By Madhuri Dey
Dec. 09, (THAINDIAN NEWS) The Jimmy V Classic kicked off Tuesday. It is an annual event that is held in the memory of the basketball legend Jimmy Valvano, who was the coach for the 1983 team of the Wolf Packs, the basketball team of the North Carolina State University of the National Championships. Ten years later, he had succumbed to cancer, but his memory is still fresh as the coach who had imparted never seen before dimensions to the team. What is most remembered of his career is the invigorating speech he had delivered just eight weeks prior to his death, that is still chanted almost before every match.

The event was held at the Madison Square Gardens. The teams that faced each other in the first match of the program are Butler and Georgetown. The match was entertaining, as expected, considering that the teams are the two top ranked ones in college basketball. The other contestants in this fabled event are the Iowa University, Panthers and Indiana, among others.

For most of the teams, being part of the Jimmy V Classic is an opportunity of a lifetime. As the coach of the basketball team of the Iowa University, Tom Crean, pointed out, it was a great chance to play in that fabled arena. Most of the teams decide to accept the bid for the Jimmy V Classic, just to be able to play in the Madison Square Garden. For a lot of the players, the lure is also to be able to perform on a national scale, an opportunity that does not present itself every other day.