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Top 5 San Antonio March Madness moments

The more San Antonio hosts the Final Four, the more great memories we get.

San Antonio is a basketball town, and not just because we’re the home of the five-time NBA champion San Antonio Spurs. It’s also because the Alamodome has hosted some amazing March Madness moments.

Over the years, teams have either punched their ticket to the Final Four or clinched national championships. And we’re here to remember some of the best moments that keep bringing the NCAA Tournament back to the Alamo City.

Moments like…

5. Time Stands Still (Texas vs. UConn, 2003)

There are times when you watch sporting events where a big moment happens and time appears to stand still. When you look back on it, it actually went by a lot faster than you remember. But in the moment, it’s as if the world froze.

In 2003, the Texas Longhorns were a No. 1 seed playing a virtual home game in the Sweet 16 against the UConn Huskies. It was tight the whole way and Texas led by two with less than a minute left.

UConn had a big possession late and after a miss, there was a scramble, and then a UConn player went up for what looked like a game-tying layup but it was blocked at the last second. In fact, as a result of the block, the ball got stuck between the backboard and the rim.

I was standing under the basket on the other side of the court next to the Texas band. Everything seemed to go quiet. What does that mean? What happens now?

Then it all hit us. That’s a jump ball and the arrow is pointing at Texas. The Longhorns got the ball and went on to win the game, one step closer to making history.

More on that later.

4. Mo' Money (Michigan vs. Loyola-Chicago, 2018)

There was one, dominating narrative coming into the 2018 Final Four in San Antonio, and that was the presence of Cinderella in the form of Loyola-Chicago. The 11-seed Ramblers were the talk of the tournament, and Sister Jean, the team's chaplain, became a national figure.

But the Michigan Wolverines were ready to carve out their own spot in history, and Moritz Wagner was the one that led them.

The seven-foot German was historically dominant in the team's 69-57 win. Wagner finished with 24 points and 15 rebounds.

The only other players to go 20-15 like that in a national semifinal are legends Larry Bird and Hakeem Olajuwon, a fact that even he was surprised by when I asked him about it after the game.

3. The DiVincenzo Show (Villanova vs. Michigan, 2018)

It's safe to say that among the players that people were looking forward to seeing during the 2018 Final Four, Villanova's Donte DiVincenzo was pretty far down the list.

Not even considered the best player at his position on the team, DiVincenzo came off the bench in the championship game. But that's how loaded that Wildcats team was. The player that would carry them to a title on their final night was a guy nobody expected.

After Mo Wagner and Michigan took an early lead, DiVincenzo caught fire on both sides of the court. He scored 31 points, including five three-pointers and even made some great defensive plays.

He was named the tournament's most outstanding player and suddenly, his NBA Draft stock skyrocketed. He ended up doing so well in the combine and during team workouts that he wound up being taken with the No. 17 overall pick, eight spots ahead of the highly-touted Wagner.

Time will tell if he ends up having a solid NBA career, but he couldn't have asked for a better finish to his college career.

2. Longhorn History (Texas vs. Michigan State, 2003)

It felt like destiny. A year before, TJ Ford, the biggest recruit in Texas history, showed that he was capable of changing the Longhorn program forever. And in 2003, he finally did.

It’s almost funny how many didn’t think that Texas deserved a No. 1 seed and they were the only No. 1 seed to get to the Final Four that year.

But among the reason that it felt like destiny was that this game was in San Antonio. And with their win over UConn two days beforehand, Longhorn fans turned the Alamodome into a sea of burnt orange, watching their team punch their ticket to their first Final Four since 1943.

And the team didn’t disappoint. They used a run at the end of the first half to establish a lead and never gave it up after that, answering every challenge and riding the home wave to the biggest victory in program history.

1. Mario’s Miracle (Kansas vs. Memphis, 2008)

We’re coming up on the 10th anniversary of arguably the greatest shot in NCAA Tournament history. For anyone that was there, it’s the gift that keeps on giving.

The Memphis Tigers had bullied their way to the national championship game with great shooting and versatile big men. Derrick Rose was the national player of the year and he was on the verge of clinching a title.

But the team’s one weakness reared its ugly head at the worst possible time. Late in the fourth quarter, Memphis had trouble knocking down free throws. And when Rose had a chance to ice the game at the line in the final seconds, he couldn’t, leaving a window open for Mario Chalmers to become a legend.

After that shot went down, there was no way the Tigers could recover. While overtime was tight, the ending felt like a foregone conclusion. Rock, chalk, championship. The Jayhawks went home with the title.

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