5 best moments of March Madness Round 2, from upsets to buzzer-beaters

What a way to end the first weekend of March Madness.

After a mostly tame opening round of the men’s NCAA Tournament, the second round absolutely cooked. Whether it was the outstanding performances, thrilling finishes and shocking upsets, Saturday and Sunday truly brought the unexpected to set the stage for an exciting Sweet 16.

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It’s tough to pick which moments were the best since there were so many to choose from the two days, but these ones stood out as ones we’ll remember from this year’s tournament.

The fight to make it to the Sweet 16 provided some all-time moments. Here are the best ones from the 16 games of the second round:

Iowa stuns defending champion Florida

It starts with the biggest upset of the tournament so far.

The defending champions will not get to keep their crown after Iowa sent Florida home packing early. The Hawkeyes controlled the majority of the game but the Gators stormed back to take a late lead, looking like they would survive.

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However, Iowa didn’t falter. It stuck around until the very end, when Alvaro Folgueiras knocked down the go-ahead 3-pointer with four seconds left. What makes it even sweeter is Folgueiras honors his late father with every bucket, and he pointed to the sky after he hit the shot that will live in Iowa history forever, sending his team to its first Sweet 16 since 1999.

Folgueiras also hit the shot in front of his mom, who hadn’t seen him play for Iowa in two years.

“This one is for her and my dad,” he said. “He’s watching up there.”

Texas clutch shot from Camden Heide

Camden Heide picked the best time to score his first points of the second round.

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After not recording a single point for 39 minutes against Gonzaga, Heide came in with the Longhorns up one point in the final seconds. Texas needed a bucket to avoid a Bulldogs win, and Heide got the ball in the corner and drilled a 3-pointer with 14 seconds left for the dagger in the upset.

Truly saved the best for last.

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Iowa shocks Florida with statement NCAA tournament upset

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Iowa shocks Florida with statement NCAA tournament upset

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Iowa shocks Florida with statement NCAA tournament upset

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Iowa shocks Florida with statement NCAA tournament upset

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Iowa shocks Florida with statement NCAA tournament upset

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Iowa shocks Florida with statement NCAA tournament upset

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Iowa shocks Florida with statement NCAA tournament upset

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Iowa shocks Florida with statement NCAA tournament upset

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Iowa shocks Florida with statement NCAA tournament upset

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Iowa shocks Florida with statement NCAA tournament upset

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Iowa shocks Florida with statement NCAA tournament upset

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Iowa shocks Florida with statement NCAA tournament upset

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Iowa shocks Florida with statement NCAA tournament upset

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Iowa shocks Florida with statement NCAA tournament upset

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Iowa shocks Florida with statement NCAA tournament upset

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Iowa shocks Florida with statement NCAA tournament upset

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Iowa shocks Florida with statement NCAA tournament upset

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Iowa shocks Florida with statement NCAA tournament upset

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Iowa shocks Florida with statement NCAA tournament upset

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Iowa shocks Florida with statement NCAA tournament upset

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Iowa shocks Florida with statement NCAA tournament upset

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Iowa shocks Florida with statement NCAA tournament upset

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Iowa shocks Florida with statement NCAA tournament upset

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Iowa shocks Florida with statement NCAA tournament upset

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Iowa shocks Florida with statement NCAA tournament upset

Nebraska beats Vanderbilt in a thriller

You would’ve thought it was a national championship game with the environment in Oklahoma City.

Perhaps the game of the year so far, Nebraska and Vanderbilt played a thrilling back-and-forth affair that captivated everyone watching, and it ended with a spectacular finish. Braden Frager drove down the lane for a go-ahead bucket with two seconds left. All that was needed was to avoid a Vanderbilt game-winner, and oh how close it came to happen.

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Vanderbilt’s Tyler Tanner heaved the ball from halfcourt as the buzzer sounded and the ball looked like it was going inside the bucket, but it bounced out, putting everyone in disbelief on how it didn’t go in.

It was the perfect ending to what was a near-perfect game.

Darius Acuff Jr.-Rob Martin duel

March is where stars are made, and an established one and new one emerged in a classic fun battle in Portland.

Arkansas’ Darius Acuff Jr. and High Point’s Rob Martin put on a show in the second round, putting their teams on their back in an exciting contest. Acuff, a projected lottery pick, dropped 36 points and Martin cemented himself as a star with a 30 point effort against the SEC champions.

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What was incredible is their performance in the clutch. They accounted for a combined 31 points in the last 12 minutes of the game, capped off by Acuff’s nine points in the final three minutes. An entertaining battle between elite playmakers.

St. John’s buzzer-beater

We knew we were getting a hall of famer coaching matchup in St. John’s vs. Kansas, and the teams went down to the wire, capped by an amazing finish.

Tied at 65 with 3.9 seconds to go, St. John’s guard Dylan Darling raced down the basket and avoided the Jayhawks defenders to sink a layup as the buzzer sounded for the win in an amazing battle.

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What made it even better was Darling called for the play himself, and it paid off.

“The play coach was trying to run, there wasn’t enough time for it. I threw the suggestion out, and I don’t think Coach really had a choice at that point in time.” he said. “So we went with it, and I probably don’t deserve this. I was pretty bad all night long, but my teammates held it down tonight.”

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: March Madness best moments of Round 2 include upsets, buzzer beaters