March Sadness: Every Sweet 16 coach’s worst NCAA Tournament moment

Mike Krzyzewski said he felt terrible after UCF’s putback rolled around the rim and fell harmlessly, inexplicably out in the final seconds.

Then he reminded everybody: It’s happened to us, too.

Even a coach as decorated as Krzyzewski has experienced March Sadness.

Twelve more will experience it sometime this weekend. There will be tears. Here’s the most painful moment each Sweet 16 coach has experienced in an NCAA Tournament.

Auburn: Bruce Pearl

Pearl knows UCF’s pain better than most. His second year as a head coach, he guided Milwaukee to the Horizon League title and 2003 NCAA Tournament.

In a classic 12-5 matchup, his underdog Panthers had the ball and a final chance to knock out Notre Dame and earn the program’s first tournament win.

Pearl got what he wanted, a drive, dish and layup, but Dylan Page’s shot rolled out. Notre Dame advanced 70-69.

“What more could I ask for?” Pearl told reporters afterward. “… The ball just didn’t go in.”

Seven years later, while coaching Tennessee, his underdog Vols made a surprising run to the Elite Eight. But a missed free throw in the final seconds cost them a chance to upset Michigan State and reach the Final Four.

Duke: Mike Krzyzewski

Virginia is the only No. 1 seed to lose its opening game to a 16 seed, but Krzyzewski has had his share of first-game Klunkers in the tournament.

In 2012, the No. 2-seeded Blue Devils lost to No. 15 seed Lehigh. Two years later, his No. 3-seeded Blue Devils fell to No. 13 Mercer. If you’re keeping score, he’s had more first-round exits in the one-and-done era than NCAA titles.

His worst moment, however, had to be the embarrassing 30-point loss against UNLV in the 1990 NCAA championship game. It was also a turning point. That beatdown, as much as any other game, motivated Duke into becoming a force. The Blue Devils won the next two NCAA championships and have been a threat ever since.

Florida State: Leonard Hamilton

Hamilton has flown under the radar in the ACC, but that’s no indictment of his coaching acumen. It’s hard to keep up with Hall of Famers.

He had a chance to break through in 2017. The Noles finished second in the ACC and earned a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament — matching their best under Hamilton.

It wasn’t only that they didn’t make it to the Sweet 16, it was they never had a chance. No. 11 seed Xavier jumped to a 15-point lead in the first half of their second-round game and won by 25.

Gonzaga: Mark Few

By 2013, Gonzaga had long since lost its Cinderella status, at least among those who paid attention to college basketball in October and not just March.

But the Zags had never truly broken through. Even with Adam Morrison, March remained a mystery.

The 2013 team was the first to reach No. 1 in the AP Poll. They went 31-2 in the regular season and earned a No. 1 seed in the West.

This was going to be the year. Then everything fell apart in a Round of 32 disaster against No. 9 Wichita State. The 76-70 loss raised questions about whether Few was ever going to make it to the Final Four.

Houston: Kelvin Sampson

This is Sampson’s 15 trip to the Final Four. He went one-and-done his first 5 trips. In 2002, he had built Oklahoma into a title contender. The Sooners cracked the top 5, they won 31 games, and Sampson reached the Final Four for the first time.

The higher you climb, the harder the fall. The No. 2 seed Sooners lost to No. 5 seed Indiana in the semifinals. That was the first time IU broke his heart.

Kentucky: John Calipari

Losing the 2008 NCAA title game as Memphis’ coach couldn’t have been fun, but Calipari literally had the perfect team in 2015. A roster full of first-round picks and future NBA stars. An unblemished 38-0 record. A chance to forever replace border rival Indiana as the most recent unbeaten national champion.

It all fell apart in the Final Four, when Wisconsin shocked the college basketball world with a stunning 71-64 upset.

LSU: Tony Benford

Unless you count not making the NCAA Tournament as North Texas’ head coach, he’s yet to experience true March Sadness. And he’s 2-0 as LSU’s interim.

Michigan: John Beilein

He’s had better teams, including two that lost NCAA title games, but his gritty 2011 squad had a chance to make some history.

Some weren’t convinced they belonged in the tournament, not with a 20-13 record overall.

Seeded No. 8, Michigan trailed No. 1 seed and defending national champion Duke by 2 in the final seconds in the second round. Remarkable, considering they were down by 15 with 11 minutes left. But Darius Miller’s runner bounced off the back of the rim. If that shot falls and Michigan takes out Duke in OT, that shot would be one of the most famous in program history.

Michigan State: Tom Izzo

The March Magician, Izzo has been to 7 Final Fours and won the 2000 NCAA title.

Just like Krzyzewski, he’s been part of a few head-scratching losses, too.

His 2016 team reached No. 1 and earned a No. 2 seed in the Midwest but was stunned by No. 15 Middle Tennessee in its opening game. They gave up 90 points in the process, their second-highest of the season.

North Carolina: Roy Williams

Nobody on this list has experienced a more painful moment than Williams, whose Tar Heels lost the 2016 national championship game to Villanova on a walkoff 3-pointer at the buzzer — after Marcus Paige hitting a miraculous, double-clutch 3-pointer to tie the game just seconds earlier. It would have been easier to accept, and far less painful, had Paige’s shot hit the iron.

Oregon: Dana Altman

OK, maybe Altman comes case. A year after Williams experienced the agony of da 3, his Tar Heels handed Altman a 77-76 defeat in the 2017 Final Four.

UNC won the game … on a miss, when Kennedy Meeks rebounded the Heels’ 8th botched free throw — and 4th in the final minute — to prevent Oregon one last shot at a spot in the title game.

Purdue: Matt Painter

Painter’s NCAA experiences have been a lot like a Friday night out in West Lafayette. Relatively bland. Expected. Not the worst time you’ve ever had, but certainly worth asking why you didn’t just drive an hour to Indianapolis.

There have been more blowout losses than heartbreaking ones, by a wide margin. The only time he lost by 1, his Boilers were an overachieving No. 9 seed that fell in the first round to No. 8 Cincinnati in 2015.

Painter’s 2010 team featured 3 eventual NBA players and reached No. 3 in the country, his high point. But it fizzled in a 13-point loss to No. 1 Duke in the Sweet 16.

Tennessee: Rick Barnes

His 2003 Texas team reached the Final Four, where it ran into Carmelo Anthony. And that was that. Quick and painless.

His 2007 Texas team remains a head-scratcher. The Longhorns featured four freshman who later reached the NBA, including Kevin Durant. They never quite figured it out though. And while Ohio State and its freshman made it to the national championship game, Texas bowed out in the second round.

In terms of nightmares, it’s most likely last season’s Tennessee team, which shockingly lost to No. 11 seed Loyola-Chicago in the second round on last-second jumper that bounced and bounced and … bounced the Vols out of the tournament.

That upset, no doubt, has fueled the Vols’ redemption tour this season.

Texas Tech: Chris Beard

Who? I don’t blame you. I had to look it up, too, but he’s a name we should know.

Beard cashed in on his one and only season at Little Rock and replaced Tubby Smith at Texas Tech, where all he’s done is make the Sweet 16 (at least) in back-to-back seasons after missing the tournament in Year 1.

Last year, the Red Raiders lost in the Elite Eight to eventual champ Villanova, but that hardly qualifies as a sad moment.

This year might feel a bit different. The Red Raiders won the Big 12 and are an emerging force in that conference.

Virginia: Tony Bennett

Do we even need to discuss last year? Moving on …

Virginia Tech: Buzz Williams

Williams seems to show up at the NCAA Tournament each year, only to slip out early through the back door, leaving others to wonder: Did you see Buzz?

He’s made the tournament 8 times in 12 years as a head coach.

The biggest disappointment had to be his 2013 Marquette team. The Golden Eagles won the Big East and earned a No. 3 seed in the East. They took down No. 2 seed Miami in the Sweet 16 to set up an Elite Eight date with No. 4 seed Syracuse.

Buzz-kill. The Orange’s vaunted zone limited Marquette to 39 points and paved the way for a 16-point beatdown.

Chris Wright

Managing Editor

A 30-time APSE award-winning editor with previous stints at the Miami Herald, The Indianapolis Star and News & Observer, Executive Editor Chris Wright oversees editorial operations for Saturday Down South.