March Madness never fails to live up to it’s name. 48 basketball games, each one with the assumption that anything can happen.
Despite being down by as much as 16 points in the 2nd half, the 5th-seeded Saint Louis Billikens mounted a tough comeback, and defeated the 12th-seeded NC State Wolfpack 83-80 in overtime.
They will now face the defending champ Louisville Cardinals this Saturday.
Earlier in the day, fellow 5th seeds Oklahoma and Cincinnati both fell to their respective opponents (North Dakota St, and Harvard). Saint Louis was trying not to join the 5th-seed elimination club.
Free throws were both teams’ main issue throughout the night, as NC State went only 20-37 at the line, and SLU only 12-26. It came to a point where the announcers weren’t surprised by missed free throws whether it be from the Wolfpack or Billikens.
And it turned out to be the defining factor in the game.
Being up by 14 with 5:03 left in regulation, NC State missed 12 free throws (9-21) in the final minutes. T.J. Warren scored 28 points for NC State, but the ACC Player of the Year went a mere 6-14 on free throw attempts. He missed one very critical free throw that could have tied it in the final minute of OT.
For the Billikens, Rob Loe led the team with 22 points, shooting 8-11 from the field, and also amassing 15 rebounds. Jordair Jett finished second on the team with 18 points, and was a key player in helping SLU mount the comeback they did against NC State.
Saint Louis was able to force the game to go to overtime, where they out-scored NC State 13-10 en route to the 83-80 victory.
The game was a prime example of the phrase “it’s not over until it’s over”. Just when the game looked bleak and hope was lost, the Billikens rose to the occasion and did everything they had on NC State, who played outright sloppy ball throughout the second half. Aside from the missed free throws, Tyler Lewis and the rest of the Wolfpack had trouble controlling the tempo of the game, and coughed up the ball multiple times, fueling the potential SLU comeback even more.
Facing the defending champs tomorrow won’t be easy for SLU, but as we all know, there is a reason March Madness is called what it is.
Because anything can happen.
(Photo credit: Getty Images)
