Dispatches from the Culture Wars

That championship in 1979 is one of my most vivid memories of childhood. I was 11 years old at the time and I got to go to a lot of the games that year, back when the team played at the rickety old Jenison Fieldhouse instead of the Breslin Center. I still have a scrapbook I kept during that season, full of now-yellowed newspaper clippings that I cut out and taped into the book.

You see, Magic Johnson wasn't just another basketball player to me. I had spent the first 8 years of my life living on Foster street in Lansing, a block away from Foster Park, which was where (along with Elizabeth Park) most of the pickup games were played in the city. Until 1975, when the neighborhood was largely destroyed by a flood that forced us to move away, I spent many a summer afternoon sitting at the edge of the court watching my older brothers play basketball with all the hotshot players from around the city. My job was to run and get the ball if it got kicked off the court.

And the talent on that court was pretty amazing. Magic was still just Earvin Johnson at that point, but he was already a starting to build his legend. Then there were the Vincent brothers, Jay and Sam, both of whom would play at MSU and go to the NBA as well. There was Greg "Boobie" Lloyd, who was probably considered the best player in the city at that point (the guy was an incredible talent; unfortunately he rarely went to class and refused to play defense, so while he was on that 1979 squad he rarely got on the court). There was Jamie "Shoes" Huffman, a backup on that MSU team who played with Magic at Everett High School and became infamous for his shoes becoming untied during games.

So to me, that team was made up of a lot of guys I revered. They were the older kids from the neighborhood, the ones I thought were so cool and would follow around until my older brothers would give me the proverbial quarter and tell me to go away. I felt a connection to them because we were all from the same place. They weren't just a team, they were my team.

So watching them win the national championship was a huge deal to me. I still remember every name, not just Magic and Greg Kelser and the stars but all the role players too - Terry Donnelly, Mike Brkovich and his brother Don, Ron Charles, Mike Longaker, Rob "Gonzo" Gonzales. And that scrapbook I have of their championship run included the homemade stat sheets I used to keep track of every point, rebound and blocked shot during every game in the tournament. Yes, I was even that geeky as an 11-year old. The point is I loved every minute of it.

So here we are 30 years later and Magic and Bird are back at the Final Four to celebrate the game that changed college basketball forever. Magic and I have both put on a few pounds in 30 years. But watching the last two weeks has brought just a glimpse of the feelings I had as an 11-year old. I can still see myself sitting on the floor of my parents' house in Okemos, watching the game and keeping my stat sheets. It's been fun.

On top of that, we have two other storylines coming together simultaneously. First, we have the fact that the Final Four is in Michigan, a state in seriously hard times economically and really in need of something to cheer about. Second, we have the fact that MSU already played Carolina this year and they did so in that same stadium in a dress rehearsal for Monday night.

The Tar Heels destroyed MSU that night. They humiliated them. But this is not the same team. Goran Suton, who isn't the most talented player on the team but is the most important and irreplaceable, was injured and didn't play in that game. Delvon Roe was starting at the time but he now has a full season under his belt and his physical recovery from two knee surgeries in the last 18 months is much further along. Draymond Green had hardly seen the court at that point and now he is an important part of the rotation, stepping up big in the NCAA tournament. This is now a much better and much more confident team.

Can they beat North Carolina? On paper, hell no. The talent disparity is huge. Carolina is the most talented team in the nation by a mile, with a second team that could rank in the top 15 on their own. There are 7 future NBA players on that team at bare minimum, possibly 8 or 9. They play great defense, they can kill you in the fast break and they have so many options in the half court offense that you don't know who to focus on.

But guess what? That was true of Houston in 1983 too and they got beat by North Carolina State. That was true of Georgetown in 1985 too and they were beaten by a Villanova team they had waxed more than once earlier in the season. That's why games aren't played on paper but on the court.

And this MSU team is starting to look a lot like a team of destiny. I thought they would lose to Louisville. I thought they would lose to UConn. Both of those teams are more talented on paper than MSU too. It didn't matter. And it might not matter Monday night either.

Win or lose, this has been a remarkable run and I've had a great time watching it. If they lose on Monday night they will have still achieved far more than anyone could possibly have expected. And if they win, they will complete one of the most incredible stories ever in the history of a tournament that already has its fair share of legendary stories.