Stanford rallied from a 14-point deficit in the final three minutes to topple Arizona State 71-70 at the buzzer in the first round of the Pac-12 Tournament on Wednesday. James Keefe banked in a short jumper as the game ended after the ball ricocheted into his hands during a frenetic final sequence.
The moment capped a remarkable comeback for the Cardinal, who trailed 69-55 after Kimani Lawrence threw down a vicious dunk for the Sun Devils with 3:01 remaining. It was all Stanford from there as the Cardinal closed the game on a 16-1 run to the flip the script on the game, and on the season, for both teams.
Arizona State had won seven of its past eight entering the Pac-12 Tournament and just beat Stanford 65-56 on Saturday in the regular-season finale for both teams. By contrast, Stanford was struggling into the postseason as losers of its last five. Arizona State opened up a 17-point lead at one point in the second half as the Sun Devils matched a Pac-12 Tournament record with 15 made 3-pointers.
JAMES KEEFE AT THE BUZZER 😱@jameskeefe22 | @StanfordMBB pic.twitter.com/lbu63BHEb2
— FOX College Hoops (@CBBonFOX) March 9, 2022
But the Sun Devils went cold when it mattered most, and Cardinal found life to advance to Thursday's quarterfinal round against No. 1 seed Arizona. The Wildcats beat the Cardinal twice in the regular season, but as Wednesday's comeback showed, anything is possible in March.
Spencer Jones led all scorers with 26 points for Stanford against ASU. Keefe added 16, including the final two that came just in the nick of time.
