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Four Wisconsin players ran in a circle as if around an invisible maypole on Sunday night. A fifth, the freshman Ethan Happ, prepared to pass the ball inbounds from near halfcourt. There were exactly two seconds left.
The players flared out in different directions. Later, they would say that Happ had been instructed to find either forward Nigel Hayes or guard Bronson Koenig. Somehow, Koenig — the guard who 12 seconds earlier had hit a contested 3-pointer to tie it up with Xavier — broke free and received the pass near Happ, along the right side of the court. He took one dribble toward the corner, set his feet and put up the shot.
Did it go in? In this N.C.A.A. tournament — which, as its opening weekend drew to a close, had already seen more than its share of upsets and buzzer-beaters — the only answer was a worldly “Of course it went in.”
Seventh-seeded Wisconsin (22-12) upset second-seeded Xavier (28-6), 66-63, to reach the round of 16. The Badgers will face sixth-seeded Notre Dame on Friday in Philadelphia.
“I knew it was good,” Xavier Coach Chris Mack said. “I mean, in terms of beating the buzzer. Been around this game long enough, and I knew it was good.”
The stars of the game were Koenig, of course — he scored 20, making six 3-pointers and two foul shots — and Happ, a big man who managed 18 points on 7-for-10 shooting despite early foul trouble.
On Xavier’s side, guard Remy Abell and forward Jalen Reynolds each had 13. Reynolds contributed nine rebounds.
The biggest play that will not show up in the stat sheet came from Wisconsin’s Zak Showalter, a junior, who drew a charge from the Xavier freshman Edmond Sumner with four seconds left. Sumner likes to drive to his right, Showalter explained later in a matter-of-fact tone.
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