Creighton narrowly escapes upset bid from plucky UC Santa Barbara

Yahoo Sports College reporter Pete Thamel takes you through Creighton’s last minute win over UC Santa Barbara, and how the Gauchos came painfully close to winning their first NCAA Tournament game since 1990.

Video transcript

PETE THAMEL: The city of Santa Barbara is best known as a home to some of the world's most famous luminaries-- Oprah, Brad Pitt, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, they all call it home. But not since 1990 has Santa Barbara been home of an NCAA Tournament win. The Gauchos came achingly close to bridging that generational gap on Saturday afternoon. The 12th-seeded Gauchos fell 63-62 to number-5 Creighton in the near upset that made you cringe if you had picked it.

Santa Barbara's Amadou Sow had a clean look at a layup in the paint in the waning seconds. The ball hit the rim in three different places before it leaked out. That came after the game's hero for Creighton, Christian Bishop, who hit two free throws to pull Creighton from 1 point behind to 1 point ahead in the final minute. Marcus Zegarowski led Creighton with 17 points. Perhaps more important for the Bluejays, by barely winning, they restored some mojo. They got wiped off the court in the Big East Tournament final by Georgetown, 73-48. For Creighton, a little luck in the tournament could go a long way. The mojo is back, and the city of Santa Barbara will have to just continue to enjoy its nice weather.