March Madness is in full swing this Thursday. The NCAA Tournament tipped off in grand style, and there’s already been plenty of excitement. We saw a huge upset earlier Thursday, as Duquesne defeated the BYU Cougars for their first NCAA Tournament win since 1969. Then, we followed that up with a miraculous shot that had everyone buzzing.
South Carolina went cold from the field against the Oregon Ducks to end the first half. Oregon held a 34-26 lead with 1.2 seconds remaining in the first half. Ta’lon Cooper was tired of seeing his Gamecocks in their scoring drought.
Cooper pulled up from nearly 3/4 lengths of the court. He watched the ball sail and then bank into the net for a miraculous 3-pointer to end the half! And, of course, it put South Carolina in a much better position going into the half.
SOUTH CAROLINA'S TA'LON COOPER FROM BEYOND HALF-COURT TO BEAT THE HALFTIME BUZZER! 🏀🔥🚨 #MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/u3kChGnJHb
— The Comeback (@thecomeback) March 21, 2024
Oregon may be leading by 14 now as the second half ensued, but this was one of the day’s best shots. You might not see a better one this tournament (although we’d certainly appreciate more dramatic shots!).
The shot got an excellent reaction out of CBS announcer Andrew Catalon, who’ll call his first Regional Semifinal and Final with the network this year. But he wasn’t the only one to have an animated reaction!
The basketball world had much to say about this epic shot.
TA'LON COOPER‼️‼️
pic.twitter.com/3fcimVu7mv— Hammer DAHN (@HammerDAHN) March 21, 2024
TA'LON COOPER MY GOODNESS! 👀pic.twitter.com/4lPi84tnUV
— The Field of 68 (@TheFieldOf68) March 21, 2024
TA'LON COOPER BEATS THE BUZZER FROM HALF-COURT 👀#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/tuwJkiR04v
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 21, 2024
Ta’Lon Cooper from the moon. What a way to end the half 🤯 pic.twitter.com/UGI59M83x2
— Joe Macheca (@JoeMacheca) March 21, 2024
SOUTH CAROLINA'S TA'LON COOPER FROM HALF COURT 🔥
What a way to end the half 😤 @RivalsGamecock
(via @MarchMadnessMBB)pic.twitter.com/b3QbXQ5W1A
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) March 21, 2024
BEYOND HALFCOURT 😱
Ta’Lon Cooper hits the buzzer beater at the half for South Carolina.#MarchMadnesspic.twitter.com/AuAj1Iey1E
— USA TODAY Sports (@usatodaysports) March 21, 2024