Tournament rejects has been somewhat inspiring. The fact that Roy Williams didn't let them mail-it-in and is using this to build back their pride/self-confidence is a breath of fresh air. So the question now, as I asked earlier is, to go, or not to go? Despite their mini resurgence, I still find it hard to feel much of anything at this point. How do I root for them to win the NIT? It would almost mock what they acheived last year and most of all, it would frustrate me that they didn't beat these types of teams during the regular season. I find it hard to believe that they put it all together in time for one last run at the consolation prize. Am I supposed to invest time, money and my emotional stability for the N-I-fucking-T? On the other hand, how do I not go out and support these guys that I (used to) care too much about when they are playing in my backyard? This decision is a defining moment for me and I am not sure that there is a right or wrong choice. I have just under one week to decide, but just in case I decide to put myself back out there, does anyone want to be my wingman/sponsor?