More madness in Atlanta


ATLANTA — Take a good, long look at Arkansas center Steven Hill.

He’s 7-feet of awkwardness, from the gangly limbs to the puffy hair to the Chewbacca starter kit of beard stubble on his face. Add to this a red headband and Hill looks like he should be posting up Jackie Moon, the Will Farrell character in the soon-to-be released comedy/ABA homage ''Semi-Pro.''

Thanks to Hill, we've just witnessed the sort of moment that makes college basketball so riveting in March.

Hill, the Sasquatch look-a-like who dresses as if he's about to play squash, just buried a turnaround jumper a heartbeat before the buzzer to give Arkansas a 92-91 win over Tennessee in Saturday night's Southeastern Conference tournamnet semifinal at Georgia Tech's Alexander Memorial Coliseum.

Unless you're a Tennessee fan, you have to love a moment like this. Before sinking a shot on a play that wasn't even supposed to run through him, Hill had produced a grand total of zero points and four fouls.

"It obviously was designed for me,'' Hill joked after the game. "I need more shots.''

Other than the tornado that shook the Georgia Dome Friday night and forced the SEC to move to an ACC court, this tournament will be remembered for drama engineered by backups and stiff 7-footers.

First, Dave Bliss knocks in a bank at the overtime buzzer to lift Georgia over Ole Miss in the first round. Then Tennessee escapes against South Carolina. Then freshman guard Zac Swansey, on the court solely because a senior starter fouled out, airmails a whirl-and-shoot 3-pointer to propel Georgia past Kentucky. Later Saturday, it was Hill's turn to create March magic.

What was it that they said about Michael Jordan? It's got to be the shoes.

Take a look at the water ski-length sneakers on Hill's feet. The No. 4 is scrawled on the top of both high-tops in black magic marker. It serves as a tribute to recently retired Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre.

"He's my all-time favorite athlete,'' Hill said.

Brett would undoubtedly be proud of Hill if he saw that last shot. The guts required to take it, let alone make it, were positively Favre-like.