导出博客文章VILLANOVA, Pa. -- Jay Wright slipped in and out of his competitive consciousness
in the national championship game. He cringed as a coach as Villanovas late lead
trickled away against North Carolina. He loved the frenzy as a basketball fan
watching the Wildcats and Tar Heels go shot-for-shot in one of the NCAA
Tournaments classic finals.This is what its like when youre in the final and
playing the best team in the country, Wright said. Little times it hits you
like, wow, this is a great game.Little times. Like when North Carolinas Marcus
Paige hit a double-clutch 3 to tie the game at 74 with 4.7 seconds left.When
Paige hit that shot, I had a second or two to think, this game is unbelievable
and it could go into overtime and make it even more amazing, Wright said.Oh, the
game got more amazing -- no overtime necessary.Kris Jenkins squashed the OT bid
with a shot forever engraved as the biggest one in Villanova -- heck, maybe
March Madness -- history. Jenkins spotted up behind the right side of the arc
and buried a 3 at the buzzer to deliver Villanova to a 77-74 victory.A miracle
shot? Not quite. The Wildcats practiced that play for years and used a variation
to reach the 2009 Final Four. The Wildcats were squashed by the Tar Heels in `09
and crashed into a March funk that lingered until last season.With a
championship banner to match one from 1985 nestled in the Pavilion rafters, the
Wildcats must now hope that championship revelry doesnt equate to a follow-up
hangover.The Wildcats suffered from a whopper following the 2009 run. The
Wildcats dropped from 30 wins in 2009 to 25, 21 and then bottomed out at 13-19
and no postseason in 2011-12. Wright could not say no to friends or speaking
engagements in the immediate aftermath of 2009 and the program seemed to waver
from its recruiting foundation. He chased McDonalds All-Americans or transfers
who didnt necessarily fit the program and it took a few seasons to
stabilize.There were definitely times at the end of that, it was spiraling,
Wright said. It really didnt affect us until a couple of years later. I knew it
then. ... We were really preparing for that this time.As distractions mounted,
Wright vowed this summer to stay connected to his family, players, coaches and
recruits. Yes, there were stops at the ESPYs and a trip to the White House, but
the big picture of staying focused on this season and beyond was not lost on
Wright. Wright, 354-157 with two Final Fours in 15 seasons at Villanova, reigned
in his commitments even as charities and corporations wanted a piece of the
championship `Cat.Wright tightened control this summer and even closed down the
basketball office for a week in August for the first time so the entire staff
could relax and regroup.Ive had to say no to a lot of people, and Ive probably
disappointed a lot of people and I feel bad about that, I really do, he said.
But the last time, I felt like it was my responsibility as the Villanova coach
to do everything I was asked to do at Villanova. I did it. It got a little out
of control. No, it got out of control.The Wildcats had not advanced out of the
opening weekend of the NCAA Tournament since 2009 and lost two straight seasons
in the opening round as a 1 or 2 seed.In March, they were in a pressure spot
again: a No. 2 seed about to play pesky Iowa with a Sweet 16 berth at stake and
a potential burden lifted. Wright sensed pressure had seeped into the Big East
powerhouses environment.Our fans were tense. Our families were tense. The
Philadelphia media was tense, Wright said.Wright couldnt even break that tension
with his confidants. Wright likes to linger in the locker room during pregame
warmups and talk life with Villanovas team chaplain and sports psychologist. All
Wright found were a bundle of nerves under the collar of Rev. Rob Hagan.I could
even sense he was nervous for me, Wright said, laughing. This is big.The
Wildcats instead cruised past Iowa. They followed with wins over Miami and
Kansas, crushed Oklahoma by 44 in the Final Four and made first-weekend flops a
distant memory.They didnt fear that failure, Wright said. But everyone else did.
Id be lying if I said I didnt have a little bit of concern for them. I was not
worried about it. But I was worried for them and everyone else.The Wildcats
quickly learned being called champs comes with more than a ring and a banner. It
means mingling with the president and getting hounded for autographs and photos
on social outings.I definitely feel like were treated differently, Wright said.
I can see it. I can feel it. All the time. I dont want to be different. I
enjoyed the way we were doing it. Even losing in the second round, I was loving
those teams.So the question looms, armed with a heap of expectations, can
Villanova repeat?We could, Wright said. But we could lose to anybody again. Weve
made it true. Weve lost to everybody and weve won it all. But I think were good
enough.Jenkins, Jalen Brunson, preseason All-American Josh Hart and the rest of
the returning core should keep the Wildcats on track to try and become college
basketballs first repeat champions since Florida in 2006 and 2007.Villanova
President Rev. Peter Donohue bellowed to fans last week at a kickoff celebration
that Villanova is going to do it again!Thats pressure from the boss! Wright said
with a smile over the house mic.Again the Big East favorites and ranked fourth
in the AP preseason Top 25, the Wildcats wont judge this season on a
banner-or-bust scale.The only way we can top that or be better than that is to
be the best team we can be by the end of the year, Jenkins said. If that wins us
another national championship, then cool.---More AP college basketball:
http://collegebasketball.ap.org Cheap
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Paul Pierce.As the home of soccer in Canada, TSN and TSN2 deliver 15 games from
the 2013 UEFA EURO Under-21 Championship, which features Europes top eight U-21
teams battling for continental bragging rights. Coverage begins Wednesday at
11:45am et on TSN2 with host Israel vs. Norway. In total, TSN and TSN2 will
broadcast every round-robin game, plus the semifinals and Final, airing Tuesday,
June 18 at 11:45am et on TSN. Live coverage of the 2013 UEFA EURO Under-21
Championship is also available on TSN Mobile TV and in French on RDS and RDS2.
TSNs Luke Wileman, Jason deVos, and Vic Rauter lead TSNs studio coverage of the
2013 UEFA EURO Under-21 Championship, breaking down all the action during
pre-game, halftime, and post-game shows. Analysts Nick Dasovic and Kristian Jack
are also in the TSN Studio to provide in-depth analysis of the 2013 UEFA EURO
Under-21 Championship. The 2013 UEFA EURO Under-21 Championship features
England, Germany, Israel, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Russia, and defending
champion Spain. Held every two years, the UEFA EURO Under-21 Championship
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some of the biggest names in soccer, including Frances Zinédine Zidane,
Portugals Luís Figo, Spains Raúl González, and Englands Frank Lampard. TSN
Digital platforms – including TSN.ca and the TSN app for iPhone and iPad – will
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tournament.dddddddddddd The 2013 UEFA EURO Under-21 Championship is part of TSNs
slate of soccer programming, including EURO 2016, Barclays Premier League, MLS,
and FIFA World Cup – kicking off with the highly-anticipated FIFA Womens World
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Championship is as follows: Wednesday, June 5• Israel vs. Norway – 11:45am et on
TSN2• England vs. Italy – 2:15pm et on TSN Thursday, June 6• Spain vs. Russia –
11:45am et on TSN2• Netherlands vs. Germany – 2:15pm et on TSN Saturday, June 8•
England vs. Norway – 11:45am et on TSN2 • Italy vs. Israel – 2:15pm et on TSN
Sunday, June 9• Netherlands vs. Russia – 4pm et on TSN • Germany vs. Spain – 6pm
et on TSN2 Tuesday, June 11 • Israel vs. England – 11:45am et on TSN• Norway vs.
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et on TSN• Russia vs. Germany – 11:45am et on TSN2 Saturday, June 15• Semifinal
1 – 11:15am et on TSN2• Semifinal 2 – 2:15pm et on TSN2 Tuesday, June 18• Final
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