Indiana Teen's 35-Foot Buzzer Beater Sends UConn to Final Four

A Christmas morning tradition of shooting hoops in a high school gym just paid off on basketball's biggest stage.

Braylon Mullins, a freshman from Greenfield, Indiana, launched a 35-foot buzzer beater that defeated Duke and sent UConn to the Final Four. The shot happened Sunday in Washington D.C., but its roots stretch back through years of preparation in a small town 25 miles outside Indianapolis.

His dad Josh, now a school resource officer at Greenfield-Central High School, drives a police cruiser with UConn license plates. Inside the school, an electronic sign reads: "Congrats UConn. GC is proud of you Braylon."

Josh and Katie Mullins met in second grade at Harris Elementary in Greenfield. They became high school sweethearts when Josh played basketball for the Cougars and Katie cheered on the sidelines. After brief stints playing college ball and getting degrees, they did what felt natural: they came home.

The couple raised three basketball-loving boys in the house where Katie grew up on West Fifth Street. Their backyard court, lit up at night, became the neighborhood gathering spot. Josh would play against his sons wearing flip-flops, shooting only three-pointers to keep things fair.

"We put a ball in his hands at five and it just never left," Josh says. By middle school, the family started a Christmas morning tradition of shooting in the high school gym.

Braylon could have chased opportunities elsewhere like many modern prospects do. Instead, he stayed home, played for his high school, and earned Indiana's Mr. Basketball honor before joining UConn.

Why This Inspires

This moment represents something basketball-obsessed Indiana holds sacred: staying true to your roots while chasing your dreams. Braylon didn't need to leave home during high school to become great. He just needed a floodlit backyard court, a dad willing to play in flip-flops, and thousands of practice shots.

His game-winner wasn't luck. It was the payoff for every Christmas morning in an empty gym, every late night under backyard lights, every choice to stay grounded in a community that raised him.

Now the Final Four brings Braylon's story full circle, back to Indianapolis, just 25 miles from where it all started. A small-town kid gets to play on the biggest stage, right in his own backyard.