UNI coach Ben Jacobson, Paul Jesperson, Wes Washpun, Jeremy Morgan.
Paul Jesperson’s half court bank shot sent the 11th seeded Northern Iowa Panthers into the second round of the NCAA Tournament with 75-72 win over 6th seeded Texas in Oklahoma City Friday night.
The Longhorns tied the game at 72-72 with 2.7 seconds remaining. UNI brought the ball in without taking a time out and Jesperson took one dribble and tossed up the game winner.
Coach Ben Jacobson said in the postgame news conference he came close to calling a time out, but decided not to. He says they didn’t run a special play and normally in that situation are looking for Wes Washpun to get the ball.
It is UNI’s 7th straight win and moves them to 23-12 overall. They will play third seed Texas A&M Sunday afternoon.
Wes Washpun led the Panthers with 17 points. Jeremy Morgan had 16 and Jesperson finished with 14.
The Panther’s win makes it a trifecta for Iowa schools following a buzzer beater earlier in the day by the Iowa Hawkeyes. Iowa State advanced on Thursday and plays for berth in the Sweet 16 Saturday.