Our good friends, Chicago State, left the WAC with arguably the biggest win in program history. It was also the biggest upset of the year.
It won’t sit well with New Mexico State fans. But, we will always remember the day Brandon Betson hit ‘THE SHOT’ that shocked the college basketball world.
In the final meeting between the two schools as conference foes, the unthinkable happened.
New Mexico State needed one win to clinch at least a share of the regular season title. And Chicago State was still on the brink of playing its way into the WAC Tournament.
The Aggies won 17 straight games against the Cougars. But, Chicago State was having its best season with seven wins against Division I opponents.
And sure, the Aggies were shorthanded on that fateful Saturday afternoon in the Windy City. No Johnny McCants. Mario McKinney Jr. also did not play. And Teddy Allen was benched in the final five minutes.
But, the game still has to be played. And played it was.
I remember sitting on press row at the UCCU Center watching the end of the game. Standing up with anxiety as I watched Brandon Betson dribble just inside the timeline. 10, 9, 8…and so it went. One dribble between the legs, then another, and off Betson went with 5.9 seconds and counting. Three dribbles and a floater off the backboard elicited an ‘Oh My Goodness’ reaction.
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Cougars 61, New Mexico State 59#OurChampionshipEra pic.twitter.com/pGumfO8ElL
— Chicago State Men's Basketball (@ChicagoStateMBB) February 26, 2022
Chicago State had done it. The Cougars, 17-point underdogs, pulled off the massive upset at the Jones Convocation Center.
Chicago State, in its final game against New Mexico State, beat the Aggies, 61-59.
With the win, Chicago Stated forced New Mexico State into must-win situations down the stretch in order to win a regular season title.
And the worst part for New Mexico State…the Cougars did not win another game in the final year in the WAC.
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