Tulsa
Mississippi St
Greg Harrington's Floater Guides Golden Hurricane To NIT Semifinals
3/21/2001 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
March 21, 2001
By RALPH D. RUSSO
AP Sports Writer
STARKVILLE, Miss. (AP) - Greg Harrington was just in time. Derrick Zimmerman was a split-second late.
Harrington floated in a 5-footer from the baseline with 2.6 seconds left as Tulsa beat Mississippi State 77-75 in the quarterfinals of the National Invitation Tournament on Wednesday night.
Zimmerman drained a 3-pointer as the clock expired that would have sent the Bulldogs to the semifinals in New York, but the shot left his hands just after the buzzer sounded.
Mississippi State coach Rick Stansbury immediately ran to the referees after Zimmerman's shot was waved off and requested they check a courtside replay. The replay confirmed the call on the floor and the Golden Hurricane (24-11) celebrated.
Tulsa used some quick passing on its last possession to get Harrington free on the baseline. He said he wasn't sure how much time was left or how far away from the basket he was, so he just turned and pushed up a semi-hook shot.
"I didn't know Greg had a jump hook," Tulsa coach Buzz Peterson said.
"There was no time think about it," said Harrington, who scored 14 points. "It's sweet to make that shot to go to New York."
Harrington said he didn't see Zimmerman's shot go in because he turned away when the buzzer sounded.
"When I heard the crowd, I knew it went in," he said. But he also said he was positive it was after the buzzer.
Zimmerman wasn't so sure.
"I couldn't hear nothing," he said.
Antonio Reed led Tulsa with 17 points and Kevin Johnson had 16. The Golden Hurricane were 10-for-20 from 3-point range and shot 53 percent overall.
The Bulldogs made up for 40 percent shooting by outrebounding Tulsa 42-29, including 19 offensive boards.
Mississippi State, which never led in the second half, tied it at 75 with 21 seconds left on a layup by Mario Austin, who finished with 12.
Marckell Patterson led the Bulldogs (18-13) with 20 points and Zimmerman had 14, including 11 in the second half.
Tulsa advanced to the NIT semifinals at Madison Square Garden for the second time.
"We are fortunate to get out of here with a victory, and we are looking forward to New York City," Peterson said.
On that point, Zimmerman concurred.
"A couple of plays here and there down the stretch and it could have been a different ballgame," he said.
Both teams played road games Monday - Tulsa in Minnesota and Mississippi in Pittsburgh - but the quick turnaround didn't seem to have an affect on the play, as both sides kept the pace brisk throughout.
Tulsa held Mississippi State without a field goal for an 8-minute stretch of the first half and were up by 18 with 4:46 left in the first half. Reed, who averages 7.4 points, had 12 in the first half for the Golden Hurricane.
But Mississippi State closed the half with a 14-3 run, highlighted by Zimmerman's crowd-pleasing dunk over two Tulsa defenders, and cut the Golden Hurricane's lead to 38-31 at half.
