Tunnel video showed that Furman’s Jalen Slawson couldn’t believe the crucial Virginia turnover

“He just freaking threw the ball!”

Well, if you wanted to see a wild first round with upsets, you didn’t have to wait long into the 2023 men’s NCAA tournament.

In the second game of the day, No. 13 seed Furman upset No. 4 Virginia on a go-ahead three by J.P. Pegues with 2.2 seconds remaining in the game. Furman would hold on to win, 68-67, and much of the postgame focus was on the Kihei Clark turnover that set up the entire play to begin with.

With a timeout remaining and Virginia up by two, Clark found himself doubled in the corner. And rather than use the timeout or try to take a foul, he just blindly threw the ball into traffic.

After the game, Furman star Jalen Slawson still couldn’t believe that actually happened. Postgame video from the tunnel showed him describing that wild sequence.

He could be heard saying, “He just freaking threw the ball.”

It was such an uncharacteristic mistake for a player like Clark. But that’s the reality of March: One mistake can turn a game.