WASHINGTON – For 39 minutes and 59 seconds, it look like Connecticut’s bid for a third national title in four seasons was going to fall short.
Until freshman guard Braylon Mullins hit one of the great shot in men’s NCAA Tournament history putting the Huskies into the Final Four with a 73-72 defeat of Duke in the championship game history.
The unlikely finish came after Connecticut trailed by as much as 19 in the first half and were down by two with 10 seconds left. Attempting to get a steal, Silas Demery deflected a pass by Blue Devils guard Cayden Boozer at midcourt. Mullins would recover the deflection and pass to Alex Karaban, who gave him the ball back 35 feet from the basket and the clock winding down.
With no other option, he launched with the game in the balance. It swished through the basket with 0.4 seconds left, keeping Connecticut's hopes of winning a third national title in four years alive.
"We were trying to force a turnover or foul the worst free-throw shooter, and the ball got tipped," Mullins said. "I threw the ball to (Karaban). I thought (Karaban) was going to shoot the ball. He threw the ball back to me and I had to shoot it."
