Tuesday, December 11, 2012

The buzzer-beating 3-pointer hit by Bryce Drew in the first round of the 1998 NCAA Tournament against fourth-seeded Ole Miss, which lifted 13th-seeded Valparaiso to a 70-69 victory over the Rebels, has been named one of the Top 35 All-Time Madness Moments by the NCAA as part of the season-long celebration of 75 Years of March Madness.

The famous play, named 'Pacer' and which the Crusaders had practiced throughout the season, began on the opposite baseline with Valpo trailing by two points and just 2.5 seconds remaining. Jamie Sykes took the ball out-of-bounds, pump-faked once to get the man guarding him into the air, and then unleashed a baseball pass 60 feet in the air.

On the other end, Bill Jenkins out-leapt his man, grabbed the ball in the air with two hands and, before landing, turned and hit Drew in stride running down the right sideline. Drew stopped and went up from 23 feet, nailing the 3-pointer and creating one of the most indelible moments in NCAA Tournament history as Valpo upset Ole Miss. The Crusaders would advance to the Sweet 16, defeating Florida State in the second round before eventually falling to Rhode Island.

Starting in early January at www.NCAA.com/MarchMadness, fans will vote to help determine the single best All-Time March Madness Moment in NCAA tournament history, as well as the top 15 All-Time March Madness Players and the single best All-Time March Madness Team. These honorees will be introduced at this year’s 2013 Men’s Final Four in Atlanta. Status on the voting throughout the year will be available on NCAA’s March Madness Facebook page and Twitter under the hashtag #MM75.