Witness the one-armed man with 12 seconds to go. (audio link).
Dane Bradshaw will have an MRI today to see what's causing his inability to lift his right hand above his shoulder without pain. Well, thank goodness for adrenaline, as The Blender reached high for Duke Crews' bullet pass from the top of the key, dribbled, and got the ball to Ramar Smith, who missed the layup just so Bradshaw could heighten the drama by tipping in the rebound to win the game with a rubber arm. As one of the commentators said, last night MRI stood for "my rebound inside."
It was all Vols early, as Tennessee raced out to a sizeable lead. Formerly undefeated Oklahoma State came storming back, though, took the lead, and held it for most of the rest of the game. The Discomboulator was held in check for most of that time, but as time wound down, he stole the ball from the Cowboys' Jameson Curry in the back court, which led to Curry's fouling out in frustration and sparked the Vols' final flurry.
Crews played with passion and precision, hitting a season-high 17 points. In relief of Crews, Wayne Chism made some stellar defensive plays with the clock winding down. JaJuan Smith was also solid, contributing 14 points.
But Bradshaw was the star among stars last night, as he forced a steal in the final seconds in addition to tipping in the game winner with floppy right arm.
It was remniscent of his sweet steal-and-spin move to beat the Gators last season. And of the other game-winning layup in the other win over the Gators last year.
Rule No. 1 of Tennessee basketball: If the clock is under sixty seconds, get Dane Bradshaw on the court, no matter what.