Vee Sanford’s layup with 3.8 seconds left secured 11th-seeded Dayton’s 60-59 victory over sixth-seeded Ohio State in the second round of the of the NCAA tournament on Thursday.
Sibert has seen it from both sides after transferring to Dayton following two seasons at Ohio State.
“To be able to go out there and play with this group of guys, to be able to come up with this win, it’s unbelievable,” Sibert said.
Leave it to another transfer, Sanford, to secure the victory in a back-and-forth game that featured 15 lead changes between two schools separated by some 75 miles.
After Ohio State’s Aaron Craft hit a reverse layup with 15.5 seconds remaining, the Flyers set up a play during a timeout with 10.8 seconds left.
Dayton inbounded the ball and worked it to Sanford on the right wing. Driving the lane without hesitation, he got a step on Craft and laid in a shot from about 4 feet away.
“No, I wasn’t nervous,” said Sanford, who transferred to Dayton from Georgetown. “We’ve drawn up a play like that, and I messed it up previously. But (coach Archie Miller) just kept his trust in me, and I’m just thankful that the shot went in.”
Sanford finished with 10 points, while Dyshawn Pierre led Dayton with 12 points. For Miller, in his third year, the win came against his former mentor, Thad Matta.
The Flyers (24-10), of the Atlantic-10 Conference, who have won 11 of 13, advance to play the winner between third-seeded Syracuse and 14th-seeded Western Michigan in a South Region matchup on Saturday.
It’s one and done for the Big Ten Conference Buckeyes (25-10), who were eliminated in the first game for only the third time in 26th tournament appearances. This season, Ohio State got off to a 15-0 start, and then stumbled down the stretch, splitting its final 20 games.
The loss marked the end for three seniors, including Craft, who were part of a team that had advanced past the third round in each of the previous three years.
Craft had a chance to pull out the win.
Driving the length of the court on the Buckeye’s last possession, Craft bulled his way through three defenders only to have his 10-footer hit off the backboard and roll off the rim as the buzzer sounded.
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