Texas A&M pulled off the greatest comeback in NCAA Tournament history, rallying from a 12 point deficit in 45 seconds to stun Northern Iowa. March Madness.
Texas A&M did not go dancing this season, but their miraculous comeback in the 2016 Round of 32 will be immortalized forever.
When the committee revealed the bracket on Selection Sunday last year a potential rivalry rematch sent the state of Texas buzzing. No. 3 seed Texas A&M was slated to pair up with No. 6 seed Texas in the Round of 32. The game would take place in Oklahoma City, within driving distance for fans from all over the state of Texas.
That assumed that the Aggies would take care of business and beat Green Bay. They did, but Texas dropped a close game to the Northern Iowa Panthers. There wouldn’t be any Lonestar Showdown memories made in the tournament after all. But that didn’t squash the excitement.
With 45 seconds remaining in regulation Texas A&M trailed 69-57
Play by Play
38 seconds: Alex Caruso misses a three, but Admon Gilder grabs the rebound and lays it in. 69-59
30 seconds: Gilder steals the inbounds pass. He throws it across the court to Danuel House who converts the layup. 69-61
26 seconds: NIU guard Paul Jesperson is trapped on the baseline. His errant pass is grabbed by Jalen Jones who slams it down for two points. The comeback seems faintly possible. 69-63.
20 seconds: A wide open House catches and releases a three point shot on a perfect inbound pass from Caruso. It’s all net. 69-66.
17 seconds: Klint Carlson catches a full court pass and dunks it. The only Northern Iowa points in the final 45 seconds. Three seconds tick off the clock. 71-66.
12 seconds: Caruso takes it coast to coast and lays it in. He draws the foul and converts the and-one. 71-69.
5 seconds: The Aggies trap Wes Washbun in the corner. He panicks and slams the ball into the court. The ricochet went right to Gilder who took it to the hoop to complete the comeback. 71-71.
The Aftermath
Northern Iowa would miss a half court shot at the buzzer (they made a half court shot the game before to beat Texas). Texas A&M would win the game in overtime, completing the “miraculous” comeback.
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The Aggies would go on to lose to No. 2 seed Oklahoma in the Sweet 16, but no defeat could silence what has become one of the greatest comebacks in the history of the NCAA Tournament. There will be buzzer beaters and game winning plays this year too, but nothing has a believable chance of matching Texas A&M’s thunderous comeback against Northern Iowa.
***Stats from ESPN***