NCAA Tournament 2012: VCU Beats Wichita State in a Three Point Shootout, 62-59

Deep in the heart of the Northwest, it was raining threes in a first round matchup between VCU and Wichita State. Taking a walk to the refrigerator could have cost you a 12-point barrage of threes last in the second half, but the VCU Rams came out on top 62-59, surviving a late second three-point attempt from the Shockers’ Garrett Stutz.

The Rams jumped out to a big first half lead and led for much of the way, well into the second half after being up by nine after 20 minutes. In the second half, Wichita State powered back with the play of Joe Ragland who in slipped in a few for the Shockers, on his way to a 15-point night.

In the final three minutes, the teams exchanged four three-pointers and Darius Theus’s floater off the backboard with 12 seconds left gave VCU a three point lead going into the final possession. After Wichita State’s Greg Marshall called a timeout with 12 ticks left, the Shockers in-bounded the ball to Ragland, who passed it around the perimeter to guard Joe Mitchell. Mitchell, double teamed, was forced to find his 7-foot center, Garrett Stutz, who stepped back behind the arc, only to clang the last second shot off the rim.

VCU becomes the first upset winner of the tournament, but let’s be real, these guys know how to win. Shaka Smart has a brand new bunch of players compared to his Final Four squad from a year ago, but through some of the best coaching and shooting in the nation, they’re on their way to the Round of 32, where’ll get the winner of the Indiana/New Mexico State game.