jack
The Legendary Troll King
The large Patrick Gym crowd had begun to leave in droves. The win probability for ESPN Analytics stood at 100% for Yale. The Athletic sports website sent out a push notification declaring Vermont lost.
“I thought the game was over,” University of Vermont men’s basketball coach John Becker said.
Until, improbably, it wasn’t.
TJ Long was fouled on his banked 3-pointer with three-tenths of a second to go and then sank the ensuing free throw, to cap the delirious final seconds in the Catamounts unthinkable, 66-65 victory over the Bulldogs in front of 2,742 happily stunned and overjoyed fans on Saturday night in a nonconference showdown.
“I’ve never experienced anything like that in my career,” Becker said. “Just another magical night in Patrick Gym.”
How did it happen? Here’s a summation on what transpired in the closing sequence of what Becker now considers the premier mid-major matchup in the Northeast.
►After Yale went up 65-60 on a pair of foul shots with 3.8 seconds to go, Aaron Deloney, uncontested, raced up the court and finished at the rim for two points.
►Before Yale could inbound the ball with six-tenths of a second showing on the clock, TJ Hurley drew a foul on August Mahoney's push-off, giving Vermont possession.
►On the in-bounds play, Deloney flung a pass to the other side of the court on the wing for Long, who caught the ball between two Yale defenders and rose up for his 3-pointer. The shot touched off the glass and in, with Long getting fouled in the process.
►After an officials review put three-tenths of a second back on the clock and following a Yale timeout, the lefty Long sank his foul shot for the 66-65 advantage. Yale did not get a shot off on its in-bounds play, clinching an unlikely Catamount victory.
Long, the transfer from Fairfield, finished with a game-high 23 points on 8 of 16 shooting (6 of 10 on 3-pointers). Long said it was the biggest shot of his career.
“That’s one for sure, not even close,” Long said. “I was supposed to get the ball in the opposite corner. Me and (Deloney) made eye contact there and he threw me open on the wing. It was a great pass. He put it on me and I knew I didn’t have time to take any dribbles.”
On a nerve-wracking free throw attempt, Long said he kept his cool and relied on countless hours of free throws.
“I’m just trying to stay calm and keep my head in it and just trust the work — we shoot free throw every day in practice,” Long said. “I was confident walking up to the line.”
The win was reminiscent of Vermont’s double-overtime victory over St. Bonaventure in 2018. Saturday night tops even that one, Becker said.
“No one that was here will forget this night,” Becker said. “What a win. We were down and out.”
The first 39-plus minutes played out like most Yale-Vermont matchups. The Catamounts jumped out to leads of 11-2 and 18-8 thanks to an early rush of 3-pointers and a cold start from the floor for the Bulldogs.
The Bulldogs, the Ivy League’s preseason favorites, settled in and battled back to make it a 28-26 Vermont lead at the break.
In the second half, Yale leveled the game on six occasions, but couldn’t get its first lead until a decisive series with a minute to play.
