MEMPHIS — Houston won 100-95 in overtime against Texas A&M in one of the wildest games of the NCAA Tournament thus far. Texas A&M rallied from a 10-point deficit with 1:24 remaining in regulation, which included a buzzer-beating 3-pointer by Aggies forward Andersson Garcia to send the game to overtime.
BUZZER BEATER TO FORCE OT 🚨🚨🚨#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/mZSqICdiZR
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 25, 2024
Houston held on in the extra period despite four of five starters fouling out. Walk-on Ryan Elvin was put in the game during overtime and went to the foul line, where he made one of two to give the Cougars a four-point lead in the closing seconds.
“When that (buzzer-beater) went in (to tie it), I’m sure most people’s thought process was: ‘Houston screwed up, they’re going to lose now.’ That would have been the wrong assumption because our kids are built for that,” Cougars coach Kelvin Sampson said.
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Houston was ahead by 13 points with 3:33 remaining after guard Emanuel Sharp made a three-point jumper. But Texas A&M scored nine free throws in the next three minutes — five coming from guard Wade Taylor IV.
With 45 seconds left, forward Solomon Washington made a layup to bring the Aggies within three points of tying the game. Houston took a timeout, then missed four consecutive shots before Garcia’s buzzer-beater.
“Obviously it’s a shot that will go down in Texas A&M lore, but it was to tie, it wasn’t to win,” Aggies coach Buzz Williams said.
Guard Tyrece Radford praised Garcia for “just having the courage to hit the open 3.”
Radford posted a double-double with 27 points and 15 rebounds, and Taylor added 21 points.
Four Cougars starters finished with double-digit points, led by Sharp’s career-high 30. Houston shot 51.5 percent from the field while Texas A&M was 38.2 percent from the floor.
“My teammates trusted me tonight, especially Jamal (Shead), always looking for me. And the shot was going in today,” Sharp said.
With the win, Houston advances to the Sweet 16 and will face No. 4 seed Duke in Dallas on Friday.
Required reading
- March Madness live score tracker and latest results: Sweet 16 field, schedule, NCAA Men’s Tournament bracket
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(Photo: Petre Thomas / USA Today)