March Madness
Wisconsin survives chaotic overtime, controversial calls to reach Final Four
Jeff Gross / Getty Images
Reminding everyone why they call it March Madness, Wisconsin on Saturday knocked off top seed Arizona in the NCAA tournament after a frenetic overtime that featured two huge officiating calls in the closing seconds.
With Wisconsin up by one and just seconds remaining, Arizona guard Nick Johnson drove hard to the hoop and was whistled for a charge. The call could just as easily gone the other way as a block — Arizona coach Sean Miller called it a "really, really tough call," but would say no more for fear of being fined — which would have put Johnson at the foul line with a chance to tie or win the game. Instead, Wisconsin got the ball back.
But on the ensuing inbounds play, the ball squirted out of bounds, with officials initially ruling it went off Arizona. But after reviewing the play for more than five minutes, they reversed the call, giving Arizona the ball back for one last attempt. This time, though, Johnson couldn't get a shot off in time, and Wisconsin held on for the win.
Several hundred Arizona fans back in Tucson responded as you might expect: they rioted, prompting police to fire pepper spray into the crowd and arrest 15.
Anyway, here's the Badgers going wild after their big win: