March Madness comes early to Jersey! NJCU sinks Division III rival Rowan with wild finish

A Division III college basketball game in New Jersey has made national news for one of the wildest finishes in recent memory.

Trailing No. 23 Rowan by four points with five seconds remaining, New Jersey City University squeaked out a 73-71 win thanks to a pair of miraculous shots and a well-timed steal.

The unforgettable sequence began with an NJCU inbounds pass to junior forward Ryan Savoy, who quickly hoisted a 3-pointer from the corner.

Rowan promptly took the ball out under their own basket as the NJCU Gothic Knights scrambled to get into their full-court press. It was then that NJCU's Pharoh Allah sprinted towards the baseline from mid-court, stretched out his arms, and tipped the hurried inbounds pass from Rowan.

Somehow the deflected pass found its way into the hands of NJCU's Jason Battle, whose 45-foot prayer banked in as time expired, sending the Gothic Knights and the few fans in attendance into hysterics.

The unforgettable sequence began with an NJCU inbounds pass to junior forward Ryan Savoy, who quickly hoisted a 3-pointer from the corner

The sequence sparked immediate pandemonium at the gym in Jersey City, with teammates and the handful of fans in attendance swarming Battle

But perhaps no one was more hysterical than Tim Moore, the NJCU play-by-play announcer, who narrated the action:

'Inbounds, it's good!' Moore explained as the pitch of his voice rose dramatically. 'Ryan Savoy cuts it to one! And NJCU has it! Floater! It's good! It's good! Jason Battle, at the buzzer! NJCU wins! They stun No. 23 Rowan here at the buzzer!'

The sequence sparked immediate pandemonium at the gym in Jersey City, with teammates and the handful of fans in attendance swarming Battle.

The Rowan Profs fell to 19-4 with the loss and 15-1 in the New Jersey Athletic Conference, while NJCU improved to 11-12 and 6-10 in conference play.

The remarkable ending to Wednesday's game has already been highlighted by ESPN's Scott Van Pelt on SportsCenter.

'Buckets!' Van Pelt explained while calling the replay. 'NJCU wins.'

NJCU doesn't usually make much national news.

The school declared a financial emergency last June, seeking $10 million in relief from the state government. Governor Phil Murphy responded by calling for an investigation into NJCU's finances after it went from a reported surplus of $108 million in 2013 to a $67 million deficit.

After Savoy (center) made a corner 3-pointer to cut the lead to one point, Rowan promptly took the ball out under their own basket as the NJCU Gothic Knights scrambled to get into their full-court press. It was then that NJCU's Pharoh Allah (right) sprinted towards the baseline from mid-court, stretched out his arms, and tipped the hurried inbounds pass from Rowan. Somehow the deflected pass found its way into the hands of NJCU's Jason Battle (left), whose 45-foot prayer banked in as time expired, sending the Gothic Knights and the few fans in attendance into hysterics