Jim Valvano led the 1983 NC State NCAA title basketball game win over Houston that ended the Cougars 26-game winning streak. State went into the tournament having lost 10 games - (NasTheFirst photo)

The historic 1983 NCAA title tournament victory over Houston that was led by Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler gave NC State a 26-10 overall record - North Carolina State University, Athletics, Media Relations photo

SPORTS NOTES - JIM VALVANO & NORTH CAROLINA STATE's MIRACLE NCAA TITLE

James Loving/National Radio Text Service

The 1983 NC State NCAA title game win over Houston ended the Cougars 26-game winning streak. State went into the tournament having lost 10 games during their regular season. Following the game NC State coach Jim Valvano is most recognized for his reaction of running around on the court looking for somebody to hug.

Saturday, April 02, 2016

VALVANO LED WITH HIS HEART & WON

When it comes to the most memorable NCAA tournament finals games the 1983 North Carolina State title is the most memorable. The reasons why are simple. First the team came into the tournament with 10 losses during their regular season result of 17-10.

Their winning streak started at the right time during the ACC Tournament which was a must win to qualify for a spot in the NCAA's March Madness extravaganza.

The ACC tournament was the beginning of a Cinderella run when they began by defeating heavily favored North Carolina and Virginia squads led by Michael Jordan and Ralph Sampson, respectively.

The Wolfpack kept winning. Their close games and exciting finishes in the ACC Tournament and early rounds of the NCAA tournament that earned them the moniker The Cardiac Pack.

As a #6 seed in the NCAA Tournament, the Wolfpack won narrow victories over Pepperdine (in double overtime) and UNLV (71-70) before defeating Utah in the Sweet Sixteen, 75-56. In the regional final, NC State again defeated Virginia, 63-62, and then defeated Georgia in the Final Four to advance to the championship game against Houston.

The Houston Cougars, nicknamed Phi Slama Jama for their athletic, fast-paced style of play that featured Clyde Drexler and Hakeem Olajuwon, were expected to win easily over the underdog Wolfpack. NC State escaped after a last-second air ball by Dereck Whittenburg was caught and dunked by Lorenzo Charles. The 54-52 final is one of the most famous in college basketball history.

The historic victory gave NC State a 26-10 overall record. The win over the Houston team ended their 26-game winning streak. Following the game Valvano is most recognized for his reaction of running around on the court looking for somebody to hug in the moments after the Wolfpack victory came after the game-winning shot. Valvano's overall record at NC State was 209-114 (.647) and his career record as a head coach was 346-210 (.622).

Then the shit hit the fan as a journalist playing the game of digging for dirt wrote a story that ended Valvano's coaching career in 1990.

Accusations of rules violations surfaced in the book Personal Fouls by Peter Golenbock. These accusations centered mostly on high school All-American Chris Washburn, who managed only a 470 out of 1600 on his SAT (with 400 being the starting score).

A 1989 NCAA investigation cleared Valvano, but found that players sold shoes and game tickets. As a result, NC State placed its basketball program on probation for two years (the maximum) and was banned from participating in the 1990 NCAA tournament.

Other entities investigated the charges but none proved to be true. The bottom line the dirt ended Valvano's coaching career.

After coaching Valvano was a broadcaster for ESPN and ABC Sports, including a stint as a sideline reporter for the inaugural season of the World League of American Football. In 1992, Valvano won a Cable ACE Award for Commentator/Analyst for NCAA basketball broadcasts.

From time to time he was paired with basketball analyst Dick Vitale, dubbed the "Killer Vees", with similar voices and exuberant styles. The two even made a cameo appearance, playing the role of professional movers (V&V Movers), on an episode of The Cosby Show.

It was during this time that I met Valvano although I can't recall exactly for what occasion as I was a member of the TCA (Television Critics Association) and we met with numerous television presentations.

What stands out is in speaking with Valvano about that memorable NCAA title victory he was exuberant and positive with a huge smile on his face as he recalled the moment. What I didn't know is that he was nearing the end of his life and he knew it but his smile didn't show it.

Valvano was diagnosed with metastatic adenocarcinoma, a type of bone cancer, in June 1992. On March 3, 1993, shortly before his death, he spoke at the first ESPY Awards, presented by ESPN. While accepting the inaugural Arthur Ashe Courage and Humanitarian Award, he announced the creation of The V Foundation for Cancer Research, an organization dedicated to finding a cure for cancer.

He announced that the foundation's motto would be "Don't Give Up . . . Don't Ever Give Up." During his speech the teleprompter stated that he had 30 seconds left, to which Valvano responded, "They got that screen up there flashing 30 seconds, like I care about that screen. I got tumors all over my body and I'm worried about some guy in the back going 30 seconds."

His speech included this statement: "To me, there are three things we all should do every day. We should do this every day of our lives. Number one is laugh. You should laugh every day. Number two is think. You should spend some time in thought. And number three is, you should have your emotions moved to tears, could be happiness or joy. But think about it. If you laugh, you think, and you cry, that's a full day. That's a heck of a day. You do that seven days a week, you're going to have something special.

Valvano's memorable ESPY acceptance speech became legendary. He closed by saying: "Cancer can take away all of my physical abilities. It cannot touch my mind, it cannot touch my heart, and it cannot touch my soul. And those three things are going to carry on forever. I thank you and God bless you all."

Valvano died April 28, 1993 at age 47, less than two months after his famous ESPY speech, following a nearly year-long battle with metastatic cancer. Valvano died at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, North Carolina, on April 28, 1993, ten years to the month after winning the national championship in one of the biggest upsets in the history of the tournament.

Valvano's experience reminds me of what current Miami Heat president said to the Los Angels media when he returned to LA as the coach of the New York Knicks. The press was badgering him about why he departed the Lakers and he eventually replied, "You can't take away what I've done."

That statement is one of my most memorable and it most certainly applies to Jim Valvano that regardless of how the media tried to drag him down… YOU CAN'T TAKE AWAY WHAT HE DID IN LEADING a 10 LOSS LOSING NC STATE TEAM TO VICTORY AND THE 1983 NCAA TOURNAMENT TITLE.

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