On the red trim at the bottom of his shoes, Stephen Curry has written in black marker, “I can do all things.”
Yes, yes he can.
Instead of being intimidated by the big stage—not to mention the monstrous Ford Field venue—Curry and Davidson played with such ease and attitude they may as well have been in their cozy little gym back home. The Wildcats shot 49 percent from the floor, and were 12-of-24 from 3 ball range. Jason Richards had 11 pts and 13 assists, and Lovedale added 12 pts.
“Michael did a pretty good job of chasing Curry and trying to force some things,” Wisconsin coach Bo Ryan said. “He made some tough shots. But so did some of the other guys. I thought they got a lot of contributions when they needed them. And that’s how you get to keep playing in the NCAA tournament.”
Flowers led the Badgers with 12 and three others finished in doubles, but the Badgers never found their rhythm offensively. The defense that was so fearsome all year never materialized. Wisconsin prides itself on making opponents work the shot clock down in search of a decent shot. But time and again, Wisconsin would score only to have Davidson race down the court and make a basket of its own seconds later.
“I felt like we were always in it,” said Brian Butch said. “I felt like we needed to make some plays and we didn’t make any plays.”
Curry, on the other hand, did.
Marcus Landry’s jumper pulled the Badgers within 48-45 with 13:48 to play. That’s when Curry took over.
He made a 3, and Jason Richards stole the ball on the other end. Racing upcourt, Richards found Curry camped in the corner all by himself and dished off. Joe Krabbenhoft—a member of the Big Ten’s all-defensive team—sprinted toward Curry and jumped, hoping to block the shot.
But Curry calmly waited until Krabbenhoft flew by him and then, with that silky smooth shot that’s becoming a signature of this year’s tournament, made another 3 to put Davidson up 54-45 with 13:03 to play.
As his teammates cheered, Curry thumped his chest and pointed skyward. The basket gave him 23 points—twice as many as anybody else on the court and was his fifth 3 of the night.
“It’s hard for a defense to sustain themselves for a whole 40 minutes. Eventually, you’ll find yourself open,” Curry said. “It’s just being patient and sticking to the system that we have at Davidson.”
He wasn’t done yet, either.
Davidson had run the shot clock almost all the way down, looking for something. Curry finally took an off-balance shot from NBA 3-point range, falling as he released the ball. No matter. It was good, just like almost everything else he did Friday night.
And a minute later, he scored on a sweet inside reverse, drawing a foul and the admiration of everybody in the arena, including James. The Cleveland Cavaliers star had praised Curry earlier this week and, on the eve of a game against the Detroit Pistons, decided to get a better look.
Curry didn’t disappoint him. Or anybody else.
“He continues to amaze me,” Lovedale said.
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