Boeheim’s Army entered The Basketball Tournament with the weight of expectation as the No. 1 seed and a title-contending roster. But We Are D3, the fourth seed with underdog potential, tore up that script and rewrote the ending.
Ty Nichols left everything on the floor from the beginning to the final. After teammate Daqkuan Davis sank the bonus free throw to give D3 possession in the Elam Ending, Nichols sized up Elijah Hughes. He powered through contact, twisting his body awkwardly to get separation. As BA’s center Jamil Wilson rotated over with pressure, Nichols released a high-arcing floater just before falling out of bounds. The shot kissed off the glass, and the ball went in.
We Are D3 stunned Boeheim’s Army 81–78, riding Nichols’ late-game heroics and his 36-point pourout. Despite BA’s efforts to rally late in the game, D3’s composure and defense held strong to seal the upset.
BA got off to a strong start despite both sides struggling to find an early rhythm. Chris McCullough broke the ice with a fadeaway jumper as he dug deep from the left post, and sharpshooters Buddy Boeheim and Hughes followed up with back-to-back threes to build an 8-0 lead. Sticking to their three-prioritized approach, BA kept pressuring D3’s defense with quick ball movement from beyond the arc. BA’s guard Jacob Gilyard nailed a contested triple to keep momentum rolling.
Jimmy Boeheim made an immediate impact off the bench, pouring in six straight points with aggressive drives through contact. Though D3 responded, led by guard Nichols’ corner three that cut the lead to four, Gilyard quickly answered with another three, after Wilson spotted him from the left corner with space while facing a two-man clash. Gilyard and Jimmy combined for 15 points in the period, but D3’s consistency kept it close the quarter strong, beating the buzzer to make it 23-17.
D3 came out energized in the second quarter, with Nichols continuing his two-way effort. He capitalized on a Malachi Richardson turnover with a jumper, then scored again in transition to trim the deficit to five. Rakeem Christmas provided a key spark off the bench for BA with a post score and defensive presence. McCullough and Hughes added buckets down the perimeter, and Gilyard found McCullough for a thunderous alley-oop that pushed the lead to nine.
But D3 stayed close by crashing the boards and converting second-chance points. Nichols drilled a three, and Christian Parker scored a layup before halftime, cutting BA’s lead to an insecure six.
In the third, BA shifted gears—attacking the rim more while still flashing their three-point threat. McCullough earned points at the line, and Christmas made his presence felt defensively with two big blocks. Yet D3 refused to fold, as Nichols powered in back-to-back layups to tie it at 45.
“I think analytically, it plays in our favor (shooting threes),” BA’s Head Coach Allen Griffin said of the BA’s main core of the game plan. “But once Ty (Nichols) got going, it was hard to stop him. We started to push up and try double-teamed him a little bit…that’s the adjustment that I probably should have made earlier.”
BA answered quickly. Gilyard knocked down a deep three, followed by another from Buddy in the corner, finding rhythm after a quiet first half. Though D3’s pressure forced turnovers, Gilyard recovered a loose ball and buried another triple to restore the lead.
D3 rallied to take its first lead late in the quarter, capitalizing on second-chance points. BA steadied at the line—Buddy and Jimmy chipped in four free throws to keep a two-point edge. Nichols responded with a strong drive, tying it at 55, before Richardson and Nichols traded buckets to close the frame. BA held a narrow 57–55 lead heading into the fourth.
“They had 18 offensive rebounds. They had 18 extra opportunities,” Griffin highlighted D3’s rebound postgame.
D3 opened the fourth on fire. Marcus Azor hit a left-wing three, and Nichols dazzled with a slick drive-and-dish to Underwood for a layup. Peek’s reverse made it an 8–0 run, showing D3’s discipline on both ends.
Buddy stopped the bleeding with a corner triple, and Gilyard followed by drawing a foul and sinking three free throws to cut it to one. Nichols responded with a deep three, but Gilyard answered with an and-one drive through contact. Still, Nichols stayed hot, drilling another deep jumper as BA trailed 68–72 entering the Elam Ending.
Underwood kept D3 rolling with a tough fadeaway and a finish off a Nichols assist, putting D3 within four of the target. BA reached the bonus, but Hughes missed free throws. Buddy again came through with a quick catch-and-shoot three to keep BA alive, 73–76.
After a tense scoring drought, Nichols drew a foul on a three and made two. McCullough powered in a layup, then Buddy drilled another contested three, tying the score at 78
“I thought we were going to be able to get one stop,” Griffin said.
But BA didn’t make the final stop, and D3 had the final word—Davis hit a bonus free throw, and Nichols drove hard to the glass for the game-winner, sealing D3’s advance to the regional final.
“This game is about stops. But we just didn’t get the necessary stuff that we’re supposed to,” he said.
Kevin Lu is a contributor for Fingerlakes1.com. He freelanced for the site during The Basketball Tournament (TBT) in 2025.
