One shining moment
Alabama point guard Antoine Pettway scored only 10 points, but he had a huge impact on the game in several ways. He had the main responsibility for containing Syracuse gunner Gerry McNamara, and he did it well enough for long enough -- McNamara had only one field goal in the first 29 minutes -- to give the Tide a cushion going into crunch time. Pettway also played a beautifully controlled game at the point, with nine assists and no turnovers, which allowed Alabama to handle Syracuse's defensive pressure without much problem. To top it off, Pettway's points were big ones, especially the little runner in the lane he hit after Syracuse had reeled off nine consecutive points to tie the score at 55. The Orangemen never made another serious run after that.
Player who impressed me
We probably should point to someone from the winning team, or at least someone who made big plays but, forget about all that. Syracuse's long-armed forward, Hakim Warrick, was the most entertaining player on the floor. It's true that Alabama did a better defensive job on him in the second half, but by that time Warrick had already done enough to stand out. It wasn't just that he scored 15 points in the first 13 minutes, it was the way he scored them. On one play he got the ball far enough away from the basket that everyone expected him to take a short jumper, and he simply elevated up and in for a dunk. 'Bama's plan to front him in the second half limited his touches, but if Syracuse had gone to him more often late in the game, the outcome might have been different.
Courtside confidential
Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim didn't have much patience with his starting center, 7-foot, 259-pound Craig Forth, who missed a weak reverse layup when he got the ball at the start of the first half. "If your 7-footer is going to put up little shots that a 5-11 guy should be taking, I don't think he deserves to play," Boeheim said. Forth didn't. Boeheim yanked him two minutes into the half and never put him in the game again. ... Warrick and Alabama forward Chuck Davis didn't trash talk, they trash looked. Both wearing headbands and uniform No. 1s, they shot each other nasty glances repeatedly when they would score, as if to say, "See if you can top that one." No hard feelings, though. They hugged after the game. ... West Coast basketball continues to get dissed. A touch foul against 'Bama's Demtrius Smith was brought this response from a Tide fan: "C'mon, this ain't the Pac-10!"
Championship Formula
Alabama may be an eight seed, but after seeing the Tide knock off Stanford and Syracuse, only a fool would say they have no chance against second-seeded UConn in the regional final, but 'Bama hasn't seen a team as good as the Huskies. Pettway and Earnest Shelton are likely to find that containing UConn guard Ben Gordon is even tougher than keeping up with McNamara, because Gordon is quicker and can do the one thing McNamara can't -- create his own shot. UConn also has a seemingly infinite supply of long-armed big men, including Emeka Okafor, of course, to wear down 'Bama's Davis. Much as we love a good fairy tale, it's hard to see the Tide's Cinderella story continuing to the Final Four.
