Alvaro Folgueiras nailed a three-pointer with 4.5 seconds remaining and Iowa eliminated the defending national champion, Florida, sending Gators home with a 73-72 victory on Sunday in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
Under first-year coach Ben McCollum, Iowa reached the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2015, while Florida (27-8) became the first No 1 seed to be knocked out of this year’s March Madness.
The ninth-seeded Hawkeyes (23-12) wasted a 12-point lead in the second half but rallied in the final minutes. They will face No 4 seed Nebraska in the South Region semi-finals on Thursday night in Houston.
The Gators led 72-70 with just eight seconds left. But Iowa easily broke Florida’s full-court press and Folguerias was wide open in the corner for his three. Florida didn’t get a shot off before the buzzer, with Xaivian Lee’s desperate drive ending with a pass that Thomas Haugh couldn’t handle.
After the game Folguerias, who is from Malaga in Spain, paid tribute to his father, who died when he was nine, and his mother, who agreed let him to move away from home to pursue his basketball career.
“She sent a 16-year-old kid to America without knowing any English … without anything but dreams and hunger,” he said. “And this one is for her and my dad. He’s watching up there.”
Folguerias’s mother was at the game, the first time she had seen him play in person in two years, and the pair embraced as they celebrated Iowa’s win.
“Sometimes, when I struggle through basketball – and basketball is life – I think of my mom as an example of resilience, and that really inspires me and gives me confidence,” Folgueiras said. “Because she’s not just a fighter; she’s a super special person. I’m so lucky to have her as a mom.”
Coming off a 59-point victory over Prairie View A&M on Friday night, Florida played like a team that hadn’t been tested. It felt like a home game for the Gators, who played in front of a sea of orange and blue at Benchmark International Arena, home of the Tampa Bay Lightning. Fans left stunned.
A scuffle broke out just past the midpoint of the first half with Iowa leading 19-13 when Alex Condon and Folgueiras battled for a loose ball. Folgueiras swung his arm back but didn’t follow through with a punch and the players had to be separated. Florida coach Todd Golden sprinted on to the floor to help calm things down, and both players were assessed technical fouls.