http://www.philly.com/dailynews/sports/playbook/20090403_After_30_years__it_s_the__Very_Big_East__for_NCAA_basketball.html
And from the same newspaper....
Whew! What if Marquette had won?
Here is the fourth of five key Villanova moments that helped propel the Wildcats to the Final Four:
March 12: Villanova 76, Marquette 75
Part of the fun of March is following the predictions of ESPN Bracketology and other Web sites about how teams are going to be seeded for the NCAA tournament.
But no one knew for sure what the selection committee would have done with Villanova had the Wildcats not gotten Dwayne Anderson's layup, off a pass from Reggie Redding, at the buzzer to avoid a loss to the lower-seeded Golden Eagles in the Big East tournament quarterfinals.
The committee had stated that a top-four seed would have an opportunity to play as close to home as possible. In the Cats' case, the goal was the Wachovia Center, their home for three games earlier in the season. But how true was it, and would the Wildcats have dropped?
That leads to a series of what-ifs?
What if Jerel McNeal had held the ball a little longer rather than try for a layup that was blocked by Dante Cunningham, giving 'Nova a final chance to win?
What if McNeal had stayed with his man, Anderson, rather than get caught in no-man's land after Redding started to drive to the basket?What if Redding's pass hadn't been anything but perfect?
What if Anderson's shot, which caught quite a bit of rim, had tumbled out?
Good points but moot. Three days later, the Wildcats ended up with a No. 3 seed and, as it turned out, two games in South Philadelphia, both victories.
