Ideassert: Sweet Ideas

The Final Four has finally arrived! Between the bracket busters and buzzer beaters nothing brings the country together more than the NCAA basketball tournament. My love for the game and tournament started at a young age, and this has always been my favorite time of the year.

In life, we mostly see the final product (what is on the court in this example) but we never see or understand what goes into getting that final product on the court. During March Madness we are given the opportunity to hear the stories straight from the source, to see the hard work of the players, coaches, and one of the most forgotten aspects: the sacrifices the families make. Making it to this point in the game- especially the Final Four is something just as slim as winning the lottery (all things considered). The stories of struggle and heart break throughout the journey, sometimes followed by success are what make this tournament so great.

On character off the court:Michigan State’s Adreian Payne is a Little Girl’s Superman

Princess Lacey an 8-year-old battling neuroblastoma, a nerve cancer and Superman (Adreian Payne) first met last season when the MSU team visited the hospital; and the brother-sister relationship formed from there.

Payne says that Lacey motivates him and the team. He keeps in touch with her family and enjoys her company. When he plays well he knows it makes her happy, and makes him feel like he’s doing something to help her feel better.

Lacey helped Michigan State cut down the nets at the Big Ten Tournament. And also was the center of the team banquet. Another great add-on to this story: Jay Bilas followed Princess Lacey on Twitter (the ONLY person he has ever followed on twitter), and Payne later mentioned how happy that made her.

Payne will be the first person in his family to graduate from college and will likely be a solid draft pick, but he plans to continue to be apart of Lacey’s life forever regardless of the distance.

“I will never ever be prouder of a guy than I will be of Adreian Payne for a lot of reasons. The academic success he’s had, coming from the position he was in. But what he’s done, I think that’s why we’re on the planet, to make other people’s lives better. And he’s made this girl’s life better. He’s included her in every major thing, because we don’t know how much longer she has. We’re hoping, but we don’t know. And it hasn’t been great the last six months. And he’s just made it better for her. And our team has embraced it too and their family has embraced our team. But it’s hung on because of Adreian Payne solely.”- Coach Tom Izzo

On hard work: UConn’s Shabazz Napier Plays for His Mom.

He grew up without a father, and he frequently mentions the encouragement his mother provided him throughout his childhood. In his story he recalls when he grew up he saw how everyone else seemed to have a happy family, and how others had more than him since their fathers were in the picture. His mom always did her best to make it seem like they had a lot, but he knew they didn’t. He used that motivation from the love of his mom to push him to be the best he could be and she helped form him into the basketball player he is at a very young age.

On heartbreak: Wisconsin’s Coach Bo Ryan, This One’s For Butch.

Bo Ryan has been the head coach of the University of Wisconsin men’s basketball team for 13 years, and this is his first Final Four. His father attended every Final Four with him, and passed away last August. This is Bo Ryan’s first Final Four without his father. The win over Arizona that punched their ticket to North Texas, would have been on his father- Butch Ryan’s 90th birthday.

Everyone can learn something valuable from March Madness. The stories along the way that go behind the scenes of the struggle, the hard work, the triumph, and the unfortunate heart break bring all things of life into perspective.