Northern Iowa pulled off one of the biggest upsets the NCAA tourney has seen in a long time. The Panthers, out of the Missouri Valley Conference, defeated the number one overall seed Kansas Jayhawks 69-67 in the second round.
The Jayhawks were considered by most expert the safest pick to cut the down the nets as the National Champions. That dream ended Saturday as Northern Iowa led most of the game by 8. The Panthers withstood a serious comeback effort by the Jayhawks after the lead was cut down to one.
Northern Iowa's Ali Farokhmanesh got the ball wide open at the 3-point line with around 30 seconds to go. Since his team was winning most people (including myself) expected Farokhmanesh to pull the ball out and burn the clock until he got fouled. Farokhmanesh had other plans as he took a 3-pointer that gave the Panthers a more secure lead of 4. That shot will now live on in NCAA Tournament history.
The Jayhawk's loss was the last game that Sherron Collins and Cole Aldrich will ever play together as Jayhawks. Collins, a graduating senior, finished with 10 points, 4 assists, and 3 rebounds as he shot bad from the field and turned the ball over 5 times. Aldrich, who is expected to declare for the upcoming NBA Draft, finished with 13 points, 10 rebounds, and 2 blocks.
Of course the Jayhawks will also lose freshman phenom Xavier Henry to the league. He already has the game for NBA and probably would've went straight out of high school if it was allowed.
Northern Iowa moves on to the Sweet 16 to face the winner of Michigan State/Maryland.
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