Georgetown fans everywhere rejoiced Sunday night after watching the Hoyas earn their first bid to the NCAA Final Four in over 20 years. But the journey to Atlanta has had its close calls, as well as its controversies. It’s important to be grateful for such a successful team as this year’s Hoyas, but we should also give appreciation to one adversary whose class and maturity has made the trip worthwhile: Vanderbilt.
It’s safe to say that few Hoya fans expected the game against Vandy on Friday night to be as close as it was. Certainly, most commentators and pundits believed that Vanderbilt had vastly improved over the course of its season, but Hoya fans knew that Georgetown had made great strides as well. Our team entered the Sweet 16 game having won 17 of the previous 18 games, and at tip-off, virtually everyone on campus predicted the obvious outcome: Hoyas over Commodores. Most realized that the eventual victory would probably be by a slimmer margin than the 16-point win at the start of the season, but the end result was never in doubt.
But no one would have imagined that 40 basketball minutes later, Hoya fans would be breathing a sigh of relief as Jeff Green salvaged the game in the closing three seconds, sending the team into the Elite Eight off a hotly contested one-point victory. It seemed that Georgetown’s fairytale-like return to its old prominence was simply unstoppable.
But within minutes, the CBS announcers covering the match, in a cynical attempt to boost their ratings, focused on a potential controversy: Did Green travel while making his miraculous, game-winning shot?
Commentators have weighed in on both sides, and fans have taken to the Internet to debate whether the referees should have called a foul on Vandy or a traveling violation on Green, or had acted correctly in just swallowing their whistles.
By refusing to contest the final result, the Vanderbilt team transcended this petty squabble and demonstrated that they not only embody talent and guts, but also possess exceptional class. Vanderbilt doesn’t have a true superstar like Ohio State’s Greg Oden, or worse, Florida’s Joakim Noah, who can easily slam in a dunk, pound his chest and scream at the camera every single game. They’re not a legendary program that expects NCAA titles in copious quantities like Kentucky or Duke, and their coach is surely no household name like Bobby Knight.
But that Friday evening, for 40 minutes, the Commodores gave Georgetown a run for its money like very few teams have this season. Up to that point, they had provided Hoya fans with arguably our most exciting, dramatic win since the ’80s, and they accepted the outcome without the whiny protests that we would expect from less dignified programs. For their on-court skill and off-court sportsmanship, we express our admiration and respect for the Vandy team and their coach.
Embodying his team’s class and talent, Vanderbilt’s Ross Neltner, who scored eight points, grabbed six rebounds, and had three assists, a steal and a block, was asked after the game to comment on the alleged traveling violation. Rather than fueling the speculation, he simply responded, “I didn’t really see anything. We’ll watch the tape, but it’s inconsequential at this point.”
Despite their obvious disappointment, none of the Vandy players were willing to feed a sensationalist story that was beneath the quality of athletic talent demonstrated by both teams that evening.
Vandy Coach Kevin Stallings addressed the situation positively, mentioning Green’s skill rather than focusing on a pointless dispute. He said, “I’m certainly not going to take away from the dignity of this game. I haven’t seen the replay. Don’t care to. He made a great shot.” Stallings then went on to discuss how proud he was of his team, their successes and the players who have carried the program to its second consecutive Sweet 16.
Playing in the tough SEC, Vanderbilt is also one of the few schools ranked in U.S. News and World Report’s top 20 universities that also has a quality athletic program. Few schools that Georgetown faces on the court can compete with us both academically and athletically.
Even though Vanderbilt provides a difficult non-conference match-up, it has certainly proven that its program provides worthy competition year after year. Nearly every team that makes the Sweet 16 has the requisite talent, but the way that the Commodores’ players and coaches handled the controversy after the final buzzer proved their individual character beyond any doubt. The Hoyas should look forward to playing them again in the future.
Frank Balsamello is a senior in the College and a member of THE HOYA’s editorial board.
