Kemba's Moment: Matt Norlander's Vantage Point | The Boneyard

Kemba's Moment: Matt Norlander's Vantage Point

Hey Adrien! said:
I don't think this has been released until today. What a gem from one of CT's finest:

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Sick. The shot is legendary but what sometimes gets lost is just how great that game was and that it was only the quarterfinals. It was one of the best basketball games I've ever seen and it kind of felt like the start of something special.
 
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InKembaITrust said:
I'm loving that you won't dignify him by using his name. BLASPHEMY
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I am glad that blasphemy occurred where Kemba didn't win BEPOY. To this very day, I think it set him off and put such a chip on his shoulder he said "___ this, I am going to show everyone what's up" and lead to him going on a heater for the next 11 games.
 
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superjohn said:
Sick. The shot is legendary but what sometimes gets lost is just how great that game was and that it was only the quarterfinals. It was one of the best basketball games I've ever seen and it kind of felt like the start of something special.
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I remember auror brought up an interesting stat after UConn lost to New Mexico State in the first rd of the 2022 NCAAT, that admittedly I might get some the numbers wrong but provide the general idea.

@ auror - feel free to correct this.

New Mexico St. was not a good shooting team, but in that game against UConn they were among one of the teams among 87 games within all games from 2010-2022 where teams that shot at least 50% FG, at least 80% for FTs, and at least 50% 3pt FGs were 81-6, meaning a 93% winning percentage. Unfortunately, UConn was on the losing end and in one of those 81 games.

There is a happy ending to that 81-6 W-L stat for teams that shot well with the aforementioned percentages. There were 6 games where teams that shot that well lost. Pittsburgh in this 2011 BET was one of those teams when they lost to UConn that day.

What's morale of the story? I guess when a team has a legendary player like Kemba on their side they can beat the odds and buck the trends (shoulder shrug).
 
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I don't know how you predict another Kemba like run....

Impossibly, the Kemba Walker moment transpired 15 years ago today. Perhaps as an ode to Cardiac Kemba, college basketball has blessed us with one of the best collections of guards in recent memory.

Who could follow in his footsteps and give us a magical March heater? Here are the top candidates:

www.cbssports.com

Trotter's Trends: Cardiac Kemba, reincarnated; limping into Selection Sunday and the rim-defense script

Here are some notable trends to know ahead of Selection Sunday.
www.cbssports.com www.cbssports.com
 
CTBasketball said:
Little did all those people know at the time, they just witnessed one of the most iconic shots in Big East and NCAA basketball history.
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The photo below is from 2014, three years after Kemba left us for the NBA and other great pastures, his Mom was still representing! ... pretty much tells anyone, if they didn't know already, the Kemba (Walker) affect on our program

2010 in Maui, we were a group of only 27 people, Mom dancing in the bleachers, weaving in and out of rows trying to hype others up ... and our fans (in my observation) were actually annoyed with her (spirit)!

... and then the unthinkable happened, three days in a row ... we witnessed the greatness in its infancy

The memories of 3/10/2011 are amazing, but it was a year-long process that arguably, imho, some saw coming

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Flipside said:
The photo below is from 2014, three years after Kemba left us for the NBA and other great pastures, his Mom was still representing! ... pretty much tells anyone, if they didn't know already, the Kemba (Walker) affect on our program

2010 in Maui, we were a group of only 27 people, Mom dancing in the bleachers, weaving in and out of rows trying to hype others up ... and our fans (in my observation) were actually annoyed with her (spirit)!

... and then the unthinkable happened, three days in a row ... we witnessed the greatness in its infancy

The memories of 3/10/2011 are amazing, but it was a year-long process that arguably, imho, some saw coming

View attachment 118020
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Kemba is well known figure in basketball circles, but especially college basketball circles and is cemented in college basketball lore. I was in Maui in 2024 and he along with some other players and coaches on are on the big mural behind one of the baskets which you can see on TV. What you can't see on TV is there is big picture of Kemba that is framed on a wall coming up the stairs near the west side of the Lahaina Civic Center.
 
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Looked like Wayne Norman there with the Wooow! as the camera panned to the crowd and he was making his way to the court for postgame interviews. I was at work and had to listen on the radio. Was great to get home and see the highlights.
 
gsmooth said:
Kemba is well known figure in basketball circles, but especially college basketball circles and is cemented in college basketball lore. I was in Maui in 2024 and he along with some other players and coaches on are on the big mural behind one of the baskets which you can see on TV. What you can't see on TV is there is big picture that is framed on a wall coming up the stairs near the west side of the Lahaina Civic Center.
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2011 Maui Invitational

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CTBasketball said:
Little did all those people know at the time, they just witnessed one of the most iconic shots in Big East and NCAA basketball history.
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I knew. I didn't know they would win the NCAAT or even the BET, but I knew right away it would be one of the most iconic shots in Big East history. It's so rare to see a defender's ankles break that cleanly on any play, much less a buzzer beater. The fact that Kemba was one of the most personable, likable CBB stars of that era, and that he grew up mere miles from MSG, only made it that much cooler. I honestly believe we could have lost to Cincy in the round of 32 and it still would be considered among the most famous plays in college basketball history.
 
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I was in high school at the time and had a study hall last period - so I left around 12:45, dumped my backpack in my mom’s car (she teaches at the nearby middle school) and pretty much sprinted the whole 2 miles home to get there for the second half. Easily a top 3 sports memory in my life and maybe the best.

The second game that day was Syracuse/St. John’s - it was one of the rare years from that era St. John’s was good so you basically had UConn, SJU, and Cuse fans all in the same session on a Thursday afternoon. The energy in the building was insane.

(The current BET is still by far the best conference tournament, but I’ll never forgive Cuse and Pitt for ruining how special that event was at the time.)
 
HooperScooper said:
A Duke shirt? That there is a hanging offense. Maybe you and @Dove can hang out and watch the NCAA Tournament together. 😀
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Ha, I'm down to hang out and party with anyone that loves college hoops! (Huskies and Blue Devils preferred) ... so hopefully see ya in Tampa or Philly next week, DC the next, and then Indy!!!

... but before that, Fort Lauderdale this Thursday! South Florida Alumni Network Men's Big East Tournament 2026 Game Watch

Maui 2010 - The Kemba year



Maui 2011 - unfortunately Timba burned down in the Maui fires

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MSG, NYC 2013

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