The NCAA tournament's Shiny Insta-Memories that you won't forget
ByABC News
April 5, 2016, 12:23 AM
— -- Who will be in the greatest video montage in sports? Well, here's our ever-expanding list of NCAA tournament shining moments that are likely to fill our season-ending musical montage.
National championship game
- Jenkins' buzzer-beater gives title to Villanova : North Carolina had just erased a 10-point deficit and tied the game on Marcus Paige's 3-point circus shot, leaving the Wildcats just 4.7 seconds to attempt a game-winner. Ryan Arcidiacono hurried the ball up the court before dumping it off to forward Kris Jenkins, who stepped up and buried a deep 3-pointer, handing Villanova its second national championship.
Final Four
- North Carolina logs a hockey assist : North Carolina's Justin Jackson found himself trapped on the baseline by Syracuse's 2-3 zone during the second half of the Tar Heels' national semifinal win over Syracuse. Suddenly, Jackson found teammate Marcus Paige, who was cutting to the basket. But when Paige saw Orange guard Malachi Richardson at the rim, he flicked another pass -- not just any pass, a one-handed touch pass that he never fully possessed -- to an open Kennedy Meeks under the basket, who flushed a two-hand slam that helped the Heels' prevail.
- Bridges seals Villanova's title game berth : Holding what was already a 15-point lead after the second half's under-12-minute media timeout, Villanova coach Jay Wright drew up a play that would cement the Wildcats' spot in the national championship game. Oklahoma was applying full-court pressure in an attempt to get back in the game, but the Sooners forgot to account for Villanova freshman guard Mikal Bridges. Bridges slipped behind the defense, where Kris Jenkins hit him with a three-quarter-court baseball pass. Bridges threw down a vicious slam, and he was fouled by Sooners big man Jamuni McNeace. Bridges made the free throw to put the Wildcats up by 18, a lead that was never threatened.
Elite Eight
- Lydon's lost shoe preceeds Syracuse's comeback : One shoeless moment: In the first half against Virginia, Orange forward Tyler Lydon tripped and lost his left shoe. He kicked it a few feet away, and then teammate Michael Gbinije threw it out of bounds. So, of course, Lydon found himself in the middle of the play. He pump-faked and then drilled a 3-pointer from the wing with just a sock on one foot.
- Bridges invokes memory of 1985 Wildcats : Shades of 1985? Villanova's Mikal Bridges jumped on a loose ball during the second half against Kansas and just cradled it on the floor for several seconds. It evoked memories of Dwayne McClain securing a ball on the floor and celebrating in the waning seconds of the Wildcats' monumental upset of Georgetown in the 1985 national title game. Both moments happened in the same state, as Bridges helped Villanova upset Kansas on Saturday in Louisville, some 31 years after the program won its championship in Lexington.
- Hield's long-range barrage sends Sooners to Final Four : Fifty-six seconds into the West Regional final against Oregon, Oklahoma's Buddy Hield drilled a 3-pointer. He was just getting started. Hield made step-back 3s, NBA-range 3s and wide-open 3s in a masterstroke performance. Hield finished a ridiculous 8-for-13 from behind the arc on his way to 37 points, as the Sooners cruised to an 80-68 victory and a Final Four berth. Hield may have more heroics in store for Houston, but a montage of him scorching the nets against Oregon would play well during a portion of "One Shining Moment."
Sweet 16
- Lydon's block seals Syracuse's win over Gonzaga : As far as momentous Syracuse blocked shots in the NCAA tournament, this wasn't exactly Hakim Warrick vs. Kansas in the 2003 national title game. But Tyler Lydon's stuff of Gonzaga's Josh Perkins will still go down in Orange lore. After a phantom out-of-bounds call went against Syracuse's Trevor Cooney, Gonzaga got the ball with 12 seconds to go, trailing 61-60. Perkins tried for a go-ahead jump shot with 4 seconds left, but the freshman Lydon rose up for the game-saving rejection. It was Lydon's sixth block of the game, and it will go down as one of the biggest in Syracuse history.
- Four-minute flurry fuels Notre Dame's comeback win over Wisconsin : Notre Dame played so poorly for much of its Sweet 16 game against Wisconsin that it needed to steal a win. Demetrius Jackson took that quite literally. The Irish trailed 56-55 with 19 seconds left when Wisconsin in-bounded to Nigel Hayes. After getting briefly trapped in the corner, Hayes lost control of the ball. Jackson was in the right spot at the right time, and converted the turnover into a go-ahead layup. The Badgers still had a shot to tie in the final five seconds and looked to Bronson Koenig, who'd hit a buzzer-beater in the previous round. But before Koenig could advance past half court, Jackson cut off his path and swiped the ball -- and an Elite Eight berth -- away.
Second round
- The Aggies win in the wildest of wild games : Texas A&M delivered one of the greatest comebacks in NCAA Tournament history by outscoring Northern Iowa 14-2 in the final 33 seconds of regulation to send the game to overtime. In that span, the Aggies made six field goals -- the same number they'd converted in the entire first half -- and forced four turnovers with their full-court press. Texas A&M went on to complete the miracle and prevail 92-88 in the second OT.