Top Five Buzzer-Beaters In Local Conference Tournament History

SALT LAKE CITY – In honor of Southern Utah‘s buzzer-beating shots in the 2023 Western Athletic Conference Tournament, KSL Sports Live put together the top five buzzer-beaters from conference tournaments by local college programs.

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Top Five Buzzer-Beaters for Local College Teams

5. Lorenzo Bonam (Utah) – 2016 Pac-12 Conference Tournament

The former Runnin’ Utes guard made a layup at the second half buzzer sounded to tie the contest and send the game against the California Bears into overtime. Utah defeated Cal in OT and advanced to the Pac-12 tourney title game against Oregon.

Utah's Lorenzo Bonam goes coast-to-coast in 4.3 seconds to send the Pac-12 semifinal into overtime. #MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/2w55eRPUrv

— Jeremiah Jensen (@JJSportsBeat) March 12, 2016

4. Scott Moon (BYU) – 1991 Western Athletic Conference Tournament

In the semifinal round of the 1991 WAC Tournament, BYU was facing Hawai’i when Moon pulled down a big offensive rebound in the final seconds before attempting a putback. Moon’s shot bounced multiple times on the rim before falling into the basket to give the Cougars an overtime victory over the Rainbow Warriors.

One of the great conference tournament moments in @BYUbasketball history was this putback by Scott Moon. The ball bounced around the rim and fell through as time expired to beat Hawaii. The Cougars went on to beat Utah in the WAC title game in 1991.#GoCougs #BYUHoops pic.twitter.com/f8V1CBYZri

— KSL Sports (@kslsports) March 13, 2021

3. Keith Van Horn (Utah) – 1997 Western Athletic Conference Tournament

The former Runnin’ Utes forward hit a pair of game-winning buckets during the 1997 WAC tourney, including a tip-in against the SMU Mustangs and another bucket against the New Mexico Lobos in the semifinals. Van Horn would go on to help Utah win the WAC Tournament title.

Goodmorning. Here’s Keith Van Horn’s game (2nd game) winning shot (in a row) in the 1997 WAC Conference Tournament. pic.twitter.com/ndWZT1bBIk

— Andrew (@booskutball) April 3, 2020

March 7, 1997: Keith Van Horn hits a buzzer beater to give Utah the win over New Mexico in the Semifinals of the WAC Conference Tournament.
pic.twitter.com/JRfUuTSgmS

— This Day In Sports Clips (@TDISportsClips) March 8, 2023

2. Sam Merrill (Utah State) – 2020 Mountain West Tournament

In his final game with the Aggies, Merrill connected on a massive three-pointer during the closing seconds of the Mountain West tourney title game to give USU the lead over the San Diego State Aztecs. The Aggies earned an automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament with the win. Unfortunately, the tourney was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

This (shot) is March pic.twitter.com/iGpUmrkT9J

— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) March 8, 2020

1. Kevin Nixon (BYU) – 1992 Western Athletic Conference Tournament

In the 1992 WAC Tournament Final, the BYU Cougars were facing the UTEP Miners. BYU’s Kevin Nixon hit a three-pointer on a heave from the backcourt to lift the Cougars to a tourney title and a spot in the NCAA Tournament.

March 13, 1992: BYU’s Kevin Nixon hits a 54-footer at the buzzer to win the WAC Tournament Championship over UTEP.
pic.twitter.com/VOyuw2ofxa

— This Day In Sports Clips (@TDISportsClips) March 13, 2023

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