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The No. 5 San Diego State Aztecs are on their way to their first Final Four appearance in school history.
The Aztecs defeated the No. 6 Creighton Bluejays Sunday in Louisville, Kentucky, 57-56 on a last-second free throw by Darrion Trammell. Bluejays guard Ryan Nembhard was called on a controversial foul with one second to go in the game. This gave Trammell the opportunity to break the 56-all tie and continue the Aztecs’ dream run.
HISTORY FOR SAN DIEGO STATE‼️
The Aztecs are headed to the men's Final Four for the first time ever 👏 pic.twitter.com/Iiyt1khizQ
— ESPN (@espn) March 26, 2023
Top Performers
Center Ryan Kalkbrenner led Creighton with 17 points. Arthur Kaluma and Baylor Scheierman recorded 12 points each. San Diego State received 18 points from Lamont Butler and 12 from Trammell. The Bluejays outshot the Aztecs 40% to 38%, but both teams were miserable from beyond the arc. The two teams combined for five triples on 30 attempts.
First Half
Creighton maintained a slim lead in the game’s opening minutes.
Kalkbrenner sunk three shots to keep the Bluejays out in front in the first five minutes. Creigton opened up the deficit midway through the first half when Nembhard soared across the court for a layup.
Nembhard goes coast-to-coast 😮💨#MarchMadness @BluejayMBB pic.twitter.com/PAHkUKK22Y
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 26, 2023
A three-minute dry spell for Crieghton allowed San Diego State to come back late in the opening half.
Trammell combined forces with Butler and Jaedon LeDee to run off six unanswered points to bring the game to within two, 30-28.
Here come the Aztecs 👀#MarchMadness @Aztec_MBB pic.twitter.com/wYdwKpC1ty
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 26, 2023
The Bluejays ended the half with a long three from Kaluma to head to the locker room up 33-28.
https://twitter.com/MarchMadnessMBB/status/1640067182997704705
Second Half
It did not take long for the Aztecs to claim their first lead early in the second half. Butler made a layup two minutes in to give San Diego State a 34-33 advantage. The Bluejays responded with an 8-0 run to go back on top 41-33.
KALKBRENNER THROWS IT DOWN 😨#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/k964B8f8nz
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 26, 2023
It took six minutes for the Aztecs to get back on their feet. With seven minutes left in the game, San Diego State retook the lead on a Trammell jumper.
AZTECS TAKE THE LEAD 👀 #MarchMadness
📺 CBS
👉 https://t.co/53MVufeZ7Y pic.twitter.com/A8C7RxMPB1— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 26, 2023
The Aztecs held a two-point led until Kalkbrenner evened the score at 54 with a layup at the two-minute mark.
https://twitter.com/MarchMadnessMBB/status/1640085957939691520
After San Diego State took the lead back, Creighton tied it one more time on a miracle inbound toss.
https://twitter.com/MarchMadnessMBB/status/1640087534712782848
The Gift
With 1.2 seconds to go, the referees called a foul on Nembhard to send Trammell to the stripe with the game on the line. He drilled the latter of his two shots to give the Aztecs a 57-56 victory.
San Diego State heads to the line in a tie game with 1.2 remaining 😮#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/zRP3Hc2KGu
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 26, 2023
The Final Four
"It's all about believing in yourself" 👏
An emotional Darrion Trammell is lost for words after San Diego State earned its first trip to the Final Four #MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/NIUvMfmV7Z
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 26, 2023
San Diego State will match up with another team on a Cinderella run, the Florida Atlantic Owls. The game is scheduled for Saturday in Houston’s NRG Stadium. The winner will play either No. 5 Miami or No. 4 UConn in the championship game.
