Gansey scored 22 points and collected ten rebounds as the Mountaineers and Wildcats traded punches for 40 minutes, but in the end West Virginia's junior forward threw the knockout punch as WVU won one of the best played games in tournament history.
Gansey snared an errant shot from Patrick Beilein and was fouled with two-tenths of a second to play, then calmly nailed both free throws to give WVU an improbable 78-76 win.
Gansey's free throws overshadowed an acrobatic reverse layup in the first half that had the Garden crowd roaring with approval. Taking the ball ont he elft wing, Gansey drove the baseline, flew past the imposing form of Villanova's Curtis Sumpter, flaoted to the opposite side of the basket, and flipped the ball softly off the basket into the hoop. The shot was part of a 20-2 run that brought the Mountaineers from 10 points behind to an eight point lead.
Gansey's 22 points came on 9-18 shooting from the field, including two of six from three point range. His ten rebounds were split evenly between the offensive and defensive ends. He added two assists, two blocked shots and a steal in 33 minutes of hard driving action.
Box Score