Before the Emory men's basketball team advanced to its first ever NCAA Division III National Championship game, the Eagles found themselves on the precipice of elimination with a clear view into the abyss of the offseason.

They had surrendered a healthy lead against Illinois Wesleyan in the Elite Eight, and the game was suddenly tied at 78 with less than 30 seconds remaining.

A loss would have marked a premature end to a storybook season for a vaunted senior class. It would have meant no more film sessions, practices or road trips until the fall semester. On the bench, some players couldn't help but think the dream of making the Final Four — and potentially winning a national championship — was slipping away.

But the team wasn't ready to go home, says head coach Jason Zimmerman.

As the clock ticked from 15 seconds to 10 to 5, senior guard Ben Pearce used a screen from sophomore teammate Mario Awasum to find some room behind the three-point line. For Pearce, it was pure muscle memory: He hit the game-winning shot with 1 second left, punching the Eagles' ticket to the Final Four, the first in program history.

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