It's been 3 days... What are you doing to get over **IT**?

Not reading posts like this one.

A tradition unlike any other!

Reading about Jabrill Peppers and Adoree Jackson's tweets. 

You don't want to be reminded about "It", yet you come to a Michigan sports blog and start a topic about "It". By the way, "It" is Michigan losing in the national title game to Louisville.



What have I done to get over it? I realized it's just a game, and despite the fact that I love Michigan and Michigan sports, I have more important things than this to worry about that actually effect my life directly.

And then judge whether I'm ever going to see Michigan in another national title game before I die. If the answer is probably, then I would get over it and move on.

Also, read all the articles you can find, like the ones posted on this blog and others, which say how great of a run this was and focus on that. This is just the beginning of the Michigan renaissance, which has been a long time coming.

It is a godsend and a curse

reading science articles on the higgs boson and the rover on Mars to try and put things in perspective....its working out pretty well, also i keep reminding myself how we stole the game from Kansas and how awesome it was to be playing in the NCG when i thought for sure we would be bounced way earlier than that!

Drinking and trying to think of positives in life. U know like puppies and football recruiting. And not watching espn at all. The masters may help a little too

I try to remember back to the beginning of the season and think about what my expectations were.  Was Michigan the best team in the country?  Honestly Louisville was pretty dominant and yea, they probably really were the better team.  That doesn't diminish how far this team went.  This season was a coming out party for Michigan, a basketball juggernaut resurrected for the long haul.  So they didn't win the title- only one team ever can.  I try not to think about the game itself, that is just one data point on a whole spectrum that show the upward trajectory of this team. Big picture, this has been an amazing time for Michigan basketball. One game can't spoil that.

Judging by the rapid responses at 10:40 on a Thursday morning, we are not working.

there's nothing to get over.  it's disappointing, but IT'S OKAY.

• we had an unbelieveable season;
• the season was thoroughly entertaining and demonstrated best of sports fandom;
• the team was a pleasure to watch, played a great style of basketball and the players individually all appear to be outstanding student athletes;
• it makes me feel so positive about the futuer of M bball;
• we beat some really good teams;
• we lost in the finals to a great team.

so i'm just fine.

I bought two Final Four shirts from MDEN and that made me excited about the season as a whole. Sounds like you need a life...I love Michigan sports as much as the next die hard but to not being able to go on social media and ESPN is pathetic. I live and work in the Lansing area too so its twice as bad. But this was a great run and I'm confident we will be there again with John Belein.

Drugs, booze, and women. In copious and never-ending amounts. I know if I stop any of those three things, even for a moment, the memories of the game will come back and I won't be able to handle them. Even as I'm typing this, I'm drinking whiskey and thinking about which of the 10 prostitutes on standy I'll go to next. AND I'm at work.

I'm mostly busy searching for ray guns I can use to obliterate Braxton Miller from the stands in November.

Hoping that Hardaway, Robinson and McGary all come back to make another run at the championship, at least Robinson and McGary.

Thinking about football.

In the words of Aldous Snow, I just carried on living my life.

"We're #2!  Suck it, eveyone below us!!"     I kid.  I think it's the weather.  Do you live in Michigan??  It has been very depressing the last few days.  Mother Nature hasn't stopped crying since we lost on Monday.  Maybe you need vitamin D...

I never got as upset as I thought I would. I think that's mainly because no one in their right mind expected us to make the Final Four, much less the title game. And I'm still not upset. Just a little dissapointed for the team. Its hard to watch your team walk off the court empty handed after getting so far. Does it bug at me? Yeah, a little. I would have loved to see Beilein cut down those nets. But this tournament proved we have the right coach, and not only that, recruits were watching that game. Any top recruit would be foolish to not give Michigan a good look after a season and tournament run like this. So, in conclusion, I'm a little dissapointed for the team, but I'm more proud of them than anything.

I never got as upset as I thought I would. I think that's mainly because no one in their right mind expected us to make the Final Four, much less the title game. And I'm still not upset. Just a little dissapointed for the team. Its hard to watch your team walk off the court empty handed after getting so far. Does it bug at me? Yeah, a little. I would have loved to see Beilein cut down those nets. But this tournament proved we have the right coach, and not only that, recruits were watching that game. Any top recruit would be foolish to not give Michigan a good look after a season and tournament run like this. So, in conclusion, I'm a little dissapointed for the team, but I'm more proud of them than anything.

Easy! Thinking about football, and that Hoke says the most surprising unit is the offensive line, and Mattison is rumored to be wandering the halls at Schembechler, sniggering .....

Remembering awesome moments from this year:

The Block That Wasn't But Really Was.

Unconscious First Half Spike and his Twitter-related confidence even after a loss in the nat'l championship game

Celebrating the win over Syracuse on the Diag

The Trey.

Countless .GIFs from the tournament that left my mouth gaping

The Steal.

The Block (Burke against Craft)

Final Four Glory and the Michigan Daily front page from the win over Florida that I framed in my office.

Waiting in line for the IU game all day.  Watching the IU players run off the court of Crisler, catching the eye of one of their backups with his cocky smile and thinking 'wait until the tournament'

The banner that has yet to be lifted into the rafters at Crisler

The future.

The fact that while I will remember the loss, I will remember these other things more.

Can someone please get me caught up? What exactly is there to get over again? I know you're not talking about basketball because it is freaking awesome to be the #2 team in the country after everything we have been through, so are you talking about the Tigers loss to the Yankees?

Well, I am 33, and been through worse frankly in terms of my UofM fandom and pro sports teams I follow.  This is an easy tough loss to get over, since it was such a great ride and pleasure watching these young men come together and do something they probably shouldn't of done.  Having said that, they were such a dangerous team to play in the tourney, and people realize now that with this staff, quality players, UofM is back in the conversation.  Get there is so hard, and to do it consistently is nearly impossible.  So when we get here, don't be afarid to be proud of the accomplishment.  Man, what a ride -- and I don't even really enjoy baseket ball that much! 

This always happens, but really the only thing irking me is the cock roaches from other BIG schools or national rabble rouser who are trying to disparage this team.  I don't mind a little ribbing, but don't bring up the Fab Five, our sanctions or how we got "lucky".  I had one boob who was trying to be funny and say that all our "good" players were ex-Pudue recruits, NW IN players, and that is the only reason we were good.  Not only does this person not make a lick of sense, but he had to bring up the negative issues we dealt with 10-15 years ago as a "we got what we deserved" straw-man arguement, as if it had anything to do with this team or staff.  I don't suffer fools well, so I slammed him down pretty fast.  It is what it is.  People are inheritently insecure about thier underpreforming sports teams.  

I say be gracious in defeat, be proud of what happend.  It is one thing to lose, it is another to act like a loser.  Quite blamming anyone but ourselves.  We lost.  It is ok.  If things shake out for us this off-season, we could be really good next year.  It would be great to make runs like this consistently.  

to try and find a tree to poison!

/s

The present seems pretty damn good in comparison.

I get to go to Duke this weekend . . . after Michgian made the Final Four and Duke did not.

My wife is a Dukie.  Their Homecoming is this weekend (not sure why it's not in the fall like the rest of the world).

Unless it's football season, Dukies are very dismissive when they hear you are a Michigan fan.  They particularlly hated the Fab Five.  

Normally, going to Duke the week after Basketball season as a Michigan fan would be pure torture.  But, um, not this year.  I plan to wear as much Michigan attire to as many functions as I can get away with.

in the glow of an incredible, high-character team that pushed themselves to the brink of an NCAA championship, a great coach who represents Michigan about as well as anyone can, some phenomenal moments of shooting, defense (including one of the most athletic blocks you will ever see) and basketball acrobatics.

Not to mention that we encountered a worthy opponent devoid of s--t talkers and witnessed a classic final.

Hard to take the loss, but more than proud of the team and its accomplishments, which exceeded even the most optimistic pre-season expectations.

Next year in Arlington!

in the glow of an incredible, high-character team that pushed themselves to the brink of an NCAA championship, a great coach who represents Michigan about as well as anyone can, some phenomenal moments of shooting, defense (including one of the most athletic blocks you will ever see) and basketball acrobatics.

Not to mention that we encountered a worthy opponent devoid of s--t talkers and witnessed a classic final.

Hard to take the loss, but more than proud of the team and its accomplishments, which exceeded even the most optimistic pre-season expectations.

Next year in Arlington!

Constantly checking twitter to see who declares for the NBA draft

First double post ever. Should I feel proud, ashamed, or somewhat unclean?

I am realizing that it's now the off-season and I have no sports to watch till fall. I like the Tigers..but baseball is boring to watch on TV. Here we go college lax and WNBA

Constantly checking the interwebs for any news regarding Michigan players leaving early for nba

I was over it...... Until you posted this dumb thread....

and still lamenting the fact that UM was screwed over repeatedly by the officiating. So yes, I do lay blame at the feet of the officiating crew, because I truly believe that there were nearly countless possessions where they tilted the floor against Michigan; to the extent that it was either criminal, or such a rare and collective cesspool of incompetence never before seen in a title game. I am still angry about that, as the Wolverines played with such energy, resilience, and class, but I believe they were actively infringed upon by the refs. I find my opinion supported by numerous other fans, nuetral and fan obervers, the national and local media, etc. Nothing against Louisville, they were a great opponent. It will take me some time to get over my anger and disgust with the officiating. With all variables considered, I truly believe those fools cost us the game.

and how glorious it was but now it's just a pleasant memory, just a ghost of what it was for me back in the day. The loss to Louisville, this too shall pass. There is a slight tinge of pain if I think back to the Fab Five days and the losses to Duke and North Carolina but just a little and only if I let it. Monday was a glorious day; after that 6-6 record to end the regular season and then to get bumped out of the Big Ten Tournament by Wisconsin how can you truly be that disappointed by how we finished in the Final Four tournament? What about the way we took care of VCU, the LEGENDARY game against Kansas, the unexpected blowout of Florida, the stress and anxiety of the Syracuse game all wiped out by the last second dash and dunk by Jordan Morgan followed by the enthusiastic 'jump around' by the fans? Even in the Louisville game there was heroism and greatness: Spike's 17 in 17, Trey's block that wasn't, Tim's slam near the end. Our team was great, even in defeat, remember that. We might have lost the battle but we definitely won the war.

Time.

That's it.

I'm leaving work early to go kiteboarding and try to forget it.  It's currently 84, the water is 78, and it's blowing 20+ from the E.  

Running my kids around. Living.

You might want to evaluate your priorities.

Everything will be ok..really.

Watching the Tigers and the Masters.

I'm over it. Never expected to be in the championship game. It was a helluva season. Everything after Kansas was just gravy.

Work, Tigers, Masters, praying our underclassmen return next year.

Just remembering that we played a great game and that every team in the country except one would trade their season for ours.

I've been over it the minute it ended. Seriously, how can ANYONE be mad or upset after the run they had. First Final Four in 20 years. 31 wins that ties the best EVER in program history.

I'm already over it. Each day I did'nt see THJ , GR3 , MM and Trey Burke to the NBA posts made it a lot easier. Now I got the spring game in 2 days

Watching the Braves destroy baseballs, mostly.

That doesn't mean that I'm not thankful for the run, or that I think it was a terrible end. It just means that it was a huge game with a lot to gain and we lost. Gonna take time.

Watching the Louisville women get dominated made me feel a tiny bit better. I'm also hoping this team doesn't forget the name of the coach that beat us and we completely obliterate and embarass Minnesota everytime we play them next season.

Random Questions: Does the team get a ring for being in the Final Four? Do the Final Four Banners signify that we were in the NC game?

Getting ready for the football season! There's no reason to get down on the basketball team. Unfortunately, only one team in the NCAA tourney will finish the season with a win. We weren't that team, but we were the ONLY team in the tourney to finish with exactly 5 wins. Just try to think of the tourney run as being equivalent to a Rose Bowl win. We didn't technically win it all, but we still had a damn good postseason showing. GO BLUE!!! Football only a summer away!!!

Are completely kidding themselves that these opportunities are going to present themselves regularly, so they don't really understand what we lost. 

I am proud of our young men, coaches and university. I will be totally fine, soon. But for now, I am drinking every night after I get home from work and trying to move on. I love this team and feel that things c/should have turned out differently.

...and currently sipping a rum and coke on the plane. You know, I think I'm going to make it, after all.

I was over it after avoiding every sports media or blog except here for 24 hours.  It was a great game, and Louisville was just a tad better when it counted.  Depending on which source you believe, there were between 339 and 345 teams that didn't do as well as Michigan did this year, while only one did better.  

It hurts to lose the title game, especially when you have been a fan for fifty years, and know just how difficult it is to get back to the championship game, but I would have been ecstatic if someone had told me at the beginning of the season that MIchigan would make the championship game.  

Besides, I would have been cheering for Louisville if they had been playing anyone else.  

We're all big fans, but fergodsake, choose to be happy! It was a fun ride that came up a hair short of nirvana! Made me proud of the team and my university. I had alot of fun and just missed having super-double mega-awesome fun. Took me a lot of years to figure out that sports are meant to be enjoyed both as a competitor and a spectator. Give it a try. By the way, I play better and win more now. Of course, I still hate Bobby Hurley.

I'm still pissed, but getting over it.  So what I did was look at other news sources to see if what I saw during that game was just me or did everyone else see it.  Most believe the officiating was beyond garbage. Phil Jackson (one of my heros) did. Bad calls are a part of every game. Several bad calls are not. Certainly not at this level, where the "best" refs get to work it.

But I disagree about it being "garbage". Garbage would mean incompetent or sloppy. This game wasn't.  

It appears fixed.

2 of the 3 refs were mainly big east. No pac 10 refs becuase all of their refs are ineligible (for possibly being biased against a certain coach, as you may know from the curiously media-silent "bounty" scandal).  Read about that scandal. It will open your eyes big time. So for all you naive kids that think refs are just human and doing their best, think again. Many are arrogant, egotistical scum that (as professionals) are supposed to check their emotional baggage at the door. If they can't do that, they can't be a ref.  Go back to being a greeter at Wal-Mart. Others are there to take their place. These guys can make almost $200k per year if they hustle. They don't work for free.

Lots of thinking about the calls of that game. Only one matters. The 4th Hancock foul (that went to some other kid 10 feet away). 2 officials conferencing. One can only assume that the correct call (foul on Hancock) was overrulled by a big east ref, to keep the big guy in the game. Could you imagine if he had to sit the second half? He would have, since he would have no defensive capability at all with 4 fouls. that would have probably sealed L-ville's fate. 

Remember, 2/3rds of these refs have to work the Big East conference next year.  Means...motive....opportunity. 

But you think it's was bounces, chance, luck, or "idiots" officiaiting. These guys are not idiots. They are dishonest. 

Michigan was not blown out.  3 points seperated them at the 5-minute mark. Outrageously bad calls kept them out.  Kansas was tougher to beat than L-ville. But the refs apparently showed man-love to their boy Patino. And now you see Adidas running ads about Ware ($$$$).  That didn't take long now, did it?  

I only take solace in knowing that many others believe that as well. And that eventually, even these scumbags (who masquarade as refs) have to live with guilty consciences. They know. I know. Some of you know. The good o' boys club is alive and well. Ask the Pac 10. And the SEC (who fired their head of enforcement recently for misconduct). 

Now as for me, it's back to work and not watching any more college basketball. Ever. Not until they get professional (use full time refs that are not conference specific) and start sanctioning these guys like the pros do.  The NBA was a laughing stock until they got serious. It's still not perfect, but a long way from what it was. Same for the NFL and NHL. 

This isn't a game. That's what you play in your backyard. This is a business. You pay money to attend, buy jerseys, etc. Coaches and everyone esle gets paid (except players). Huge. The entire country goes nuts in March for a month. Think about the money involved. And then think about what you saw with your own eyes.  And wake the hell up.

Just like the NBA used to be: it's fixed.  Deal with it.  Now pick other sports to watch.

the championship that got away. that is all.

And I realized how stupid I must have looked bitching about the refs the first time around.  Yes, there were some boner calls.  But I also found that McGary probably committed 8 or 9.  There were some rebounds that Louisville put back through about six Wolverine arms that should have been and-ones.  I could've sworn it was a different game the first time through.

The worst were the Burke "flying phantom" foul and "great block nullified."  But I understand why the phantom didn't look that way to the official and also that Burke got into Siva's body on the block.  Chippy, but I can see it.  We got out-played and couldn't stop them from scoring down the stretch.  And we left a few freethrows out there.

I'm over it now.  My logical brain now tells me Louisville really did win.  My emotional brain is now telling me that I wanted Michigan to win, but is disappointed because they were just a step or two not the best team at two points in the game where it really mattered: the final 2:00 of the first half and the final 2:00 of the second half.  Our defense needed to be just a little bit better.  But not much!  We were damned close to being the best team in the country.  Who thought that when it all started?  Who?

Congrats, Louisville.  Thank you Michigan.

Now on to football - and maybe the baseball team can do something fun and magical...