In a fairly uncommon scene, Temple basketball fans were asked to leave the court because a historic upset hadn’t quite been completed yet.
The Owls stunned the No. 16 Villanova Wildcats 68-64 on Friday night in an upset that was highlighted by the delirious Owls fans storming the court twice.
Here is a clip of the initial sequence of events that everyone assumed was the end of the game:
— Barry Badrinath (@badrinathbarry1) November 12, 2022
Temple had just sunk a free throw to take a 66-64 lead with just 1.1 seconds on the clock. Villanova was left with no choice but to try to heave the ball downcourt and attempt a shot.
As the above clip shows, the ball was intercepted. Temple fans thought the game was over and rushed the court.
Of course, if you’re an eagle-eyed observer, you’ll notice that the remaining game time mysteriously went from 0.2 seconds to “Final.”
Unbeknownst to fans, Villanova had committed a foul with 0.2 seconds left once Temple had intercepted the aforementioned inbound pass.
Have you ever stormed a court or field after a big game?
Yes: 6% (1 Votes)
No: 94% (15 Votes)
Despite the virtual impossibility of winning the game down 4 with just 0.2 seconds left, Villanova called timeout and tried to run a play.
It didn’t work.
And now, finally, the Temple faithful could properly storm the court:
TEMPLE STORMS THE COURT ONCE AGAIN!!! pic.twitter.com/LS7NmWqOSw
— Mr Matthew CFB (@MrMatthewCFB) November 12, 2022
The Temple win (and Villanova loss) included a myriad of historic milestones, according to ESPN.
The Owls beat the Wildcats for the first time in 10 years in their cross-town Philadelphia rivalry.
And while the Owls get to brag about their little piece of history, the Wildcats will have to live down the fact that Friday’s defeat tied the earliest point in a season (this was just their second game of the year) that a ranked Villanova squad has lost to an unranked team.
This isn’t the first time in recent memory that fans have had to storm a field twice.
Last year in college football, the Baylor Bears were about to upend the Oklahoma Sooners.
Fans rushed the field with one second left on the clock, but Baylor ultimately opted to kick a field goal that had no bearing on the final result of the game, forcing fans to wait on the sidelines. Oklahoma even had to bring 11 players back out so the field goal could be legally kicked.
Baylor fans rush the field with 1 second left on the clock pic.twitter.com/acAMaG2Y1Y
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) November 13, 2021
The 1-1 Owls will play Vanderbilt next. The 1-1 Wildcats will face Delaware State, a game that Villanova is heavily favored to win.
