Marcus Paige walked a mile in Jermaine Kearse’s shoes Monday night.
Paige hit an awkward, twisting, off-balance 3-pointer with 4.7 seconds remaining in the NCAA championship game to pull North Carolina even with Villanova. It was a miraculous shot by the UNC guard, but it’ll be forgotten by many because Kris Jenkins subsequently lifted ‘Nova to a 77-74 victory with a buzzer-beater for the ages.
“We were 4.7 seconds away from winning the game because I told the team, … all we had to do was get to overtime and the game would be ours,” Paige said, according to ESPN. “And I truly believe that, I think our whole team believes that.”
Photo via Robert Deutsch/USA TODAY Sports Images
One can’t help but think back to Super Bowl XLIX and the New England Patriots’ epic win over the Seattle Seahawks. Kearse made an insane bobbling catch to put the Seahawks at the New England 5-yard line with just over a minute remaining, but the game, which was won by the Patriots, will be most remembered for Seattle’s decision to pass rather than run on second-and-goal from the 1-yard line with less than 30 seconds remaining, resulting in Malcolm Butler intercepting a Russell Wilson pass.
In both instances, a crazy play went from being the story to being a footnote in the opponent’s win.
“I thought that was it,” Paige told ESPN after Monday’s title game, looking back on his game-tying shot. “Maybe that was my bad for not taking that 4.7 (seconds) seriously, but (Jenkins) hit a shot that’s going to be on every ‘One Shining Moment’ video for as long as they do that.”
Just like Kearse’s catch isn’t the “shining moment” of Super Bowl XLIX, Paige’s shot isn’t the “shining moment” it would have been had UNC forced overtime and defeated Villanova for the national title. Both still were incredible displays of poise and athleticism, though.
So let’s not forget them, for they set the stage for even greater heroics moments later.
Thumbnail photo via Bob Donnan/USA TODAY Sports Images
