FAU Broadcaster Nearly Missed Calling the Owls’ Upset Ending Against Kansas State
The Owls' commentator nearly missed out on the biggest moment of his career.
Florida Atlantic's historic run through the NCAA tournament reached new heights Saturday after the Owls knocked off No. 3 Kansas State in the Elite Eight in order to reach the program's first Final Four.
For FAU Radio Network's Ken LaVicka, this is one of the pinnacles of his career. And the commentator almost missed out on calling the final moments of the win due to a technical malfunction at Madison Square Garden in Manhattan.
Via Andy Katz of NCAA.com, LaVicka explained that the ethernet cable went out, causing mayhem for his broadcast with just 18.6 seconds left in the game.
"We actually got saved by a Kansas State layup and a timeout called by Jerome Tang, that gave me time to scramble," explained LaVicka, who added that he got an assist from a "teammate" in order to call the final 15 seconds.
As for the call itself, the broadcaster revealed what he said as Florida Atlantic continued its miracle run.
"Houston, you have a problem. Florida Atlantic is coming to win a championship," said LaVicka.
The Owls stunned Kansas State, 79–76, setting themselves up for a date with San Diego State or Creighton in the Final Four. An internet error almost caused LaVicka to be offline for one of the most critical moments of his career, but some quick thinking enabled him to be on the call for the crucial last seconds of the program-altering victory.