March 23rd, 2017 at 11:44 PM ^
Kid was never afraid to take a shot.
Ask Kate Upton.
March 23rd, 2017 at 11:45 PM ^
@KateUpton hey saw you at the game last night, thanks for coming out! Hope to see you again
— Spike Albrecht (@SpikeAlbrecht) April 9, 2013
March 23rd, 2017 at 11:53 PM ^
Not many people can score 17 points in half of a National Championship game and that's only the second most talked-about thing they did that day.
March 23rd, 2017 at 11:49 PM ^
March 23rd, 2017 at 11:49 PM ^
The feels, man. The feels.
March 23rd, 2017 at 11:50 PM ^
March 23rd, 2017 at 11:52 PM ^
I believe Beilein said, "Thanks, but we're going in a different direction." It is what it is. Correct me if I'm wrong.
March 23rd, 2017 at 11:55 PM ^
1 - I don't think Beilein believed Spike would be healthy enough to contribute.
2 - Albrecht would likely have taken valuable minutes from X. That would have put the 2017-8 team further behind the 8 ball in terms of point guard play. Beilein chose to give the playing time to someone who would have three additional years at Michigan in which to benefit from the experience instead.
March 24th, 2017 at 10:56 AM ^
Exactly - it was about X.
March 24th, 2017 at 12:00 AM ^
March 24th, 2017 at 12:03 AM ^
f it's a lack of scholarships, why did Michigan only play eight guys regularly?
Basketball teams are no more likely to play all 13 scholarship players as football teams are to play all 85. Some guys are at the end of the bench.
In the games that I saw (both live and televised), it's pretty clear that he was nowhere near 100% this season. He couldn't keep up on the defensive end and his shot was off.
March 24th, 2017 at 11:47 AM ^
The medical staff had real concerns about the long term effect of playing college basketball on his hips. He has a congenital condition that the surgery can't fix. The operations that he had are designed to alleviate lots of the symptoms, but the hips will continue to degrade over time. High level athletics really aren't a good idea. Purdue's medical staff didn't care and gave him the option to play, as their point guard depth was basically a wad of chewing gum and some paper clips.
though it's not in anyone's interest to lay it out. Maybe in a memoir.
March 23rd, 2017 at 11:53 PM ^
I was so upset after Walton's shot missed and the Oregon crowd started to celebrate, I left. I completely forgot that Spike was in the building. I would have liked to have cheered him one last time.
He may have finished his career in the wrong colors, but he'll always be a Michigan Man to me.
March 23rd, 2017 at 11:54 PM ^
March 24th, 2017 at 12:28 AM ^
He averaged 1.6 ppg, 1.5 rpg and 1.3 apg this year.
March 24th, 2017 at 10:33 AM ^
And that is totally OK. He gave his all to Michigan, I'm sure he gave all that he had to Purdue this season (which was probably never higher than 75-80% based on what I saw from him in the games I watched), and that's all you can ask. Kid was tough as nails and played as well as his body would allow late in his career. A great guy.
March 24th, 2017 at 11:00 AM ^
Semi tongue-in-cheek there. Guess I really do need a sign.
March 24th, 2017 at 12:03 PM ^
Last night is still too fresh. All my sensors and gizmos are out of whack!
March 24th, 2017 at 12:33 AM ^
March 24th, 2017 at 12:58 AM ^
DAMN, that was a thrilling performance.
He'll always have that legit One Shining Moment.
March 24th, 2017 at 12:44 AM ^
If last night was any indication, Oregon might get pounded into oblivion by Kansas.
As long as Kansas doesn't come in sluggish, they should win. They're near-unstoppable now, and this will be a virtual home game for them for the right to go to the Final Four. I don't see a lot of scenarios where Oregon wins.
March 24th, 2017 at 10:46 AM ^
"They're near-unstoppable now"
Those are the games Kansas finds a way to lose. That matchup is going to be two traditional choke teams...someone has to win.
TCU was 0-7 going into the B12 tournament and beat top seeded Kansas. They can always find a way to lose.
March 24th, 2017 at 12:35 PM ^
KU was without the services of Josh Jackson and they didn't have to win that game in the same way that TCU had to win that game (needing to win the B12 Tourney in order to dance).
I wouldn't hold that game up as an example of a choke job. OTOH, NCAA Tournament losses to Wichita State, Stanford, Michigan, and Northern Iowa...yeah, they choked.