We all dream of being the one who captivates a nation, and stuns the favorite.  Yesterday, Scottie Reynolds got to be that guy, in a game that was simply unforgettable

SCOTT JACOBS

Five seconds, four seconds, three seconds, two, one… he shoots, and he scoreeeeeeeeeeeessss.  Villanova wins, Villanova wins!  Unbelievable, are you kidding me?

We’ve all been there.  Whether it’s on the playground, counting down an imaginary clock in our head, before heaving a final shot, or in the office with a bunched up piece of paper and a garbage bin.  We dream of being the hero, the one with the ball in our hands, racing down the floor, with the chance to make a memory that no one can take away from us.

But many of us never get the chance to live it.  Maybe in a rec game, maybe in a high school game, do some of us get that chance.  But with 5.5 seconds left, tied at 76 with one of the best teams in the country, I could only imagine what it’s like to have the ball in your grips with a berth in the Final Four on the line and tens of millions of faces watching your every move.

Scottie Reynolds, welcome to the show, son.  Welcome to a moment that will forever live in tournament lore.

In a heartstopping 5.5 seconds, Reynolds went from a good player to a historic one.  In 5.5 seconds Villanova went from a very good story to a fantastic one.  And in 5.5 seconds Villanova pulled off a hook-n-ladder-esque play that had to be absolutley perfect to work.

And in 5.5 seconds, Villanova stunned the tough lucked Panthers, who were convinced that all those close tussles in this 2009 tourney, even in a tourney highighted mostly by blowouts, were meant to propel them to the Final Four and ultimately a national championship.

They had to be convinced that fate was on their side when ‘Nova’s Reggie Reddings took a chance that he didn’t have to take.  Up two with 20 seconds to left, all the Wildcats had to do was safely get the ball inbounded, get fouled, and nail their free throws.  It was no big deal really– ‘Nova hasd already shot an astounding 22-23 from the line, so what was two more to ice it?  But instead Redding went for the kill and chucked the ball with all his might to a streaking Dante Cunningham.  But Cunningham caught the ball just as he was about to go out of bounds, and he tried to throw it off of Pitt’s Sam Young, who ran down the ball, fed it to Mr. Clutch for the Panthers, Levance Fields, who was fouled and nailed both free throws.

Unbelievably it was 76-76.  Right before those two Fields’ foul shots, I said to my friend, this is just a gut, but he’s going to make both foul shots, and then Villanova is going to break their hearts when they go right down the length of the court and score before time expires.

I was right, and it felt like Boise State all over again.  Only this one didn’t tie things up.  This one secured an unforgettable victory.

Not to mention, in a Pennsylvania story, Philadelphia got the last laugh this time on Pitt.

You might remember the possibility of an Eagles-Steelers Super Bowl, before the Cardinals came back to win.  The Steelers won the Super Bowl in breathtaking/heartbreaking fashion.

This time, Pittsburgh found out what its like to be stunned.  And stunned they were.

In a tournament of mostly forgettable games, Villanova-Pitt was anything but.

Photo: Reuters

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