
Jesperson’s Prayer Ends Longhorns’ Hopes of Long Tournament Run
Client: The Daily Texan
Date: March 19, 2016
Category: Writing
The Texas Longhorns and Northern Iowa Panthers were headed to overtime.
Texas junior guard Isaiah Taylor tied the game with a layup with 2.7 seconds on the clock. Northern Iowa elected not to take a timeout. Everyone in Chesapeake Arena thought the game would need five more minutes to decide a winner.
But Northern Iowa’s Paul Jesperson took the ensuing inbound pass and weaved his way toward the half-court line as Longhorns tried to defend but not foul the senior guard. With a second left, he heaved up a prayer.
It was answered.
And just like that, the Longhorns’ hopes of a long NCAA tournament run were destroyed.