Final Four: SDSU’s Lamont Butler hits buzzer beater to beat Florida Atlantic and send Aztecs to title game

San Diego State is playing for the national title.

Lamont Butler hit a jumper as time expired to give the Aztecs a 72-71 win over Florida Atlantic on Saturday night. The shot capped a massive second-half comeback for SDSU as the Aztecs were down by 14 at one point in the second half.

Butler’s shot came after San Diego State elected not to foul or use its final timeout after pulling within a point with 36 seconds to go. The Aztecs and coach Brian Dutcher were content to let Florida Atlantic play out the shot clock on its final possession and not foul to extend the game. After FAU took two timeouts of its own, Johnell Davis missed a runner in the lane and SDSU got the rebound.

The Aztecs could have called timeout after getting the ball across halfcourt and draw up a final play. But they wanted to play it out, and Butler got a great look to put San Diego State in the national title game for the first time in school history.