Florida State head coach Leonard Hamilton on the decision not to foul with 11 seconds remaining.#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/IxlWNnuPRa
— March Madness Men’s Basketball TV (@MM_MBB_TV) March 25, 2018
Well, in case you missed it Florida State decided not to foul Michigan with 11 seconds left on the clock and down by 4. Was there a good chance they came back and won? No, of course not. Was there any chance they come back and win? Absolutely. The play was to foul. Every fan, journalist, analyst, waterboy, coach, player, GM, AD, Owner in American knew that. It was so obvious you didn’t even consider a world where they don’t foul in that situation. It was that clear to everyone except the head coach of the team which was supposed to be committing that intentional foul.
Not only did he not foul and seemingly make an ill-advised mistake at the end of the biggest game of his coaching career, but come to find out, he made the conscious decision to not foul. And then defended it like we were all crazy! Like no one had ever seen a basketball game before. Foul? To try and extend the game? To do what? Try and win? You crazy? That game was over! That was his actual thought process. No other possible conclusion.
That all might be fine and dandy when the game is actually over. 11 seconds left is at least two more possessions for your team including the quick fouls. You’re down four. Michigan is a terrible free throw shooting team. They shoot 66% from the stripe. Which is good for 321st in the nation. Bottom 10% in the country. Maybe they were hot that night you say? Glad you asked. They were shooting 67% from the line that night. An expectable terrible evening.
So all you have to do is hit two threes and hope the team that shoots 66% from the line goes 2/4 in the most pressure situation the year. Likely, no, it’s not. Possible, most definitely. It’s March Madness. Not only that but its March MAdness in 2018. Have you seen the shit that’s happened this year? It’s been bonkers.
At first, you’re thinking that this guy had a great run this year and took this team further than they had ever dreamed. It was one small mistake at the end of a game, which still had a small chance to be won. You wish it didn’t happen but you accept it all things considered and get excited about next year.
Then you hear this interview and realized how absolutely delusional you’re head coach is. There’s really only one logical, fair and sane solution…
