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Tampa subregional
© St. Petersburg Times, published March 24, 2003
BEST APPEARANCE BEFORE THE CREDITS: He had four fouls, limiting his playing time, but Auburn star Marquis Daniels came up with a critical series that gave the Tigers their winning six-point cushion. With Auburn ahead 57-54, Daniels came off the bench and scored seven straight points to push the Tigers ahead 64-56.
MOST NOTABLE DISAPPEARING ACT: He was the ACC Player of the Year and an All-America forward capable of taking over a game at any point, but Wake Forest senior Josh Howard couldn't seem to make a play in the final minutes. Howard scored 14, but his two free throws with 7:26 left to tie it at 51 were his last points. Yes, he had foul trouble, but so did Daniels.
BEST SUPPORTING ROLE (IN A LOSING CAUSE): He couldn't make a shot in the first-round game, he couldn't miss one Sunday. Freshman guard Justin Gray made the best of his final game of the season. Gray, who entered the tournament averaging 12.1 points, hit 5 of 9 from 3-point range and finished with a game-high 26 points. He seemed to be the only Wake Forest player willing to take the big shot late.
BEST CLUTCH SHOOTING: With the Deacons launching 3-pointers and hitting them in a desperate attempt to get back in the game, the Tigers needed to convert from the free-throw line to keep the lead. Auburn hit six consecutive free throws in the final minute.
BEST NAIL IN THE COFFIN: Trailing 66-62, Wake Forest still had a sliver of a chance had it inbounded the ball, converted a quick 3-pointer and put Auburn on the line. But Daniels put the game away, sneaking under the basket to steal Howard's inbounds pass.
WORST CALL OF THE DAY: It came with 2:11 left in the first half that just as easily could have been a gang fight. After a missed shot, Auburn power forward Marco Killingsworth grabbed a rebound and smashed his forearm into the face of Deacons guard Taron Downey. Downey went flying about five feet along the baseline and landed on a number of photographers. Downey also got called for the foul.
MOST ACCURATE CALL: Referee Ted Hillary was right on the spot to make a crucial, and correct, call late in game. With 46 seconds left and the Deacons trailing 56-62, forward Jamaal Levy chased an apparent offensive rebound out of bounds and tried to call a timeout before his feet landed. Despite the uproar of the contingent of Deacons fans at that end of the floor, Levy's feet clearly had landed out of bounds before he called timeout. Hillary got it right and the Tigers got the ball back.