Does anyone find it ironic that the last time Alabama won the SEC Regular Season and Tournament title in the same season was 1986-87. That season they were defeated by Rick Pitino and Providence in the Sweet 16. 35 years later the next Alabama team to accomplish the feat and they pair us with? Yep, Rick Pitino and Iona. Coincidence?
Irony?
- Thread starter Huntsville Five Star
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no offense and to be quite frank i don't give one iona
Completely different circumstances. I remember that game too well. If we could have do overs it would be that and the 1976 Indiana game........
almost as if they were being watched over and protected by some sort of...deity
I was in the hospital holding my newborn son while watching that game. I've often said that I don't know which sparked more tears that day - the joy of holding my first born or the agony of seeing Providence rain 3's all night against what may have been our best team ever.
This game broke my heart. I just knew this team was a final 4 team.
They were a fine team. Some of you may remember that Austin Peay only had to hit a couple of free throws in regulation and again in overtime to beat Providence in Birmingham. We would have had a much easier time against the Governors than we did against the Friars.
I was there. AP was the better team that day and should've won the game. My dad, who wasn't a basketball fan at all but loved all things Bama, was at the game with me. The Governors fans chanting "Let's go Peay" had him in stitches. I think he enjoyed hearing that more than he did the game.
Finebaum had some reporter on today, I didn’t catch his name, but they were talking about the 3 biggest disappointing loses in Bama BB history, and they thought they were 1) Providence ‘87 2) Loyola ‘90 3) Indiana ‘76. The Indiana game was last, just because Bama wasn’t the favorite in that game.
I would add the South Alabama game in ‘89, and the NC St game in ‘85 to my list.
yes sir, but i still have some awful memmories of that game. every thing they threw up went in.
What could have been if AP could just have made a couple free throws....Unfortunately, we will never know.
I forgot about South Alabama. that was a disappointment. I never expected us ot beat Loyola but it was the most interesting strategy Wimp ever devised.
And further similarities, we were 16-2 in the SEC and beat l$u in the championship game of the tournament in 87. We beat l$u all 3 times we played them that year, but they went to the Elite 8 and we lost in the Sweet Sixteen. Also got screwed out of a #1 seed that year just like this one. Really hope history doesn't repeat itself again. I am still pissed about 87. And you guys are right, Austin Peay should have beaten Providence in the prior game. Then Billy Donovan and Delray Brooks had the game of their lives to beat us. It was my last year at Bama too. I hate Rick Pitino and Billy Donovan to this day.
I, honestly, had wrote that Loyola game down as a win as much as I had Providence. Loyola had just lost their best player at the end of regular season(Hank Gathers), and outside of Bo Kimble we just matched up, and were better, player for player on the next 5 players. If the players hadn’t taken Wimp’s game plan to the extreme(which Wimp unfortunately allowed), and taken the gimme layups, I think we would have easily won that game in the end. That one I think might even haunt me more than the Providence game. It is close.
That ‘89 team was really good too. We were so much better than that South Alabama team. We got up like 17 points in that game, and tried to coast. The next game would have been against eventual champion Michigan, and we matched up great against them. I have a lot of friends and family that are UM grads and they were actually very concerned about playing Alabama.
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That being said, Derrick McKey also TOTALLY disappeared in that game
As I recall, both were two shot fouls with the clock at zero. Only had to make one to win and missed all four. Those guys probably still have nightmares.
I know it is in the scheme of things just a game, but I guess I am one of those people that take it too seriously, in that, if I were one of those players it would haunt me forever.
