Illinois has players from Croatia (brothers Tomislav and Zvonimir Ivisic), Montenegro (David Mirković), Serbia (Mihailo Petrović) and California (Andrej Stojaković, who is of Serbian descent – he’s the son of Peja Stojaković, one the NBA’s greatest shooters). The Balkan Five with -ić names to prove it. They were recruited by assistant Orlando Antigua with the hope that their similar backgrounds would lead to team cohesion. Memo to Orlando: There’s a reason Yugoslavia doesn’t exist anymore. Because the people of its various regions hate one another; they were forced into a single entity by the Soviet Union. There’s a word for the fragmentation of a country into smaller, hostile units: Balkanization. Everything seems just fine, and the next thing you know the Ivisić brothers annex Mirković’s locker, forcing him into an alliance with the Serbians, who invade Poland.

The similarities between Iowa coach Ben McCollum and Indiana football coach Curt Cignetti are obvious. Both came from mid-majors (Drake and James Madison) and won on the big stage mainly with players they brought with them. A difference is that Cignetti recruited his star, Fernando Mendoza (from Cal), whereas Bennett Stirtz followed McCollum from Drake. Contrary to popular rumor, Drake’s rival is not Lamar University, which is in Beaumont Texas. Drake University is in Des Moines, which means “of the monks” in French. Monks would never suggest that Dave Free is the father of one of Lamar's children. 

Besides Stirtz (who was just named honorable mention All-America), McCollum brought Kael Combs, Tavion Banks, Cam Manyawu, Isaia Ward and Joey Matteoni to Iowa from Drake. Four of them start for Iowa. So, essential we have a mid-major in Iowa uniforms playing with a Final Four on the line. Incredible. 

I previously said that McCollum won two Division II national championships at Northwest Missouri State. That was incorrect. His teams won four championships in his 15 seasons at NMS. He was at Drake for one season before being called up to Iowa. Bennett Stirtz has been along for the whole journey, from Northwest Missouri State to Drake to Iowa. Apparently, Stirtz never gets tired. He routinely plays every minute of every game.

Iowa raced out to a 12-2 lead. Illinois fought back. Iowa was up 22-20 with 7:43 to go in the first, when the shot clock horn went on and stayed on. There was an extended pause in play. They unplugged the horn. It didn’t stop. They let the players shoot to stay warm. It didn’t stop. After 10 minutes, it finally stopped. It annoyed me; I can only imagine what it was like in the arena. When the horn ceased, the scoreboard went blank. They used a hand-held air horn for the rest of the game. 

Stirtz couldn’t miss before the horn interruption. He couldn’t miss after the horn interruption. Stirtz led the way with 15 in the first half. He’s impressive; reminds me of Andrew Nembhard (both killer in the pick-and-roll). Shout out to the Iowa team defense, which was suffocating. 32-28 Hawkeyes at the break. 

Both teams brought it in the second half. Over the first 6.5 minutes following the break, there were nine lead changes. After a shaky first half, Illinois star, Keaton Wagler, showed why he's a top NBA draft prospect; finishing at the rim and draining 3s. With 10 minutes remaining, the score was knotted at 46; Stirtz and Wagler had 17 apiece. 

The Illinois size differential started to make a difference (the Ivisic brothers go 7'1" and 7'2"). The Illini absolutely dominated the paint and the boards on both ends to edge ahead by 7 as we hit the stretch. Illinois did not relinquish control, finishing off Iowa 71-59. Brad Underwood (finally) to the Final Four!

Wagler with 25; Stirtz had 24.

Illinois won the battle of the boards, 38-21. That was the difference.

I forgot Vulgaris, Iowa's star of the first two rounds, was on the team. He barely played and didn't score. Weird.

Time to delve into the amazing story of the Boozer brothers, all three of them. ESPN did a documentary about the Boozers in 2010 and updated the story in 2024. It’s from the 30 for 30 people, so it’s well done. And only 24 minutes long. Worth your time.

Let’s get into it. Carlos and CeCe Boozer were expecting their first child 2006. They underwent routine testing for the gene mutation associated with sickle cell disease, a hemoglobin-related blood disorder. Both parents tested positive. (Testing for sickle cell is routine only with African Americans, who are disproportionally affected by the disease.) Although they did not have the disease themselves, there was a 25% chance that their unborn child would have sickle cell. In utero testing revealed, sadly, that the fetus had inherited the condition. Sickle cell is horrible. There are few treatments (which are also horrible). The disease gets its name from the fact that it causes red blood cells to develop a sickle shape; they are also sticky. Both are bad. The red blood cells tend to clump together causing all kinds of problems from anemia to strokes. Chronic pain also is a common complication. People with sickle cell have lives that are approximately 20 years less than a person without the disease. This brings us to the first ethical dilemma. Some parents, if the disease is identified early enough, choose to terminate the pregnancy. To be blunt, even parents like the Boozers, who both carry the sickle cell gene mutation, have a 75% chance of conceiving a child without sickle cell should they become pregnant again. The Boozers went ahead with the pregnancy and Carmani was born in 2006.

The symptoms of sickle cell vary and tend to worsen as a person ages. Carmani was again unfortunate, developing serious symptoms while still a baby. He was in and out of the ER. The Boozer's doctors offered little hope. A bone marrow transplant (blood is made in the bone marrow) from one of the parents was an option, but neither parent was a viable donor. Here we pause to remember that Carlos Boozer was an NBA All-Star, which is to say that he is rich. There were other options that are not usually discussed. Because they are ethically fraught and ridiculously expensive. It boiled down to this: a sibling was more likely to be a donor match. Carmani didn’t have any siblings.

Which brings us to the next series of ethical challenges. The Boozers decided to create a baby. Via in vitro fertilization. Why IVF? So the fertilized eggs could be tested for sickle cell. The medical team harvested 34 eggs, fertilizing 10 of them. Of the 10 fertilized eggs, only two were sickle cell free and a match for Carmani. Both were implanted into CeCe. Let’s pause again. The Boozers are clearly bright and thoughtful people. But some of the language they use is troubling. Carlos said: “We needed to have a baby so we can cure Carmani”. That’s an ethical thicket. So are those fertilized eggs, which are inarguably potential humans. Or full-fledged humans (the view of some). If they are humans, what happened to the 8 fertilized but incompatible eggs? Likely discarded, although it’s possible that they are still frozen. There are people who feel that we are now discussing murder. Which is a much bigger issue than the expense, but one round of IVF costs about the same as a small SUV. Manageable for a lot of people, even those who aren’t rich. But we’re just getting started.

CeCe gives birth to Cameron and Cayden. Their umbilical cord blood, which is rich in hematopoietic stem cells, is harvested. This is the source for Carmani’s bone marrow transplant. We are not out of the ethical woods yet, not by a long shot. The idea is simple. Get rid of Carmani’s bone marrow that produces sickle cell-shaped blood cells and replace it with his twin brothers’, which doesn’t. How do we get rid of Carmani’s bone marrow? A round of intense chemotherapy that had to completely eliminate his bone marrow for the next phase to succeed. Carmani was 14 months old at this point. There was a 10% chance that the chemo would kill him. It obviously worked out. Would you have taken that chance if Carmani were your child? (Not judging, just asking.) 

There are two forms of bone marrow transplant. An allogeneic transplant (using donor cells) is much more expensive. The average cost in the United States for an allogenic bone marrow transplant is $1.2 million. Many Americans in need of a bone marrow transplant leave the country to find less costly medical care.

Carmani is currently a pitcher for the University of Fort Lauderdale. He is completely sickle cell free. Carmani, Cam and Cayden seem like great guys, and they are clearly very close. They also use language that I find cringy, like this from Carmani: “I mean, they were only born because I was sick, pretty much.” He may have been joking, but this is some serious stuff. A happy ending, but what a journey.

I was interested to read the comment section associated with the Blood Brothers video. The word miracle came up a lot. Modern medicine is not miraculous. It is derived from societal commitment over decades leading to scientific progress both incremental and groundbreaking. Medical research, including what cured Carmani, is currently under unprecedented assault in this country. As are the reproductive freedoms that played a critical role in this drama. Under normal historical circumstances, we would be emerging from the pandemic around now, and I am not exaggerating. mRNA vaccines shortened that time frame to 18 months. The CDC just rejected the next generation of mRNA-based flu and Covid vaccines, which have been shown to be safe and effective. I should stop writing before my head explodes. Thanks for listening; back to basketball.

This Purdue team shoots more 3s than usual for them. Arizona shoots surprisingly sparingly from the outside. It was clear from the jump that Purdue coach Matt Painter was going to pack in his defense and dare Arizona to beat them from deep. Arizona appreciated the suggestion but decided to go ahead and jam the ball down their throat. Arizona pulled out to a 7-point lead. Purdue switched to face guarding on the perimeter, which was effective. Purdue went on a run to take the lead, which they extended with several 3s. 

Purdue is a much older team; three of Arizona's best players are freshmen. The kids were rattled as the Boilermakers went to the break up 38-31. Purdue's senior playmaker, Bradon Smith, with 11 at the half. Following the script, Purdue hit seven 3s to one for the Wildcats. Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd needed to settle his team down and make some adjustments to exploit their athletic advantages.

Arizona freshman Koa Peat decided to re-take the lane, hitting mid-range jumpers over much taller defenders. Jaden Bradley also remembered that there was no one who could guard him. Which was nice for him. Purdue, not so much. 10 minutes to go, Arizona up 8.

Then the wheels came off the Boilermaker Special. Purdue is the deeper team, but they seemed to run out of gas. Or Arizona found another gear. Either way, the Wildcats pushed their lead to 13 down the stretch behind Peat and Bradley with an occasional 3 from Burries. Arizona won 79-64 to punch their ticket to the Final Four!

Arizona outscored Purdue by 22 in the second half.

Koa Peat was a beast with 20, 7 and 3.

Arizona finished strong, which is somewhat surprising because they have no bench. 

If hall passes were really a thing, back in the day I might have picked Katherine Heigl. I just watched her in an adult diaper commercial. I am really not ready for my generation to get old.