Kentucky beats Kansas for NCAA crown 67-59
Expectations met: Kentucky was the favorite all year long. Led by freshman phenom and national player of the year Anthony Davis, the Wildcats rose to the challenge and are bringing the national title back to the Bluegrass State. The Final Four of 2012: Ohio State, Louisville, Kentucky, and Kansas NEW ORLEANS (AP)—No matter where Anthony Davis and his buddies go to make their millions, their ol’ Kentucky home will long remember this championship season. The Wildcats hit the jackpot with their lottery picks Monday night, ignoring Davis’ bad shooting night and parlaying a roster full of NBA talent into a 67-59 victory over Kansas for the team’s eighth national title—and its first since 1998. The one-and-doners did it in a wire-to-wire victory—a little dicey at the end—to cap a season in which anything less than bringing a title back to the Bluegrass State would have been a downer. They led coach John Calipari to his first title in four trips to the Final Four with three different schools.
“This is not about me. This is about these 13 players,” Calipari said. “This is about the Big Blue Nation.” Doron Lamb, a sophomore with first-round-draft-pick possibilities, led the Wildcats (38-2) with 22 points, including back-to-back 3-pointers that put them up by 16 with 10 minutes left. The Jayhawks (32-7), kings of the comeback all season, fought to the finish and trimmed that deficit to five with 1:37 left. But Kentucky made five free throws down the stretch to seal the win. Davis’ fellow lottery prospect, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, was another headliner, creating space for himself to score all 11 of his points in the first half. Davis, meanwhile, might have had the most dominating six-point night in the history of college basketball, earning the nod as the most outstanding player. He finished with 16 rebounds, six blocks, five assists and three steals—and made his only field goal with 5:13 left in the game. It was a surefire illustration of how the 6-foot-10 freshman can exert his will on a game even on a rare night when the shot isn’t falling.
NEW ORLEANS, LA - APRIL 02: Marquis Teague #25 of the Kentucky Wildcats celebrates defeating the Kansas Jayhawks 67-59 in the National Championship Game of the 2012 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on April 2, 2012 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)
Ah... Agony and disappointment of defeat
NEW ORLEANS, LA - APRIL 02: Kevin Young #40, Thomas Robinson #0 and Tyshawn Taylor #10 of the Kansas Jayhawks walk off the court after losing to the Kentucky Wildcats 67-59 in the National Championship Game of the 2012 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on April 2, 2012 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
NEW ORLEANS, LA - APRIL 02: (L-R) Darius Miller #1, Anthony Davis #23, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist #14, Terrence Jones #3 and Marquis Teague #25 of the Kentucky Wildcats walk on the court in the second half against the Kansas Jayhawks (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
NEW ORLEANS, LA - APRIL 02: A general view as the Kentucky Wildcats take on the Kansas Jayhawks in the second half of the National Championship Game of the 2012 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on April 2, 2012 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)
Text and Photo from the Internet and NCAA.com |
I left Kentucky forever at the end of 1997 after having lived 30 years of my life.
I was there longer than I had lived in Korea and longer than anywhere in the world.
UK basketball won the national championship 1998 and then never did it again until today in 2012.
After the game against Kansas, having won the NCAA championship, there was a spontaneous chorus
among the spectators singing "My Old Kentucky Home".
Kentucky people will do that anywhere if there's an occasion to sing and praise for their home.
UK beat University of Louisville in the final Four to enter the final game.
Thus, they were carrying the duty of winning for the people of Kentucky tonight, and they did !!
Kentucky를 떠난후 다시 돌아가지 못했지만, "My Old Kentucky Home" 이 들릴때마다 눈시울이 뜨거워 진다.
Kentucky는 나에게 "집 떠나 삼은 제 2의 고향"임이 틀림없나보다.