March Madness has officially begun after the Chattanooga Mocs punch their ticket to the NCAA Tournament on an overtime buzzer-beater.
The Madness Has Begun – Chattanooga Earns Bid With Buzzer-Beater
The Southern Conference Tournament won’t draw the attention of the casual college basketball fans, but on Monday night the championship round made headlines. The top-ranked teams in the conference matched up in an overtime thriller. This game had it all. Late game heroics, a controversial close call, and the game-clinching dagger. The Chattanooga Mocs taking on the Furhman Paladins. Two teams that aren’t getting in without this bid, putting it all on the line, resulting in a Bryce Drew-Esque buzzer-beater. This was exactly what we love about March.
A Slow Start
Chattanooga grabbed an early lead to start the game. This good omen would not last, however, as the Mocs were held to only 16 points in the first half. The nerves were apparent in both rosters early on. Shooters on each side were missing open shots and the offensive action was noticeably tight for stretches in the half. Both teams went to their bench early in the game. Tournament fatigue can often play a factor in these later rounds and this could have contributed to the offensive struggles as well. David Jean-Baptiste struggled from the floor, missing multiple three-point attempts and catching an unlucky break on an open layup.
After minutes of scoreless basketball, Furhman took the early 10-7 lead. The Paladins would hold on to that lead for the rest of the first half. This was mainly due to Chattanooga’s poor shooting (7-25 FG). The Mocs missed many open looks in the first half and they were lucky that Furhman was unable to capitalize on that. Furhman’s own shooting woes kept them from building a lead during a stretch where they held the Mocs scoreless for over four minutes. Even with that poor performance, the Paladins took a 26-16 lead into the locker room at halftime.
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Settling in for the Second Half
Chatanooga really got things going offensively in the second half, making six of their first eight attempts. That strong start had them back in the lead with just under 15 minutes remaining in regulation. Jean-Baptiste still hadn’t found his rhythm, drawing attention from the commentary team. He did manage to knock down the jumper that gave the Mocs their first lead since the 12-minute mark in the first half.
Furhman could not find their stroke from beyond the arc. They were struggling to get the ball to the rim due to Chatanooga’s frontcourt play and that paired with their inability to knock down open jumpers made it impossible for the Paladins to hold on to their lead. Going into the final minutes, it was anybody’s game.
Wild End to Regulation
The suspense of this showdown began with a controversial no-call in the final minute of regulation. Chattanooga took a 51-48 lead on a tip-in from Silvio De Sousa off of a Jean-Baptiste miss with 28 seconds remaining. Furhman coach Bob Richey wanted basket interference to be on the play.
Furhman looked to their Senior All-Southern Conference guard Mike Bothwell to get them a much-needed basket in the game’s waning seconds. Coach Richey was signaling to his team for an immediate foul after a made two-pointer. Bothwell took the ball at the wing extended, drove past Mocs’ guard Malachi Smith, then turned back to launch a pull-up three. He nailed it. The game was tied with four seconds left. Chattanooga pushed the ball up the court immediately and Smith was able to drive it to the key. His pull-up attempt was blocked by Jalen Slawson and the game went into overtime.
JUST WATCH IT pic.twitter.com/oFuWyEA8Pu
— Southern Conference (@SoConSports) March 8, 2022
Another Buzzer-Beater
Bothwell took over for the Paladins in the extra period. The senior scored Furhman’s first five points in overtime. He also hit the difficult driving layup over two defenders that gave Furhman a 63-61 lead with 4.3 seconds left in the game. Enter our hero, David Jean-Baptiste.
Jean-Baptiste catches the inbound pass nearly as far from the basket as possible, driving it quickly across the half-court line. Once across, he is picked up by a double team. By the time Jean-Baptise picks up his dribble, there are three Paladins on him. He lets it fly. Money.
DAVID JEAN-BAPTISTE!
CHATTANOOGA IS DANCING! pic.twitter.com/GqjzDIPkw6
— Heat Check CBB (@HeatCheckCBB) March 8, 2022
We have our first moment of March Madness in 2022. It’s going to be a tough act to follow.
Main Photo
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