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NCAA Basketball: 10 great tournament games we missed out on in history

By Trevor Sinodhinos

JACKSONVILLE, FL - MARCH 20: The NCAA March Madness logo on the floor during the NCAA Basketball First round practice session at the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena on March 20, 2019 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)
JACKSONVILLE, FL - MARCH 20: The NCAA March Madness logo on the floor during the NCAA Basketball First round practice session at the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena on March 20, 2019 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) /
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3 APR 1995: ARKANSAS COACH NOLAN RICHARDSON, RIGHT, HAS A WORD WITH FORWARD CORLISS WILLIAMSON ON THE BENCH  WASHINGTON.
3 APR 1995: ARKANSAS COACH NOLAN RICHARDSON, RIGHT, HAS A WORD WITH FORWARD CORLISS WILLIAMSON ON THE BENCH  WASHINGTON. /

North Carolina vs Arkansas (1994)

Derrick Phelps, Kevin Salvadore and the big man in the middle Eric Montross all returned to North Carolina after defeating the Fab 5 in an unforgettable title game the year before. Coach Dean Smith would add three future NBA players as a freshman, most notably, Jerry Stackhouse and Rasheed Wallace.

This incarnation of the Tar Heels would go 28-7 and finish second in the ACC with an 11-5 conference record. They caught nobody by surprise and their games were anticipated all year as their pre-season rank was No.1. After some ups and downs throughout the year, North Carolina would end the season at N.o1 after three victories in the ACC tournament.

Entering the tournament they would have the #1 seed in the East, that would increase the anticipation as it set them opposite the SEC Champions for a potential title game versus Nolan Richardson’s Arkansas Razorbacks and their “40 Minutes of Hell”

The Razorbacks had lost to North Carolina the year earlier in the East semi-finals, but in 1994, Corliss Williamson, Corey Beck, and Clint McDaniel, the future NBA selections, had a year of experience and this was a more evolved ‘40 Minutes of Hell”

The Razorbacks started the season on a 10 game winning streak, they also had a 12 game win streak snapped in the SEC tournament. None of that would deter the Razorbacks as they would face and defeat nationally-ranked  No.11 Michigan, No.9 Arizona, and No.6 Duke on their way to the 1994 Championship while almost maintaining their season average of 93 points per game.

Unfortunately, the defending champs who were best suited to deal with the “40 Minutes of Hell” with Dean Smith playing eight players over 20 minutes, in addition, North Carolina led the nation in two-point field goals, free-throws, blocks, and were fourth in total points.

To everybody’s disappointment, the defending champs lost in the second round to Boston College preventing them from defending their title versus a legendary team.

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