Yahoo Finance Is this the best pump fake in NCAA tournament history?
This might be the best pump fake you've ever seen.
Unfortunately for Jared Butler, it didn't pay off.
Houston and Baylor tipped off the Final Four on Saturday and delivered a doozy of a highlight on the game's first possession. After winning the opening tip, Baylor found itself up against the shot clock with an inbounds play from the baseline and four seconds to shoot.
Butler — the Associated Press Big 12 Player of the Year — broke free on a curl and found himself open under the basket. Davion Mitchell hit him with a bounce pass, and Butler went up for a layup — or so DeJon Jarreau thought.
Butler sends Jarreau flying
Jarreau — the AAC Defensive Player of the Year — leapt from behind for a block only to find himself flailing midair on a pump fake. He did the only thing he could at that point — leap haplessly over Butler in an impressive display of athleticism, if not the most effective defense.
Dejon Jarreau literally just jumped over a man... and it allowed Justin Gorham to block the shot pic.twitter.com/POBLTbpjYL
— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) April 3, 2021
Fortunately for Jarreau, Justin Gorham had his back and delivered the help-side block to force a shot-clock violation. It was a prime demonstration of why Houston boasted college basketball's second-stingiest defense this season.
But that was the end of the first-half highlights for Houston on either side of the ball as Baylor raced out to a 45-20 halftime lead en route to a 78-59 victory to advance to the national title game.
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