“Longest 15 Seconds of My Life!”: Stephen Curry Recalled ‘Painful’ Elite Eight Loss to Kansas 5 Years After Making It to the NBA

During the course of his breakout season in 2013-14, various media houses invited Stephen Curry for interviews. ESPN was among the many who tried capitalizing on the emergence of the Golden State Warriors star. Towards the end of the campaign, in a must-see interview, the hosts asked Curry a wide range of questions. At a certain point in the conversation, Steph was asked to comment on Davidson Wildcats’ Cinderella potential spot in the 2008 NCAA Final Four.

The Davidson Wildcat spoiled a lot of people’s NCAA brackets during 2008’s March Madness. Having upset the likes of Gonzaga, Georgetown, and Wisconsin, Bob McKillop’s boys advanced to the Elite Eight. With hopes of replicating that success, Stephen Curry decided to return to college for his junior season. Unfortunately, the Wildcats lost to Charleston in the SoCon Tournament semifinals. The loss led to their omission from the 2009 March Madness completely.

Stephen Curry doesn’t regret not taking the final shot of the Elite Eight contest vs. Kansas

Despite having a relatively slow start to the game, Stephen Curry soon caught fire during the Elite Eight clash against the Kansas Jayhawks. The scrawny Guard put up 25 points, leading the Wildcats to erase a huge deficit. With 16 seconds left on the shot clock,  and the Wildcats trailing by two points, the entire nation expected Steph to take the final shot.

However, after being double-teamed, Curry passed it out to Jason Richards who had a better look at the rim. Unfortunately, Richards couldn’t find the bottom of the net.

In the 2014 ESPN interview, Curry was asked whether or not he still thought about the final few seconds of that Davidson-Kansas matchup. Justifying passing up on the final shot, the sharpshooter admitted that the moment kept replaying in his mind.

“All the time. Talked to my guy Jason Richards, who took the shot, it was the right play at the moment. Obviously, if that would’ve went down that would’ve changed a lot of things for us. But, it was the longest 15 seconds of my life. Obviously didn’t work out. But no regrets of how it played out,” Steph disclosed.

Steph may not have led the Wildcats to a Championship victory. However, lodging 32 points, 3.5 assists, and 3.3 steals during the tournament, Curry soon became a household name for every onlooker.

Steph graduated from Davidson College in 2022

After the conclusion of his junior year, Stephen Curry declared for the draft in 2009. 13 years later, after having won four Championships, two MVPs, and a Finals MVP, Curry graduated from Davidson. Finishing the required college coursework, the future Hall-Of-Famer earned a Bachelor of Arts degree as a sociology major.

A few weeks later, the college even honored the NBA’s three-pointer leader by retiring his jersey. Having averaged 25.3 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 3.7 assists during his three-year stint with the North Carolina university, Curry is definitely a Davidson legend.