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Ryan McFaddenMar 19, 2026, 04:28 PM ET
- Ryan McFadden covers the Las Vegas Raiders for ESPN's NFL Nation. Prior to ESPN, McFadden was a Denver Broncos beat reporter for the Denver Post. McFadden also wrote about the Baltimore Ravens and University of Maryland athletics for The Baltimore Sun.
PORTLAND, Ore. -- Chase Johnston's first 2-point basket of the season was the biggest of his college career.
The sharpshooting guard of No. 12 seed High Point had gone 0-for-4 from 2-point range until the final seconds of his team's matchup against No. 5 Wisconsin, when he converted a go-ahead layup with 11.2 seconds left to lift the Panthers to an 83-82 upset win in the first round of the NCAA tournament at the Moda Center on Thursday.
"It's a feeling you can't put into words," Johnston said. "To be on this stage and play a game like this is something you dream about."
Johnston's basket made High Point the first Big South team to win an NCAA tournament game since the 2018 First Four, when Radford defeated Long Island. The Panthers are also the first Big South team to defeat a higher seed since No. 11 Winthrop defeated No. 5 Notre Dame in the round of 64 in 2007.
High Point, a 10.5-point underdog, and Miami (Ohio) were the only 30-win teams not to earn top-three seeds (Arizona, Duke, Michigan, Gonzaga). Both won via upset in their first NCAA tournament games.
Known for his outside shooting, Johnston used his best trait to overcome an eight-point deficit with five minutes remaining in the second half. High Point guard Rob Martin dished the ball to Johnston, who buried a 3-pointer from the logo to cut Wisconsin's lead to five points.
Johnston made two more 3-pointers before Martin set him up for his shining moment. Martin grabbed a defensive rebound before throwing the ball across the court to Johnston, who had an open lane to deliver his game-winning basket.
"When Rob threw that up, I wasn't thinking whether it was a 2 or a 3. I was just trying to put it in and win this game," Johnston said.
Johnston, who has played the past two seasons at High Point after stints at Stetson and Florida Gulf Coast, finished with 14 points off the bench, 11 of which came in the second half. He was 4-of-6 from behind the arc.
Johnston has the second-most 3-pointers among active Division I players (415) and fourth-most games played among active D-I players (165). This season, Johnston is 68-of-138 from the 3-point line and 1-of-5 on 2-pointers.
"I asked him to take a bench role because we were a little small to start games, and his willingness to take that role and keep leading, and then at the end of the season to be doing what he's doing, speaks to how selfless these guys are," coach Flynn Clayman said.
