CLEVELAND — James Whitford is nearing the end of his postgame press conference and he’s using his right index finger and thumb to show just how close his team was to advancing in the Mid-American Conference’s men’s basketball tournament.
Ball State’s coach is speaking minutes after his eighth-seeded Cardinals took top-seed Toledo to overtime. He’s reflecting on a game that would end up being decided by just two points. He’s reliving memories he expects will stick with him for 12, 15 or even 18 years, because games like this are always difficult to experience and hard to forget.