Monday, March 31, 2008

UT men's basketball team had a terrific year

Well, the Tennessee men's basketball team had its season come to a screeching halt last Thursday when it lost to Louisville 79-60 in the NCAA tournament.

It would be easy to write about the disappointment of that game, but now that I am a few days removed from it, all I can think about is how great a season this was.

Yes, I used the word "great." That word is one of the most overused words in America, but I believe it applies here.

In sports, I think a person can only use that word when a team wins a championship, and the Vols certainly did that. This was the first time we have won the outright conference championship in more than 40 years (though we have shared the title several times since then).

Additionally, we set a school record for wins (with 31) and achieved our first number one ranking in the national polls ever.

The sting of the Louisville loss eases a bit when we put the entire season in perspective.

Though we lose some key players (primarily Chris Lofton and JaJuan Smith), next season looks bright, especially if Tyler Smith does not declare himself eligible for the NBA draft.

Congratulations to the Vols for a great season.


2 comments:

Mister Jimmy said...

And the only team to beat Univ of Memphis. Another reason, if you needed one to pull for them to take it all.

Chris Martin said...

Good point. Our win over Memphis will be even more impressive if the Tigers can win it all.