Kevin Noreen, Ladies Man
March 12, 2014 by Mike Casazza
This is not news to you, but Kevin Noreen has a large amount of supporters and a large amount of detractors. They wage a determined and supported debate over whether he’s just a guy or a guy who just does small things that shape the big picture.
But agree or disagree on his talent or his worth, it is a fact that he has fans, and what he did Saturday only added to the enrollment.
Mr. Basketball went topless and the sections of the sold out Coliseum shrieked.
“Just another set of fans to win over,” he said.
A mere 4:52 remained in the win against Kansas and Gary Browne had just stretched a 10-point lead to 15 points with free throws and a 3-pointer, the latter pulling Andrew Wiggins and his four fouls off the bench and to the scorer’s table. Then 6-foot-8, 220-pound Jamari Taylor drove and lowered the boom on Noreen, who stood his ground and took the charge.
“It knocked the wind out of me, but it changed momentum,” he said Wednesday after a shootaround at the Sprint Center. “Gary just hit a 3 and that call got the crowd going for us.”
Oh, it did.
The game had to be stopped, not because the officials called a foul against Kansas and no one knew what to do with themselves, but because Noreen was bleeding. From his back.
I thought for a second he’d been shot and I started scanning the cat walk and top rows for a sniper or something to explain that wound.
Turns out it was the floor burn to end all floor burns.
“If you hit the floor a certain way,” Noreen said, “that’s what happens.”
Good Lord. That should never happen. Noreen hustled to the bench, where a new jersey was waiting, and slipped the bloodied one off over his head. There was a sound, perhaps the din of fainting in the aisles, but certainly appreciation for more than just taking a charge.
“I guess it was worth it,” he said with a debonaire smile.
He slipped on a No. 41 jersey and played a few minutes, but that started to show blood, too. In time, his No. 34 was cleaned off and returned to his torso, but the memory remains
Shoulda threw a headband on @KevinNoreen34 lol good game fam! Out there gettin bloody, Cam ThrowAman… http://t.co/mXINcNzCPd
— john flowers (@jflow41) March 8, 2014