UConn seals March Madness Final Four spot after 'craziest finish ever' to beat Duke in stunning comeback
UConn wiped out a 19-point deficit to beat Duke 73-72 and seal their place in the Final Four of March Madness on Sunday night.
Braylon Mullins recovered the loose ball and then nailed a three-pointer with 0.4 seconds left on the clock to put UConn ahead. Duke was unable to respond.
ESPN host Mike Greenberg described the conclusion of the game as 'the craziest finish you will ever see'.
The Huskies are trying to win a national title for the third time in four seasons, a feat that hasn't been accomplished since UCLA in the 1970s.
The Huskies are now heading to their third Final Four in four years and will take on Illinois at Lucas Oil Stadium for a place in the National Championship game against either Arizona or Michigan.
The Blue Devils led by three before UConn's Silas Demary Jr. made one of two free throws with 10 seconds left.
UConn players celebrate after their win against Duke in the Elite Eight of March Madness
Braylon Mullins nailed a three-pointer with 0.3 seconds left to send UConn to the Final Four
Mullins recovered the loose ball, exchanged passes and then delivered a dagger to Duke
Dan Hurley's team wiped out a 19-point deficit to beat Duke in Washington DC on Sunday
Duke had dominated the first half but saw their National Championship hopes crushed again
With Duke playing keep-away to prevent the Huskies from fouling, Cayden Boozer's pass near midcourt was deflected by Demary Jr., and after UConn came up with the ball, Mullins made a shot from well behind the three-point line.
It's the second straight season to end in a huge collapse for Duke, which was the top overall seed in this year's tournament. The Blue Devils led by six points with 1:14 remaining before falling to Houston in last year's national semifinals.
Only Louisville, which came from 20 down to beat West Virginia in 2005, had a bigger comeback than UConn. Duke led 44-25 late in the first half and 44-29 at the break. That's now the largest halftime lead in tournament history blown by a No. 1 seed.
Mullins' game winner will go down alongside the great NCAA Tournament game-winning shots, next to Christian Laettner's for Duke in the 1992 Elite Eight against Kentucky. Or Laettner's shot in the 1990 regional final - which turned another Duke-UConn classic from a loss into a win for the Blue Devils.
Cameron Boozer made two costly mistakes as Duke suffered another loss on the big stage
Duke guard Darren Harris was left in floods of tears as he sat in the locker room after the loss
Dan Hurley's UConn has now won 18 consecutive games in the Sweet 16 or subsequent rounds
UConn has now won 18 consecutive games in the Sweet 16 or subsequent rounds. The last loss for the Huskies in those stages of the tournament came against Michigan State in the 2009 Final Four.
For all the success Duke has had through the years, the Blue Devils have now had hearts broken by UConn three straight times in the Big Dance. The Huskies beat one of Duke's greatest teams in the 1999 title game and rallied late to beat the Blue Devils in the 2004 semifinals.
Tarris Reed Jr. led UConn with 26 points, and for a while he had little help offensively.
Earlier on Sunday, the Michigan Wolverines put on a dominant display to overwhelm Tennessee 95-62. Arizona beat Purdue 79-64 on Saturday while Illinois ended Indiana's fairytale run with a 71-59 victory
