Many a shining moment for Notre Dame
One Shining Moment?
More like 12.
The Notre Dame men’s basketball team may have been gone from the NCAA tournament following a loss in the Elite Eight for a second-straight March, but not forgotten.
The Irish were all over the NCAA tournament’s curtain closer – “One Shining Moment” – the 3:08 highlight video montage that rolled following Villanova’s stunning 77-74 victory over top seed North Carolina in Monday’s championship.
And it started right from the top. Here are the shining moments for the Irish, who closed the 2015-16 season at 24-12 with consecutive Elite Eight appearances for the first time since 1978-79.
• Voice-over from coach Mike Brey accompanies the opening few clips of teams preparing to take the floor for the start of the tournament. Brey is heard saying, “First five minutes, play for each other. There’s nothing like this special time right here.”
• Freshman Rex Pflueger greeting junior swingman V.J. Beachem during the introduction of starting lineups. The players stand across from one another with hands in prayer and bow toward the other. The routine, which features a different greeting for each of the five Irish starters, had long been done by senior A.J. Burgett, who gave way to Pflueger late in the season.
• Beachem and Pflueger high-fiving during a game, which starts a run of five consecutive clips featuring nothing but Notre Dame.
• Pflueger tipping in with his right hand a missed Zach Auguste shot with 1.5 seconds left to beat Stephen F. Austin, 76-75, in the second round to send the Irish back to the Sweet 16 a second consecutive season.
• An end-of-bench reaction to Pflueger’s winner featuring sharp-dressed freshman Elijah Burns, sitting out this season to preserve a year of eligibility, and trainer Skip Meyer.
• An opposite end of the court view from on high of the Irish bench, featuring sophomore Matt Farrell and freshman Matt Ryan going all crazy, after Pflueger’s tip.
• Auguste’s emotional reaction pumping both fists and screaming as the Irish staff and players line up for the post-game handshake after the SFA game.
• Guard Demetrius Jackson jumping into the arms of teammate Austin Torres during a timeout in the Sweet 16 game against Wisconsin.
• Jackson dribbling between his legs against an SFA defender. The Moment montage usually follows chronological order of tournament games played, except for this one which jumps back to the second round.
• As with the Jackson dribble clip, this one is out of order. It skips ahead to Auguste’s reaction during a call in the Elite Eight loss to North Carolina.
• Jackson’s primal scream/emotional outburst in the closing seconds of the Wisconsin game where his two steals, two layups and two free throws helped the Irish erase a three-point deficit in the final 26 seconds for an improbable 61-56 victory.
• An emotional Jackson, who 48 hours would declare for the NBA draft, burying his head in Auguste’s chest on the bench in the closing seconds of the North Carolina loss.
The previous year, when Notre Dame finished 32-6, the Irish had only three "One Shining Moment" clips.
Here is the 2016 version of “One Shining Moment” video in its entirety:
