It’s absolutely zero secret that March Madness is a huge deal for both die-hard sports fans and casuals all around America. In the past 10 years, we have witnessed the first 16 seed over a 1 seed upset in the history of college basketball, a Final Four matchup between Duke and UNC in possibly the greatest basketball coach’s last game ever, and still not a single fan has filled out a perfect bracket. With ratings up, NCAA recruits now spanning global, and more money than ever before in basketball, to say we have “lucked out” from an entertainment standpoint throughout the last 10 years would be an understatement and then some. However, what we witnessed on Sunday, March 29th, isn’t just something we’ll be talking about for the rest of the tournament; it’s a moment that will last for a lifetime.

To set the scene, it’s 4 o’clock Central Time on Sunday, and the last game of the Elite 8 is coming right up: the 2-seeded UConn Huskies vs. the 1-seeded Duke Blue Devils. On the surface, it’s just two blue bloods going straight into a highly intense, competitive game, but for some basketball junkies, the outcome feels rather inevitable. Despite UConn winning 2 of the last 3 national championships, Duke seemed destined for hardware in 2026. With a roster that costs north of 10 million dollars, the national player of the year Cameron Boozer on their side, and the overall one seed barring a 14-game win streak, Duke came out fuming. The Blue Devils led the UConn Huskies by 15 at half. Up until this point, 1 seeds were 134-0 leading by 15 or more at half, and as the clock ticked down, Duke was given a 98% chance via ESPN to punch their ticket to their 19th Final Four. After all, UConn was shooting an astonishing 1/18 from three with 5 minutes to go and wasn’t even their own conference’s champion…

However, the Huskies didn’t hang their heads; they had other plans. In fact, they may not have known it with 10 seconds left when point guard Silas Demmary went to the free throw line, but history and one of the greatest shots in basketball was about to be made. 72-70, Duke inbounds the ball and advances it to half court with 5 seconds remaining. Cayden Boozer commits a costly turnover at half court during an attempted advanced pass to their own basket. Freshman Braylon Mullins catches the ball, kicks to Karaban, back to Mullins from 45 feet out. Nothing but net. Huskies 73, Blue Devils 72. Against all odds, Dan Hurley, the 19-year-old from Indiana, and the UConn Huskies do the unthinkable. Mullins magic.