Loyola Chicago's Jackson has homecoming to remember

All Aundre Jackson could do was pray.

Lonnie Walker IV, Miami's best player, had just watched the front end of his 1-and-1 bounce around the rim six times before falling off on the left side, where it pin-balled into the eager hands of Loyola Chicago guard Ben Richardson.

There were 9 seconds left in this thrilling NCAA Tournament South region first-round game at American Airlines Center. The sixth-seeded Hurricanes held a 62-61 lead over the feisty 11-seeded Ramblers.

Robinson passed the ball to Marques Townes, who got the ball up to their 3-point line with 1.8 seconds left before he passed the ball to a trailing Donte Ingram.

Jackson, the 2016-17 Missouri Valley Sixth Man of the Year and one of the leaders for Loyola Chicago, nervously hopped up and down on the bench.

"I was kind of nervous," he said. "We had to make something happen. Once we started running I knew we had to get a good shot. Once Tae put up the shot, I just prayed for the best."

Swish.

Prayers answered.

Ingram nailed the shot to give Loyola Chicago a 64-62 victory. LUC will play 3rd-seeded Tennessee on Saturday at AAC.

The win was obviously meaningful for everyone clad in maroon and yellow, but it was especially triumphant for Jackson, who grew up dreaming of playing in this building while starring at Kennedale High School (averaged 20 points and 8 rebounds; two-time district Offensive Player of the Year).

His journey to get to this point had as many alternate routes as U.S. 287.

"When I was at Kennedale I was a 6-foot-5 post man, kind of chubby. I was 235, 240 pounds," Jackson said, moving his arms out wide to insinuate his high school girth. "I'm 218 now. No one wanted to take a chance on me. So I went the JUCO route."

Going the JUCO route has proved fatal for many a basketball dreamer. His high school coach even told him not to do it. But Jackson knew it was his ticket to Division I. He enrolled at McLennan Community College in Waco.

"My high school coach advised me not to," Jackson said. "He told me most JUCO kids don't work out because they fall into bad traps and whatnot. But I knew I wanted to play Division I basketball and wouldn't let anything stop me.

"I knew it would be a grind but I had to focus. I only went to JUCO because I knew I could get an opportunity to play Division I basketball. I just kept on grinding and once we made it to the JUCO National Tournament, Loyola called and the rest is history."

He was the definition of an impact player at McLennan CC, averaging 15 points and seven rebounds per game as a sophomore while shooting just under 65 percent from the floor, a mark that ranked fourth in the country.

Loyola Chicago gave him a chance to continue to live out his dream and he hasn't looked back.

Thursday's win, the latest in a lengthy history of buzzer-beaters around this time of year, was his best day yet. Not from a numbers standpoint, though he did have 12 points in 17 minutes. But because he got the victory in front of around 30 friends and family.

"It meant a lot to play in front of all of my friends and family," Jackson said. "It was a great experience, and then with the way the game ended, it was just unbelievable."

His message to those watching him from back home in Kennedale: "We still going. Keep watching and unbelievable stuff like this will happen."

This story was originally published March 15, 2018 at 5:44 PM with the headline "Loyola Chicago's Jackson has homecoming to remember."