Putting a college basketball game on an aircraft carrier sounds like a cool event, something unique to punctuate the start of the basketball season.

But this is much more than a gimmick on 11-11-11 -- much more than merely a game to showcase top-ranked North Carolina and perennial contender Michigan State.

Understand that this event would not have happened without the full cooperation of the United States Navy. The USS Carl Vinson was chosen as the host carrier, less than seven months removed from being the final resting place of the most sought-after war criminal since World War II, Osama Bin Laden, whose body was dumped into the sea off the deck of the Vinson.