Shawn Vansant and the Butler Bulldogs Prevail

In the ongoing saga that could easily eclipse both Hoosiers and The Blind Side, It was Shawn Vansant and an offensive rebound that Butler, Michigan State, and the basketball world will long remember. A forgettable player interrupting what would otherwise have been a routine play, for a team, in a season, which will arguably go down as the most memorable one in the history of the NCAA tournament.

Scarcely 6-feet tall, Vanzant snagged a one-armed rebound off the offensive glass at a critical juncture in Saturday's semifinal game.  Falling out of bounds and certain obscurity, Vanzant caught a glimpse of Gordon Hayward cutting to the basket and zipped him the ball for the layup.

That basket was Butler's only field goal in the final 12:17 of the defensive struggle. Hayward's bucket gave the Bulldogs a 50-46 lead. A lead which they desperately needed to fend off the Spartans in their 52-50 upset win.