By Patrick Mooney
Already you can almost hear Luther Vandross singing over top of the Belmont players who nearly shocked Duke. The reaction shots from Thursday night's 71-70 loss will almost certainly make an appearance in "One Shining Moment," and they will be remembered "as the team that almost did it."
On the way to Washington, D.C., Belmont guard Jon Rice - a Waubonsie Valley graduate redshirting his freshman season - said the two teams played a similar style of up-tempo basketball that revolved around the 3-point line. Rice seemed to think his veteran teammates, after making two-consecutive NCAA trips, would better handle the experience.
Even though one program is a former NAIA school, and the other is one of college basketball's bluebloods, the game showed how the talent gap is narrowing.
The stakes mean the intrigue will extend beyond 94 feet, to off-court distractions. While dismissing the Scott Skiles to Indiana rumor, Bob Kravitz wonders: How many Hoosiers does it take to screw up a coaching search?
Good night, and good luck: If you find Katie Couric or Billy Packer annoying, direct your complaints to Sean McManus, the president of CBS News and CBS Sports who probably can't afford to call in sick this week.
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