Texas Tech basketball: Top 5 plays of NCAA Tournament thus far
Tariq Owens block and save vs. Zags
Tariq Owens has the play of the tournament thus far for the Red Raiders. Against the Gonzaga Bulldogs, Owens came flying from just outside the lane to block a Rui Hachimore 3-pointer in the corner and then completed the play by saving the ball to Brandone Francis with just 57 seconds to play.
And yes, he was out of bounds when he saved the ball and possession should have been awarded to the Zags. Sometimes the breaks go your way. After all, the Zags got one of their own just two possessions later when they stole the ball from Moretti after it dribbled off of the foot of a Bulldog defender.
Francis made only one of two free throws on the possession after the Owens block and save meanwhile, the Zags hit a 3-pointer on the possession after the foot-steal of Moretti. So in the tradeoff of fluky breaks, Gonzaga came away with a two-point advantage.
https://twitter.com/marchmadness/status/1112145562701193216
But nothing can diminish the play that Owens made. After all, the only other player in the tournament with the athleticism to cover as much ground as Owens did to even get to the block would be Zion Williamson and had he made this play, the internet might have crashed.
It is also incredibly impressive that Owens did not take time to taunt or celebrate after rejecting Hachimura as so many players do following a blocked shot. Rather, he had the wherewithal to realize that the whistle had not been blown and that he should try to save the ball.
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Owens finished the game with four blocks and three came against Hachimura in the second half as he helped slow Gonzaga’s star. This is a play that deserves to go down in Texas Tech history right next to Darvin Hamm’s back-board shattering slam in 1996 or Zhaire Smith’s 360-dunk last year.