What's better than snapping a 12-game losing streak? Breaking the streak with a game-winner— at least in Minnesota’s Jamison Battle's case. Down 74-72 with 2.1 seconds left, Battle squared up beyond the arc, faked out the defender flying past him, and knocked down the game-winning buzzer-beater.
THIS. IS. MARCH.
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 3, 2023
JAMISON BATTLE WITH A BUZZER BEATER FOR @GopherMBB 😱
(via @CBBonFOX)
pic.twitter.com/NPEFUfaxDa
The Gophers stunned Rutgers 75-74 after coming back in the second half down 14. That winning shot marked Minnesota's first lead of the game.
The junior forward scored 20 points leading his team in scoring and their second-half surge. 15 of Battle’s 20 points came in the final 20 minutes along with five of his six 3-pointers.
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The Gophers (8-20, 2-16) could have handed the Scarlet Knights (18-12, 10-9) a costly loss as Rutgers is projected as a ninth seed in the NCAA tournament, per Andy Katz's latest bracket projections.
That type of shot means more taking down a March Madness hopeful, and when you've picked up just the second conference win of the season. The Gopher home crowd went wild and teammates flooded Battle celebrating their first win since Jan. 12.
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