Games 60-51

Game 60:  Duke 79 UConn 78, 1990 Elite 8
In the game that launched the legend of Christian Laettner, it was Duke's Alaa Abdelnaby who had starred, getting 27 & 14.  Down one with 2.6 seconds left, Duke inbounded the ball from the sideline above the free throw line.  Laettner inbounded the ball to Brian Davis who gave it back to Laettner who would hit the game winner and send Duke to the Final 4.  Coach K originally wanted the ball to go to the late Phil Henderson but Coach K would change his mind just before the players took the floor prior to the play.

Game 59:  Temple 65 St. John's 63, 1984 First Round
Terence Stansbury buried a long jumper, well behind what would have been the 3 point line at the buzzer to lift the Owls past the upset-minded Redmen whose selction many had questioned.

Game 58:  Loyola Marymount 62 Alabama, 1990 Sweet 16
Alabama managed to slow the fast tempo Lions down by milking the shot clock to :05 seconds on every possession.  LMU managed to play this style and keep it close.  Big Shot Bob Horry would hit a jumper to tie the game with a minute left.  Bo Kimble would havethe ball knocked from his control but teammate Terrell Lowery got it and layed it in with :33 left.  Alabama appeared to have a wide-open look to tie it but LMU's Per Stumer would knock the ball loose from the Tide and Lowery secured the loose ball to secure another improbable win for the team honoring their late teammate, Hank Gathers.

Game 57:  Northern Iowa 74 Missouri 71, 1990 1st Round
The Panthers shocked the 3-seeded Tigers when Maurice Newby nailed a 3 at the buzzer.  UNI had led by 12 with 5 minutes left and nearly lost it.

Game 56:  Georgia Tech 67 Oklahmoma State 65, 2004 National Semifinal
Georgia Tech had surprised many by making the Final 4 and most considered the Cowboys the favorite in this game.  Will Bynum missed a layup with 1:25 left and John Lucas III made a 3 to tie it with 26.3 seconds left.  But Bynum answered with a banker at 1.5 seconds to win the game and send Georgia Tech to the title game.

Game 55: Siena 74 Ohio State 72, 2009 1st Round
Siena had a magical season in 2009 and was rewarded a 9 seed in Dayton against OSU.  The Buckeyes lead 65-62 with seconds left.  Thad Matta instructed his team to foul.  They failed to do so and Siena's Ronald Moore who was 0-4 from deep prior, nailed a 3 to send it to overtime.  Remarkably, Moore would hit a 3 with 3.9 left in overtime from the same spot to give the Saints the win.

Game 54:  BYU 51 Notre Dame 50, 1981
Notre Dame lead 40-29 but BYU managed to get back in the game and had a chance to win in late when Danny Ainge, the Blue Jays minor leaguer, would go coast-to-coast and hit the game winner at the buzzer proving Mormons are better than Catholics.

Game 53:  UCLA 75 Missouri 74, 1995 2nd Round
UCLA entered the 1995 tournament a prohibitive favorite to win it all.  Missouri managed to lead most of the game and when Julian Windfield banked in a shot with 4.8 seconds left to give Mizzou a 1-pt lead, it appeared the Bruins had fizzled in March again.  But like Danny Ainge, Bruins guard Tyus Edney went the length of the court and made the winner at the buzzer.

Game 52:  Georgia Tech 79 USC 78, 1992 2nd Round
On a snowy night in Milwaukee, Tech's James Forrest would make a wild 3 on an inbounds play with 0.8 seconds left sending Al McGuire off into his famous "Holy Mackeral" call.  Bobby Cremins was so shocked he declined the bus ride back to the hotel, walking back in the snow instead.

Game 51:  Louisville 71 Kansas State 69, 1980 1st Round
Tony Bracnh would make the game winner at the buzzer on a shot that bounced and hung on the rim for nearly 3 seconds before falling through and propelling the Cardinals to their 1st NCAA title.

COMING NEXT:  Games 50-41