Stephen F. Austin knocks off VCU, sets up potential date with UCLA

If UCLA beats Tulsa tonight, it’ll have a date with Stephen F. Austin.

The 12th-seeded Lumberjacks knocked off No. 5-seed Virginia Commonwealth, 77-75, on Friday night — extending its win streak to 29 games. With nearly all of Viejas Arena cheering in its favor, SFA forced overtime and survived VCU’s last-second 3-point attempt to advance to the round of 32.

The Rams led by four points with 21 seconds left, but fouled Dustin Haymon’s 3-point attempt with three seconds left. The shot went in, and Haymon followed up by calmly hitting the free throw.

VCU had seized control of the game for most of the second half, forcing 12 of 17 turnovers after the break and rolling out a 26-5 run. Up 44-43 at 12:39, the Rams proceeded to forced three turnovers over a 50-second stretch. They converted a dunk, a layup and a jumper, and bumped their lead up to as much as 11 points before the Lumberjacks climbed back.

Jequan Lewis had an open look to win the game with five seconds left, but his 3-point attempt went in and out. As SFA secured the rebound, Lewis collapsed to the floor, tears pouring out.