Growing up in London, Ontario, the focus is almost always on the game of hockey. With the beloved London Knights as the hometown team, Friday nights are always hockey nights in town.
Hockey has always been a way of life, as kids generally start to skate around the ages of 2 or 3, which is when yours truly began playing. While hockey brought kids close and created long-lasting friendships, most kids realized that playing hockey wouldn't become their career. This writer quickly figured that out, and realized it was time to pick a new career.
Growing up an only child, sports was always a way of life. From hockey to baseball, it was a year-round thing. There was very rarely a night where the family spent the night in the house and not at a hockey arena or a baseball diamond.
Golf slowly crept into the picture, and yours truly has worked their way down to a 1.4-handicap over the years. Due to various sports injuries, including concussions and broken bones, contact sports were no longer suitable for long-term health.
One sport that was never in the picture for this writer was basketball. Outside of gym class and recess in public school, no basketball was played and it was never on television in the household. That's what makes this writer's love for college basketball more puzzling.
It wasn't until the year 1999, when yours truly was 9 years old, when NCAA basketball came into the forefront, and little did anyone know, it would be here to stay.
With a father and an uncle who are die-hard Michigan Wolverines fans, cheering for the rival Michigan State Spartans was frowned upon in the family. Despite the lack of appreciation for the Green and White amongst the family, it was hard not to cheer for Tom Izzo, Morris Peterson, and the rest of the Spartans.
The Spartans became this writer's team of choice before the start of the 1999-2000 season, and the love for the Spartans, and NCAA basketball as a whole, has only grown stronger since.
The Michigan State Spartans were coming off a loss in the national semi-finals in the 1999 NCAA Tournament, and that's when the "Flintstones" first caught on. The likes of Mateen Cleaves, Morris Peterson, Charlie Bell, and Antonio Smith were first dubbed "the Flintstones." as they all hailed from Flint, MI.
The first season of the Flintstones was all about the hype, as they caught the attention of media and sport networks from around the nation. That's also when yours truly started following the team, but that's just a little footnote compared to the attention they garnered from the likes of ESPN. In 2000, Smith had graduated, so the Flintstones were down to 3 members. With Tom Izzo at the helm, and freshman Jason Richardson in the mix, the Spartans would go on to avenge their loss in the Final Four a season ago.
The Spartans took on Billy Donovan and the Florida Gators in the finals. Cleaves would leave the game with an ankle injury, but would return later on to cheers from the crowd. Cleaves would win the tournament MVP award and the Spartans would defeat the Gators, 89 - 73.
The nation was captivated by the Spartans, and so was yours truly. That season would kick start a love for college basketball that would grow and grow after each and every season.
College basketball has become this writer's passion for several reasons. Clearly, the Michigan State Spartans were the spark in this love interest, but it's much more than that.
The passion that Americans have for the game of basketball, especially at the high school and university levels is something that cannot be described. In Canada, high school basketball games are lucky to get 50 people out to the games, at least where yours truly is from. At the university / collegiate level, you'd be lucky to see 100 - 150 people in attendance. There are no defined student sections or student bands, so the atmosphere is lacking in aspects in comparison to American schools. Seeing the passion that fans have for the game in the U.S. is what keeps this writer coming back for more, day in and day out.
The players at the collegiate level are playing for their shot at the NBA, or professional basketball in general, so they wear their hearts on their sleeves and give a maximum effort every single night. In the NBA, the players are already making millions of dollars, and it seems that they have nights where they don't give a full effort. The college basketball game is much more exciting to look as opposed to the NBA, as least from a Canadian point of view.
The teams are always different, also, as players are constantly changing and the teams in contention each year always change. Yes, you have the power programs like Kentucky, Duke, and North Carolina who always seem to be at the top. However, no matter how good a team is, anyone is capable of beating anyone else on any given night. The unpredictability of the college game is what's so intoxicating for yours truly, as you never truly know who will win until the game is over.
Take this season, for example. The likes of TCU and Colorado State are still undefeated, and they find themselves in the top 25 rankings. We have seen the Michigan State Spartans lose to Texas Southern, the Kansas Jayhawks get rolled over by Temple, and the Michigan Wolverines lose back-to-back games to N.J.I.T. and Eastern Michigan (a personal favourite of yours truly...go Green).
The unpredictability of the college game is what is the most exciting, in this writer's eyes.
In the years since 2000, this writer's love for sports has only continued to grow. Yours truly still loves hockey, baseball, football, and golf, but it's tough to top NCAA basketball
The Spartans are still the team of focus, but college basketball as a whole has become the main focus of this writer's focus in sports. The idea of the underdog having a shot on any given night has forced this writer to focus on the college basketball landscape as a whole, and not just personal favourite teams. Like everyone, yours truly has certain favourite teams that get a little more attention than others. The Michigan State Spartans have always been the top team, but the likes of the Colgate Raiders, Coastal Carolina Chanticleers, and the Norfolk State Spartans have become personal favourites, for various reasons. While focusing on these teams seems to take priority more often than not, this writer's attention and focus is on college basketball as a whole.
Over the years, it's been hard to find people who are interested in college basketball in Canada, so finding people to discuss the headlines and scores from the nightly games are few and far between. This is why yours truly has turned to writing articles on the internet. It provides an avenue to discuss the topics of interest to this writer, while not annoying friends and family in the process.
A love for something is often hard to explain, as is the case for this writer and a love for college basketball. Looking back on things, it's clear to see that it started with the Michigan State Spartans, and the "Flintstones". As a Canadian, it has been hard, and always will be hard, to love and cover college basketball because people can't get past the fact that college basketball has a bigger place in this writer's heart than hockey.
With that being said, it's okay to be different. The Michigan State Spartans opened this writer's eyes to the game of college basketball at the early age of 9 years old, and it's with great appreciation that this writer says thank you.
Thank you to Tom Izzo, Morris Peterson, Mateen Cleaves, and the rest of the green and white for introducing a young kid from Canada to the wonderful game that is college basketball. It's nothing like sports up in Canada, and it has truly been a life-changing experience.
In a nutshell, that's how a little 9-year-old kid, born and raised in London, Ontario, around a bunch of Michigan fans, came to love the Michigan State Spartans and college basketball as a whole.