Dec. 16, 2009
VOTE HERE for Mason's win over UConn as the best sports moment of the decade
Every George Mason fan can tell you where they were when the Patriots beat UConn to earn a spot in the Final Four. That game, that moment, tops the list for the greatest sports moment not just of the decade, but in school history. But what about non-Mason fans? What about your average sports fans as well as writers and commentators?
Apparently, the meaning of the moment has not been lost on those across the nation. In the past week, ESPN named Mason's win over UConn as one of the greatest games of the past 10 years in all sports, Sports Illustrated selected Mason's victory as the second best college basketball moment of the decade and the biggest upset while naming the Patriots the decade's Biggest Cinderella, Rivals.com named it the biggest NCAA tournament upset of the past 10 years and FoxSports.com selected the Patriots as one of the decade's top mid-major programs.
ESPN.com writers selected Mason's 86-84 overtime win over UConn as one of the top three best college basketball games of the decade. Andy Katz, in his piece on the contest, said "This win couldn't have been predicted. But the determination of the Patriots and the fogginess of the Huskies led to an improbable upset, one of the benchmark games in tournament history." Fan voting will be used to determine the final order of the decade's top 25 games in all sports and fans can vote by clicking here.
Sports Illustrated was equally complimentary in naming Mason's victory as the second-best college hoops moment of the past 10 years. "The 11th-seeded Patriots went from unknowns to America's Team in a matter of two weeks, pulling off a string of upsets -- over No. 6 Michigan State, No. 3 North Carolina, No. 7 Wichita State and No. 1 UConn, in overtime -- that gave hope to little guys everywhere that they could become the Next George Mason." In naming Mason the Biggest Cinderella, SI said "The Patriots captured the heart of America when they stunned top-seeded Connecticut in overtime to advance to the 2006 Final Four. They were the first mid-major team to reach the Final Four since 1979."
Both Rivals.com and Sports Illustrated needed little to make a compelling case for picking the Patriots win over the Huskies as the top upset of the decade. Rivals.com said "The Patriots' road was done. The wins over Michigan State and UNC were cute, but UConn wasn't going to be the third college basketball powerhouse to fall to mighty Mason. Somehow, George Mason continued its storybook run, winning one of the greatest games in tournament history and thrusting a new term into the college basketball vernacular. Now, every time a mid-major team gets hot, we all wonder whether they're `the next George Mason.'"
Meanwhile, Sports Illustrated had this to say: "The Patriots could have filled this list multiple times, thanks to first- and second-round victories against powerhouse programs Michigan State (a sixth seed) and defending national champion North Carolina (a third seed with an inexperienced team), but the real standout among the upsets was eliminating top-seeded, three-loss UConn with a second-half comeback."
