There will be a new national champion after Iowa knocked out Florida in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday in dramatic fashion.
Alvaro Folgueiras buried the game-winning three-pointer for the No. 9 Hawkeyes from the right corner with 3.9 seconds left to eliminate the top-seeded defending champions, 73-72.
The Gators still had a chance to steal the win, but they failed to get a shot off as Xaivian Lee's pass to Thomas Haugh was too tight, resulting in a fumble.
Folgueiras had a clean look after their inbound play at the other end of the court. Iowa coach Ben McCollum, however, admitted that it was not part of the script.
“The plan was for Bennett (Stirtz). We got him (Folgueiras) totally free. We got him up or downhill, and he was totally free. Then Thomas had to help, and he helped up, and it was the obvious read. Then he (Folgueiras) hit it,” said McCollum in a video posted by Hawk Central.
“He shot it in rhythm and had just as much confidence as he could in that shot, and that thing didn’t hit anything but net.”
McCollum described it as “surreal,” especially since they entered the game as the obvious underdogs. They, however, proved that they have every right to be in March Madness.
Iowa reached the Sweet 16 for the first time since 1999. That year, the team was coached by Tom Davis and featured players like JR Koch, Dean Oliver, and Guy Rucker.
McCollum, in his first year handling the program, has the chance to lead the Hawkeyes to the Elite Eight for the first time in almost four decades when they take on No. 4 Nebraska on Thursday.
Now that could really make for a good script.
