[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 48 (Tuesday, April 16, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3413-S3414]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
COMMENDING THE UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY'S MEN'S BASKETBALL TEAM ON ITS
SIXTH NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate
proceed to the immediate consideration of Senate Resolution 244, a
resolution to commend and congratulate the University of Kentucky on
its men's basketball team winning its sixth National Collegiate
Athletic Association championship, submitted earlier today by Senators
Ford and McConnell.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection to the immediate
consideration of the resolution?
There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the
resolution.
Mr. FORD. Mr. President, there is a scene in the movie ``Butch
Cassidy and the Sundance Kid'' where the heroes, successful and
unchallenged for years, suddenly find themselves chased by an
unshakeable posse.
Each time the posse reappears, the pressure builds on the heroes and
they feel a little less invincible, their pursuers' skills a little
more impressive. ``Who are those guys?'' they keep asking.
Over the 3 weeks leading up to the weekend of the National Collegiate
Athletic Association Championships' final four, fans found themselves
watching upset after upset, crossing off one favored pick after
another, scratching their heads and saying, ``Who are those guys?''
Those upsets are testament to the incredible talent we saw on display
during the NCAA championships this year. And the incredible pressure.
That's why after going through nickname after nickname for his team,
the University of Kentucky's Coach Rick Pitino finally settled on the
``untouchables,'' because they never let any of that pressure touch
them.
Game after game during the tournament, those players came out
professional, poised, and untouched by the pressure that had the most
devoted of Wildcat fans cautious in their predictions for Monday
night's final outcome.
But as Sports Illustrated pointed out, not even the magnificently
courageous Syracuse team they would suit up against on April 1, 1996,
would be able to shake the Cat's unapologetic defense.
In the end, even the upset magic that was in the tournament's air
from the first jump ball, was simply no match for their depth and their
talent.
The fans were right to ask ``Who are those guys?'' But, the Wildcats
have a coach that knew how to take raw talent, combine it with an
unmatched professionalism, sportsmanship, and some downright dangerous
weapons--from Derrick Anderson's three-pointers to Walter McCarthy's
thunderous dunks to Ron Mercer's slashing drives to Anthony Epps' ball
handling--to turn back the challengers, one by one.
And of course there was Tony Delk. He had 7 three-pointers and 10
rebounds in the final game against Syracuse's scrappy Orangemen. But,
as he bent down to help up a fallen Syracuse player, he came to
epitomize not just the outstanding playing that marked this tournament,
but the outstanding sportsmanship as well.
But, this was one player's victory.
Those five starters weren't the whole team by any means. With no
player averaging much over 20 minutes per game the whole season, the
Wildcats succeeded because of their ability to rely on one another's
strengths, no matter what a player's position in the lineup.
That's because this was a team in every sense of the word, with a
depth and wealth of talent that was the envy of the entire NCAA. Rick
Pitino said more than once that his players checked their egos at the
door. And because of that, when they went back out that door, they went
as winners.
They rib us a bit about taking our basketball too seriously in
Kentucky. And apocryphal stories about fans being buried in their
Wildcat sweat suits or calling on Coach Pitino to help settle their
marital spats, sometimes make it seem so.
But, when you see a team of such gifted athletes work together in a
way that seems almost effortless--and combine it with a professionalism
on and off the court that makes them true role models to their peers
and their young admirers--then Kentucky's devotion to her basketball
doesn't seem misplaced one bit.
The University of Kentucky's year was marked by one amazing statistic
after another. They not only had a 34 and 2 record--the best record
since the 1953-54 Cats went 25 and 0, but at one point had strung
together 27 consecutive wins, the longest in the country. And they
finished a very, very tough SEC regular season undefeated, the first
time that's been done in four decades. The Wildcat's average margin of
victory in the NCAA tournament was 21.5 points per game--the fourth
best margin of victory in the history of the game.
And, while the players' incredible talent and the unmatched coaching
[[Page S3414]]
skills of Rick Pitino are enough to assure that no one will be asking
``who are those guys?'' about the Kentucky Wildcats anytime soon, I
believe it is only right that the U.S. Senate should be on record
saluting their accomplishments.
And so I urge my colleagues in joining me in the adoption of a
resolution commending the University of Kentucky basketball team.
Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution
be agreed to, and motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, that the
preamble be agreed to, and that any statements relating thereto be
placed in the Record at the appropriate place as if read.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
So the resolution (S. Res. 244) was agreed to.
The preamble was agreed to.
The resolution, with its preamble, is as follows:
S. Res. 244
Whereas the University of Kentucky Wildcats men's
basketball team defeated Syracuse University's team on April
1, 1996, in East Rutherford, New Jersey, to win its sixth
National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) championship;
Whereas the senior members of this team, during their four-
year varsity careers, were also NCAA semi-finalists and
three-time champions of the Southeastern Conference;
Whereas Coach Rick Pitino, his staff, and his players
displayed outstanding dedication, teamwork unselfishness, and
sportsmanship throughout the course of the season in
achieving collegiate basketball's highest honor, earning for
themselves the nickname ``The Untouchables''; and
Whereas Coach Pitino and the Wildcats have brought pride
and honor to the Commonwealth of Kentucky, which is rightly
known as the basketball capital of the world: Now, therefore,
be it
Resolved, That the Senate commends and congratulates the
University of Kentucky on its outstanding accomplishment.
Sec. 2. The Secretary of the Senate shall transmit a copy
of this resolution to the president of the University of
Kentucky.
____________________