Pistons draft: Sneaky play helps knock Michigan St. out of Sweet 16

The Detroit Pistons will have one eye on the NCAA Tournament as their season winds down, and there were some classic games last night in the Sweet 16.

One possible Pistons’ prospect, Jaime Jaquez Jr. and his UCLA Bruins were eliminated in a close game vs. Gonzaga, but not before Jaquez Jr. dropped 29 points, 11 rebounds, three assists and three steals in his bid to raise his draft status.

But the game of the night was the overtime thriller between Kansas St. and the home-state Michigan St. Spartans, which was partially decided by one of the sneakiest or most brilliant plays in NCAA history, depending on what part of Michigan you are from.

Detroit Pistons draft: Michigan St. knocked out of Sweet 16 with sneaky play

The Sweet 16 is littered with possible Pistons’ draft prospects, including the Kansas State vs. Michigan St. game, which featured Keyontae Johnson, who could be in play when the Pistons choose in the second round.

The senior didn’t disappoint, as he ended the game with 22 points and six rebounds in a game-high 45 minutes.

But he’ll remembered for being part of one of the wackiest plays in NCAA Tournament history.

With the game tied at 92 in overtime with less than a minute to go, Markquis Nowell brought the ball up the floor and appeared to be arguing with his coach. Without looking up, he thew a perfect alley oop to Johnson for the reverse dunk and a lead that they would not relinquish:

Was this a scripted play or just Nowell just making a heady basketball play in a key moment? The team played coy after the game when asked if this was a set play:

Whether it was scripted or not, it was an amazing play to make with the game on the line and also gave Nowell his 18th assist, which tied the all-time record for an NCAA game.

Kansas St. is likely to go down in the lore of great NCAA plays, while the Spartans are going home instead of the Elite Eight.

Two more possible Pistons’ draft picks will be in action tonight as both Brandon Miller and Alabama and Jarace Walker from Houston try to take their irrespective teams into the next round.