Florida State battled back from eight points down with 5:38 to play for a 64-63 win at Virginia. Armaan Franklin made one of two free throws to put Virginia ahead by two points with 14 seconds left. Matthew Cleveland rebounded Franklin’s missed free throw, then scored 7 seconds later to tie the game at 61. Franklin felt some redemption after getting the inbound pass, dribbling down court, and scoring to put Virginia up by two with less than one second showing on the clock when the ball cleared the net. After a quick review of the time, officials added .6 seconds, giving Florida State one second to make a miracle play. Harriston Prieto inbounded the ball by moving down the baseline to his left and floating a pass over halfcourt to Cleveland who turned as he caught the ball and put up a 3-pointer for the win! The ACC may be down in the NET rankings and only have one team ranked in the top 25 of most national polls, but conference play has been as entertaining as any in the country!
Tag: NCAA
#10 ranked Indiana University’s Women’s Basketball team topped #14 University of Maryland for the first time ever when the teams met earlier this season in Bloomington. That 70-63 overtime win helped then #6 Indiana secure its place near the top of the Big 10. Both teams entered Friday’s game with a losing streak with Maryland winning 8 in a row before its loss at #9 Michigan on Sunday, and Indiana on a 2-game losing streak. Even though they only outscored Indiana in the first quarter of the game, Maryland seemed to be in command and responded with a score or defensive heroics every time Indiana moved closer. But Maryland’s 7th turnover in the 4th quarter added more drama when they failed to advance the ball out of the backcourt before the clock expired, giving Indiana the chance to get closer. Though she had missed all of her previous shots, graduate point guard Nicole Cardano-Hillary stepped back to hit a 3-pointer from the right wing to pull Indiana within one at 65-64 with 35 seconds to go. Then, Maryland graduate point guard Katie Benzan drove and scored on a floater with 11.8 seconds left. Maryland stepped up with defense to close the game as sophomore power forward Angel Reese pressured Cardano-Hillary into a missed shot on a 3-point attempt as time expired. Maryland’s win secured a top 4 conference finish, guaranteeing a double bye for the conference tournament. Indiana finishes 5th and will start tournament play a day earlier.