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NRG Stadium in Houston, site of the 2016 NCAA men's basketball championship

Basketball · 2016 · Houston, USA

The Only Title-Game Buzzer Beater

Seconds after North Carolina ties the national championship game with a miracle shot of their own, Villanova answers immediately with the only game-winning buzzer beater in NCAA title game history.

Villanova 77-74 North Carolina

Result

0.0 seconds

Time remaining at shot

Only walk-off shot in NCAA title game history

Distinction

Villanova led North Carolina by four points with under five seconds left in the 2016 NCAA men's basketball championship game when Tar Heels forward Marcus Paige hit an off-balance, double-clutch three-pointer to tie the score at 74-74, a shot spectacular enough on its own to be remembered for years.

Villanova had only 4.7 seconds to respond after the ensuing inbound. Guard Ryan Arcidiacono raced the ball up the court and, with defenders converging, passed it off at the last instant to Kris Jenkins, trailing the play behind the three-point arc. Jenkins caught it and released a shot at the buzzer that dropped through as time expired.

The 77-74 win gave Villanova the championship and gave college basketball its only shot in the title game's history to both win a national championship and beat the buzzer in the same play. The sequence, a tying miracle followed instantly by a winning one, is widely considered the greatest ending in the tournament's history.

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