Sources: Kemba Walker Wanted For The Murder Of Gary McGhee's Ankles

Kemba Walker is so many things for the 2010-11 UConn Huskies.  He is their leader, their go-to scorer, their MVP, and clearly their best all-around player.  He should have been selected as the Big East Player of the Year (Ben Hansbrough?  Really?  Really??) and he will probably be selected as a first-team All-American in April.  Plus, as the consensus top point guard in college basketball, he is going to be someone's lottery pick in June.  You can take that to the bank.  (Minnesota, perhaps?  The Wolves do have a thing for PGs.  KAAAAAAAAAHN!)

Gary McGhee (bottom right) fell all the way into the lane on Kemba's step-back J.  (Credit: Pitt Post-Gazette)

But what is Kemba, really?  If you ask Brittany Griner's bizarro twin Gary McGhee, then Kemba is an ankle breaker.  If you ask Pittsburgh mob capo head coach Jamie Dixon, then Kemba is the best clutch player in the nation.  If you ask UConn head coach Jim Calhoun, then Kemba is the guy who gets the ball at the end of any close game, even though the entire arena knows who's getting the ball.


If you ask me, Kemba is the grittiest, nastiest, toughest prime time player in the country.  He is the consummate baller.  He may not put up impressive FG percentages every night, but here's what matters -- his FG percentage in clutch moments is off the charts.  When the game is on the line, he gets it done.  He singlehandedly closed the door against Michigan State in the Maui Invitational, against Texas on the road in Austin (arguably the best road win by any team all season), against Villanova, and against No. 1 seed Pittsburgh in the quarterfinals of the Big East Tournament at MSG.  Kemba's bread and butter is sinking that final dagger into his opponents.

Ask yourself this question: if you are playing UConn and the game is on the line, is there anyone you'd want to see less than Kemba with the ball in his hands?  He's the Mariano Rivera of college ballers.  Lethal.  Pittsburgh knew Kemba was going to take the final shot yesterday at the Garden.  Kemba came around a screen and had his defender one-on-one with about five seconds left.  No doubt this was Calhoun's plan.  Everyone saw it coming.  And Pitt still couldn't stop him.  Can you even blame them?  Look at this picture -- Kemba's crossover is so filthy that he nearly broke his own ankle.

No wonder McGhee fell down.   (Credit: Hartford Courant)

Now, it's unfair to place too much blame on Gary McGhee.  When Kemba came off the screen, Pitt was forced to switch, and McGhee got stuck with the nimble Walker.  It's inexplicable that nobody else on Pitt came over to help, but that's a different issue.  Once McGhee and Kemba were one-on-one, it just wasn't a fair fight.  McGhee is 6'11" and 250 pounds.  Kemba is generously listed at 6'1" and 172 pounds.  At least before he fell over, McGhee's wingspan forced Kemba to take a low-percentage jumper just inside the three-point line.  No matter.  Walker hit nothing but net as time expired.  Game over.

So what does this mean moving forward?  It's easy to say that UConn will go as far as Kemba Walker can carry them.  But other Huskies have been stepping up too.  Jeremy Lamb scored 17 on 67% shooting against Pitt.  Alex Oriakhi had a productive 13-and-7, as well as a 13-and-19 against DePaul.  Jamal Coombs-McDaniel saved the game against Pitt by grabbing the rebound off a Kemba miss with under 10 seconds to go, which preserved the possession for UConn and gave Kemba his opportunity to win it as time expired.  Shabazz Napier is playing the best defense on the team.

Do I think UConn has cause to be concerned?  Sure.  They struggle against the zone.  Their three-point shooting is too streaky.  And outside of Walker, they are a young and inexperienced team.  But they also have reason to be confident.  The Huskies lost 4 of 5 going into the Big East tournament, where they hadn't won a game since 2005 (!).  Now, regardless of whether they beat Syracuse to advance to the Big East championship game, they have conference heading into the NCAAs.  And they may have even improved their seeding to No. 4.

Finally, it needs to be said: the Big East is the most dominant conference in any college sport in recent history.  Nothing else -- not even SEC football -- comes close.  UConn is ranked No. 19 in the nation and was a NINTH SEED in the Big East tournament.  The talent is just so deep.  Anyone can beat anyone (see, e.g., South Florida taking down Villanova in the first round) and the games are so unbelievably physical (see, e.g., UConn's Roscoe Smith getting 8 stitches in the first half yesterday from a Pitt elbow to the face).  In some ways, the Big East tournament is more competitive and fun to watch than the NCAA tournament.  Can't wait for Syracuse-UConn tonight!