Sports columnist Mark Bradley, a Kentucky native, picks his five NCAA tournament stars who came out of nowhere:
Lorenzo Charles, N.C. State
1983: This is a bit of a cheat, given that Charles would become a third-team All-American in 1985. But as a sophomore he was the fifth-leading scorer on a Wolfpack team that would topple giant after giant en route to an outrageous NCAA title. His free throws with 23 seconds remaining decided the West Regional final against Ralph Sampson's Virginia, and surely you know what Charles did with Dereck Whittenburg's air ball at the end of the NCAA title game against Houston.
Harold Jensen, Villanova
1985: He wasn't a starter, but he scored 14 essential points in the Wildcats' seismic upset of reigning champ Georgetown in the NCAA Championship game. On a night when 'Nova made 78.6 percent of its shots, Jensen made 100 percent of his. (He did miss a free throw.) While not as famous as the title-winning baskets scored by Charles or Michael Jordan or Keith Smart, Jensen's jumper from the right wing with 2:36 remaining is nonetheless historic. It put Villanova ahead, where it remained.
Cameron Dollar, UCLA
1995: An Atlanta native — his father, Don, was a distinguished coach at Douglass High, and his brother, Chad, is an assistant at Georgia Tech — Dollar was pressed into service when an injured Tyus Edney was pulled after three halting minutes against Arkansas in the 1995 title tilt. Dollar worked 36 minutes at point guard, scoring six points and making eight assists against three turnovers. Even more impressive, Dollar was working against the Hogs' famous "40 minutes of hell" pressure and the ferocious defender Corey Beck.
Harold (The Show) Arceneaux, Weber State
1999: He probably merits another asterisk. Born in New Orleans, Arceneaux matriculated at two junior colleges before landing at Weber, where he averaged 22.3 points as a junior. But the Wildcats were based in the Big Sky Conference, which meant almost nobody had heard of him. That changed after a 36-point performance undid blueblood North Carolina in Round 1 of the Big Dance. For good measure, Arceneaux scored 32 two days later in an overtime loss to Florida.
Joe Mazzulla, West Virginia
2010: As a sophomore, Mazzulla had been a key contributor in 2008, when the Mountaineers upset Duke in Round 2. By 2010, he had developed a bad shoulder and was relegated to the bench behind point guard Darryl (Truck) Bryant. But Bryant broke his foot heading into the Sweet 16. In the regional final against No. 1-seed Kentucky and future NBA No. 1 pick John Wall, Mazzulla scored 17 points, made his first 3-pointer of the season and engineered a massive upset. He was selected East Region MVP.
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