Do You Remember UCLA and Gonzaga In The 2006 Sweet Sixteen? Bruins Do.

UCLA and Gonzaga will meet again in the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2006. That year, the #2 Bruins, also in the Sweet Sixteen, shocked the #3 Gonzaga Bulldogs led by Adam Morrison when they came back from 17 down to pull off one of the most amazing comebacks in NCAA Tournament history.

Gonzaga had started the game on fire. The defensive-minded Bruins had been shutting teams down all season long with their stingy defense, but had no answer for the hot-shooting Bulldogs. As dominant as Gonzaga was on both offense and defense, it seemed as thought UCLA was in for a disappointing ending.

But then things started to go the Bruin’s way. UCLA never gave up and kept fighting, even in the last three minutes when they were down by nine points. And then something amazing happened.

For those that do not remember, it went something like this…

UCLA Bruins

Hollins getting fouled then hitting two big free throws to get UCLA to within one point with 19.7 seconds left. Jordan Farmar stealing the ball and sending it into Luc Richard Mbah a Moute for the go ahead basket. Then Mbah a Moute diving, literally, across the half court line to steal the ball back from the ensuing in-bound play. It was enough to make Adam Morrison cry.

Ah, Memories.

Still, do not expect the Bruins to have such luck against the Bulldogs next week when they play in the Sweet Sixteen in Houston. Times are different and this Gonzaga team clearly has a leg up on UCLA, as we saw earlier this season when the Bulldogs beat the Bruins at Pauley Pavilion back in mid-December for the Bruin’s only home loss of the season.

One thing is for sure though, if UCLA beats Gonzaga this year, that truly would be a miracle.