"You know, say what you will about the ravages of sports in this corporate age where overpaid athletes expect prima donna treatment, but there's still something som unifying about sporting in it's purest form, when athletes rise above themselves and touch greatness, and in doing so remind us all that we all have greatness inside of us."-Marvin McFadden
Baseball is America's game.
Soccer is the beautiful game.
Football is the South's game.
But as far as I'm concerned Basketball is the best game.
For a few weeks in March and the beginning of April every year the world watches as madness ensues on the hardwood. There are some teams that are almost always a lock, your powerhouses for which playing in the Big Dance is as normal as tying their shoes. It's always nice to see them showing why they are in the tournament. But, one of the best things about the tournament is the Cinderella's, Your tiny schools whom you rarely hear of until they suddenly pull off a David and Goliath upset of one of those powerhouse schools.
This year two of them rocked the tournament;Loyola Chicago and UMBC. The former made it all the way to the final four, the latter gave us one of the biggest upsets in tournament history as they upset No 1 Virginia as a 16 seed to send them to the second round where they would find defeat at the hands of Kansas State.
So why beauty in the madness? Simple, it's a game, and in the end it doesn't matter but for a few brief weeks these young men are given the chance to show the world that statistics and odds are no match for heart. I know it sounds cheesy but you can't tell me that Virginia, a member of the ACC one of the toughest conferences in basketball loses to a team few people have heard of on talent alone. Not that UMBC isn't a solid team but attitude, and heart matter in this game. It's why you root for the underdog!
They walk out on the court and they give everything they have in representation of their schools. Yes, we can argue about how much money those schools make from athletes who don't see a dime, but still these young men do what they do for a love of a game. It's why we have professional sports in the first place. Some are given an incredible talent and they leverage it even as they age. Others will play as long as they can and then shift to a 9 to 5 job. We find ourselves invested for hours as these games play out, even when we aren't watching our teams play.
It's a beautiful thing when we can come together to watch young men rise above the expectations placed on them to cut down nets. When the underdog shows that he's got plenty of bite and refuses to go down without a fight. For those brief moments we aren't divided by politics or religion or what have you, we are united in a singular focus, the love of a game.
There is beauty in the madness of March. You don't have to look hard to find it. It's there in the eyes of a freshmen whom no one knows yet but will because he's about to make his mark. It's there in the senior whose playing his final game ever. It's there in a coach whose life has brought him to this point. It's there in the face of a fan as they see their team cut down nets and hoist a trophy above their heads.
For all the upsets and busted brackets, the heartache, and elation, it is beauty amongst madness. Every game, every moment, young men doing what they love, playing a game, fighting with everything they have and as the world watches they become legends.
