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VIDEO: No. 11 Northern Iowa upsets No. 6 Texas on Paul Jesperson halfcourt buzzer-beater

Paul Jesperson

Northern Iowa guard Paul Jesperson (4) celebrates in the first half of a first-round men’s college basketball game against Texas in the NCAA Tournament, Friday, March 18, 2016, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Alonzo Adams)

AP

Northern Iowa’s Paul Jesperson made a half-court, buzzer-beater to put the No. 11 seed Panthers past No. 6 seed Texas, 75-72 in the West Region on Friday night.

Jesperson buried the shot after Isaiah Taylor of the Longhorns tied it up with 2.7 seconds left.

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Here’s a better angle of Jesperson’s shot, which came from someone sitting in the stands.

You can really get a feel for just how far that ball traveled in the air:

And this angle may be even better:

The Panthers (23-12) continued their streak of big shots at the end of games as senior guard Wes Washpun made a buzzer-beater in the Missouri Valley conference tournament to help get Northern Iowa into the tournament.

Jesperson finished with 14 points while Washpun led the Panthers with 17 points. A balanced offensive effort was one of the keys for Northern Iowa as they also had 16 points from Jeremy Morgan, Klint Carlson had 11 points and Matt Bohannon had 10 points.

Texas (20-13) lost in unlucky fashion after Taylor did such a great job tying the game. Finishing with 22 points, six assists and four rebounds, Taylor was tremendous for Texas. Eric Davis chipped in 13 points while Javan Felix had 12 points. This one will no doubt sting, but the Longhorns have a lot to be happy about after their first season with Shaka Smart.

Northern Iowa has now picked up a NCAA tournament win in three straight trips spanning back to 2010. The Panthers just seem to have a knack for coming up with big plays and upsets in the tournament the last few years as head coach Ben Jacobson picks up another big win. The Panthers will face No. 3 seed Texas A&M on Sunday in a West Region contest in Oklahoma City.

Listen to the radio call of the Northern Iowa game, including the announcer dropping the line, “Longhorns, trying to make them the Shorthorns":

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