Villanova Wins Title On Buzzer Beater

Villanova University canceled classes on Tuesday morning after showing its class on the basketball court on Monday night.

Villanova defeated North Carolina 77-74 on a buzzer-beating 3-point shot by Kris Jenkins to win its first NCAA Tournament title since 1985. Jenkins’ shot came 4.7 seconds after the Tar Heels’ Marcus Paige hit an off-balance 3-pointer to tie the game and cap UNC’s comeback from 10 points down. Villanova had rallied from a five-point halftime deficit.

People will say it this was the greatest NCAA title game ever, but they might be swayed mostly by the final 90 seconds and the two stunning shots. Why quibble? After a pair of blowouts in the semifinals, a taut and dramatic game was in order and delivered by the two teams.

That Jenkins took the game-winning shot was a surprise, as he was the player who inbounded the ball after Paige’s stunner and a Villanova timeout. Carolina’s defense got all over Ryan Arcidicano as he crossed the half court line and Jenkins began yelling, “Arch! Arch! Arch!” to let his teammate know he was open.

“I wanted to be aggressive. If I could get a shot, I was going to shoot it,” said Arcidiacono, named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player. “But I heard someone screaming in the back of my head. It was Kris. I just gave it to him, and he let it go with confidence.”

Arch made the pass, Jenkins made the shot and confetti descended from the upper reaches of Houston’s NRG Stadium.

Arcidiacono grew up outside of Philadelphia as a fan of the Wildcats, the son of Villanova alumni. Imagine how he might have felt had he hit that shot to win the championship.

“For a senior to get the ball and make the right play and not try to shoot the ball in double coverage just shows a lot about him and what he’s about and how he’s just all about winning,” Jenkins said.

Congrats, Villanova. Now get back to class. But don’t stop smiling.
 
 
Post By: Larry Weisman, a longtime sportswriter for USA TODAY, blogs for Twistity.com. Follow him on Twitter @MrLarryWeisman