Saturday, 22 March 2014

Stephen F. Austin rallies past VCU for 29th win in a row - USA TODAY

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SAN DIEGO — Cinderella never before received such a gift.

Stephen F. Austin, a No. 12 seed and a popular pick to upset No. 5 Virginia Commonwealth, did just that Friday night, 77-75 in overtime.

But how the Lumberjacks became the latest underdog to have its NCAA day is miraculous, instant-classic stuff.

It didn't really happen, did it?

Except that it did.

"Miracles do happen," said Brad Underwood, the first-year coach of Stephen F. Austin, the unheralded mid-major from Nacogdoches, Texas.

BOX SCORE: Stephen F. Austin 77, VCU 75 OT

MARCH MADNESS: NCAA tournament bracket

Underwood's team had blown a 10-point second-half lead, was outscored 24-3 in a 10-minute stretch and appeared to be routinely bowing out of the tournament when VCU held a 10-point lead of its own with 3:38 left in the game.

Even when the Lumberjacks cut into the deficit in the final minutes, VCU was still up by four points and at the free throw line with 10 seconds left.

That should have been that.

Except that VCU's Jordan Burgess missed not one but both free throws.

SAVING SHOT: 4-point play sends SFA to OT

"We kind of gave them a glimmer of hope by missing some free throws," VCU coach Shaka Smart would lament later.

Still, the lead was four points as the Lumberjacks threw the ball in and time was running out. Then Lumberjacks guard Desmond Haymon got the ball on the right wing and rose for a three-pointer that went in with 3.6 seconds left. ... AND HE WAS FOULED.

The foul was called on VCU guard JeQuan Lewis.

Haymon sank the free throw and the game was inexplicably, amazingly, incomprehensibly tied and headed to overtime.

SHINING MOMENT: Mercer upsets No. 3 seed Duke

In overtime, Stephen F. Austin got big shots by Haymon (17 points for the game) and forward Jacob Parker (game-high 22 points) to take the lead. The Lumberjacks were up 77-75 in the final seconds when Lewis, the same player who had committed the ill-advised foul at the end of regulation, found the ball in his hands with an open three-point shot from the corner as time was running out.

He rose and fired with a chance at redemption. It rattled out, and VCU had lost a game it seemingly could not have found a way to lose.

But then, VCU famously played its way to the Final Four as a No.11 seed in 2011.

Tournament magic, apparently, works both ways.

So does tournament agony.

JeQuan Lewis leaves the court after VCU lost to Stephen F. Austin.(Photo: Christopher Hanewinckel, USA TODAY Sports)

After the final buzzer, Lewis slumped to the floor near where he'd taken the final shot and lay on his back, his hands covering his face.

In the locker room immediate after the game, Lewis, a freshman from Dickson, Tenn., was "inconsolable," Smart said.

After a few minutes, the media were allowed into the VCU locker room, and Lewis met them with tears still in his eyes.

SFA: Who are these guys?

He was asked about the foul on Haymon's three-pointer.

"I tried to jump to the side," he said softly. "I thought I jumped to the side. He kind of fell down into me. I can't change it now."

He was asked about his last shot.

"There were so many things going through my mind," he said. "It was just flat."

He paused, then added, "I'll make the next one."

That won't come until next season. VCU, 26-9, is done for now.

Smart told his hurting freshman that the sun would come up tomorrow. He told the media later that, in a way, he's glad it hurts. It should hurt.

"If it doesn't," he said, "you're in the wrong place."

Smart called it a learning experience for Lewis.

"You can't even put yourself in that position where it's even a judgment call," he said. "And it's, you know, a lesson — he's a freshman. It's a lesson for him and our team to learn. It's a very, very painful lesson."

For the Lumberjacks, they had a lesson early this season that it's never, ever, ever over until the clock is all zeroes.

They trailed by three at Marshall when one of their players missed a three-pointer in the last second — but got fouled, and made all three free throws.

That player was Desmond Haymon.

"It was déjà vu for me," Underwood said. "Des did the exact same thing at Marshall."

Stephen F. Austin won that Marshall game in overtime. The Lumberjacks then lost their next game. That was Nov. 23. And then they started a long winning streak. That streak reached 29 games Friday night. They're 32-2 overall.

Winning has become a habit for the Lumberjacks. Friday night, even when all seemed lost, they just did what they do and found a way to win.

"It's incredible what that positive mental attitude has done," Underwood said. "And I can't say enough about Desmond. Not only is he a good player and clutch player. He's the best leader I've ever been around in my life. He creates that vibe every single day in practice, for these guys to never give in."

GALLERY: HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE SECOND ROUND

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