Now that we are getting close to the college basketball post season, we here at Wildcatspride.com have decided to take a look at some of Davidson’s recent post season performances, and in doing so, have come to a conclusion that no one in the national media picked up on. Despite performances by Jason Richards and superstar, Stephen Curry, it was Junior forward Max Paulhus Gosselin that beat the Georgetown Hoyas in the second round of the 2008 NCAA tournament.
ESPN recently called the game one of the best college basketball upsets of the decade, a true David vs. Goliath story.
For the bulk of the game, The Hoyas fully enjoyed their Goliath status. Over the course of the first 24 minutes, they took every chance they could find to assert their strength. Whether it was a tongue hanging out while Patrick Ewing Jr. drove to the rim for a dunk and one, or Vernon Macklin letting out a howl while throwing down a two handed jam, Georgetown’s message was clear: “We can get to your basket any time we want, in fact, your basket is our basket.”
The Hoyas were so clear in their ownership of the Davidson basket that even during dead balls, they would take the opportunity to drive and put the ball in as if to reinforce their message.
Things were looking bleak for the Wildcats. Billy Packer mentioned that it was “all Georgetown underneath”, and it “spells well for Georgetown in future games”. CBS had turned to a different game as they often do when producers sense a rout brewing, and the RBC Center was waiting out the game in slience hoping to see the Tar Heels come onto the court soon.
Then, with 16:42 left to play, everything changed. Paulhus Gosselin had just laid a ball in on a feed from Steph Curry, but the defecit was still a seemingly insurmountable 14 points to a dominant Georgetown team. Jonathan Wallace had the ball for the Hoyas and was fouled outside the arch on a hedge move from Thomas Sander. The play was dead, but Wallace decided to take the opportunity to reinforce the Hoya mental edge by driving and dunking on Davidson, not to score points, but to make a point. However, he never got to the rim.
Max pushed him.
It was a subtle push, and didn’t warrent a call, but the statement was clear. Billy Packer noticed what had happened and noted that Wallace “didn’t appreciate it”, but Max did not back down. He shot an icy stare straight at Wallace as if to let him know “I’m not letting you get to the rim again”.
From that moment on, the game become one of pride for the Wildcats. The team picked up on the statement Max had made and decided that, as a group, they would reclaim both baskets.
The following sequence of events describes the battle over control of the rims initiated by Max’s actions:
16:42 - Max pushes Wallace - Wildcats down by 14.
16:31 - Austin Freeman pushes Jason Richards trying to get position down low - Hoya turnover.
16:15 - After a miss by Curry, Summers travels trying to push through a double team and get to the rim - Hoya turnover.
15:22 - After a shot clock violation, Chris Wright squeezes his way down low - Davidson down by 16.
14:59 - Andrew Lovedale fouled attempting a dunk, makes 1/2 - Davidson down by 15.
14:32 - Andrew Lovedale blocks Vernon Macklin’s dunk - Rebound Davidson.
14:24 - Jeremiah Rivers fouls Stephen Curry on a mde three, Curry converts the 4 point play - Davidson down by 11.
14:02 - Ewing carries the ball trying to get around Lovedale and get to the rim - Turnover Hoyas.
13:38 - Richards turns the ball over but fouls Macklin hard going to the basket. - Macklin misses both free throws.
13:03 - Davidson presses, Freeman throws the ball upcourt and out of bounds - Turnover Hoyas.
12:12 - Sander finds an offensive rebound and lays the ball in. Billy Packer mentions the fans getting “back into the action” - Davidson down by 9.
11:58 - Roy Hibbert gets inside and scores over Lovedale - Lead back to 11.
11:37 - After a miss by Davidson, Hibbert elbows Sander in the post - Georgetown gets a bench warning for arguing - Turnover Hoyas.
11:24 - Richards drives the baseline and lays it in - Davidson down by 9.
10:42 - After outside misses on both ends, Summers drives on Max. Max picks his pocket and the ball moves ahead to Lovedale who runs the court and lays it in - Davidson down by 7.
10:26 - Wright gets a step on Max, who fouls Wright to prevent him from getting to the rim - CBS brings their coverage back to the game.
10:25 - Ewing fouls Steve Rossiter as both forwards go for a ball inbounded underneath - Turnover Hoyas.
9:27 - After a miss by Stephen Curry, Wright comes right back at Curry on a drive to the basket. Curry strips the ball and ends up with an open look on the offensive end - Davidson down 4.
9:18 - Georgetown is forced to take a timeout. Jim Nantz mentions Davidson is “back from the dead”.
8:47 - After an outside miss from Georgetown, Curry finds Lovedale underneath who goes over Summers to lay it in - Davidson down by 2.
The battle for the rims, initiated by Max Paulhus Gosselin had been decided. The Wildcats had climbed from a 17 point deficit to a 2 point deficit and had laid claim to the rims that had previously belonged to Georgetown. The rest of the game is history. Curry showed why he was one of the greatest to ever put on a Davidson uniform by scoring 25 points in the second half and David downed Goliath.
Davidson head coach Bob McKillop has always preached a team mentality, and the victory was a team victory. Yes, Richards ran the team like a true floor leader, and yes, Curry was unstoppable, even by what could have been argued was one of the best defensive teams in the country…
But it was Max Paulhus Gosselin who changed the course of the game and created one of the greatest college basketball upsets of the decade.
We all know that Davidson has one of it’s strongest recruiting classes coming in this year with 5 players joining the Wildcats, all with skills to potentially make huge impacts on the program.
