With the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship, also known as March Madness, right around the corner, it is the perfect time to recap the best games and moments from the past decade. Here are a few of my favorite March Madness basketball highlights. NCAA basketball video clips they may bring back some bad memories, but they will certainly get you fired up for this year's tourney. Without further ado, here are the best NCAA basketball highlights of the past decade:
2005 Championship: North Carolina vs. Illinois.
Wow! UNC wins its fourth title ever as Roy Williams gets his first. A great match up - Sean May put up 26 points and Carolina shut out Illinois in the last 2 1/2 minutes to win by 5.
2009 Elite Eight: Villanova vs. Pitt.
Just last year in the Boston Regional Finals. Man, this one went down to the wire. After Pitt's Levance Fields tied the game with 2 free throws, Scottie Reynolds took it all the way and laid it in at the buzzer to take Villanova to the Final Four. Talk about buzzer beaters. Nothing like March Madness.
2005 Elite Eight: Arizona vs. Illinois.
Hard to forget this one. The Fightin' Illini' dug deep and overcame a 15 point deficit with just four minutes to go. Then in overtime, they held on to win 90-89. Deron Williams' 22 points and 10 assists were huge as Illinois went on to lose in the title game.
2004 Semi-Final: Duke vs. UConn.
Looked like Duke would get Coach K his fourth title. But no! The Huskies scored 12 straight, got 18 apiece from Gordon and Okafor and went on to beat Georgia Tech for the National Championship. Awesome game, possibly one of the all-time best highlights of all time in March Madness basketball. North Carolina fans rejoice!
2006 Sweet 16: UCLA vs. Gonzaga.
The Bruins ripped this one away from the Bulldogs. UCLA scored the final 11 points and squeaked out a victory. This was heartbreaking - remember when Adam Morrison cried after the game?!? What a wild finish. Definitely a top game of the past 10 years.
2008 Championship: Kansas vs. Memphis.
Man, did the Jayhawks rock or what? Memphis blew it by missing four of five free throws towards the end. Mario Chalmer's 3 pointer with just a couple seconds left was not only about as clutch as you can get, but it put the game into overtime where Kansas outscored Memphis 12-5. No doubt a fan favorite of the past decade.