Yesterday, I was fortunate enough to have been able to stay up last night and watch all six overtimes of the Syracuse-Connecticut game. With the Big East now the Biggest East, it’s hard to find match-ups of the original seven teams. The game last night reminded a lot of people what Big East basketball used be like. An intense rivalry, physical play, and players stepping up to make big shots.

I was watching the game at a bar, cheering against Syracuse but not totally sold on UCONN either. The way I was looking at it, one of these teams was going to lose, and I would enjoy that. Kemba Walker scored for the Huskies with 1.1 seconds left in regulation to tie the game. Syracuse called timeout, and my friend Sid, also cheering against Syracuse, started talking about overtime. “Not so fast,” I said. I’ve watched enough Big East Tournament games to know that anything can happen, especially for the Orange. So, when Eric Devendorf hit the ridiculous three pointer as the horn sounded, I was not shocked, just infuriated. They showed the replay over and over, and to me, it was very hard to tell. I thought the ball was definitely out of the palm of his hand but was probably still grazing his fingertips when the light around the backboard went on. But, I was sure with all the luck that Syracuse gets, they were going to count the basket. Fortunately I was wrong, and to their credit, referees John Cahill and Bob Donato got the call right.

The overtimes were incredible. Players making plays. Anytime Connecticut tired to stretch out a lead, Syracuse would come right back. Two teams went blow for blow. There were two players who stuck out to me. AJ Price was making crazy shots from all over the floor as if he were alone in his backyard. On one possession, he decided he was going to dribble to the base line, pull up for a jumper, and make a shot. He did just that, and the three Syracuse defenders surrounding him were totally helpless to stop him.

On the other end of the court, Andy Rautins made three pointer after three pointer to keep his side alive. Twice they gave him the ball, knowing a miss would seal their fate. Both times he came off a screen facing away from the basket a few feet behind the college three point line, both times he had a defender’s hand in his face, and both times he nailed the shot. And his three pointer to start the sixth overtime marked the first time since the end of regulation that Syracuse had the lead, and it sparked his team to victory.

As a Georgetown fan, I don’t enjoy praising my Big East opponents, but I am fairly confident the game I saw yesterday will be the best basketball game I will see this year at any level. It was Big East basketball at its very best, and I was glad that I got to watch it. Even if Syracuse won.