"That guy flew to Valhalla": Fans left awestruck with Camden Heide's putback dunk against UConn in championship game
The national championship game of the NCAA men's tournament between the Uconn Huskies and Purdue Boilermakers brought with it some incredible performances. But apart from incredible stat lines, it was a moment early in the second half that caught everyone's eye.
With UConn trying to build on their 36-30 halftime lead, Purdue tried to fight back, with a monstrous dunk by Camden Heide sending fans into a frenzy.
Thanks to a missed hook shot by National Player of the Year Zach Edey, the ricocheting ball was collected and slammed down in a Tomhawak putback dunk by Camden Heide who flew into the picture for the incredible highlight.
Immediately, fans took to X to rave about the incredible feat of athleticism, with the most popular comment coming in moments later:
"That guy flew to Valhalla", was the most honest take on the moment by Heide, one that many would join in making.
His dunk was so outrageous that some even wanted Heide tested for PEDs:
"Whattttt?? Wow he def needs to get tested" and "Needs to get tested" were a popular sentiment among the fan base.
The dunk was as spectacular as it was athletically pleasing, with fans claiming that the real-time watch was even better than the incredible highlight:
"watching this happen while actually watching the game was even better", another fan argued.
For most, pulling off such a jaw-dropping move in the middle of the game was the ultimate icing on the cake:
"in game is crazy", one fan couldn't believe the move.
Basketball at its purest, is when you can just enjoy and revel in it. This dunk by Cam Heide gave fans a reason to just watch and enjoy the sport without any superlatives:
Comments like "This s**t literally made me jump out of my chair what an awesome game LMAO", "This is absolutely disgusting", and "this s**t was BEAUTIFUL" captured that essence perfectly.
For some fans, however, the moment did not truly register a great one. The Purdue Boilermakers losing by nearly double-digits was instead the focus for most of the fanbase:
"They're getting blown out..." and "Purdue getting smacked who cares" were both common comments on the dunk.
UConn goes back-to-back
The first team since Florida in 2006 and 2007 to go back-to-back, UConn won the battle of the No. 1 seeds with a 75-60 margin. With an average margin of victory of 23.33 points, it was a similar story to last year's run for UConn, where their average margin of victory was 20 points per game.
Their dominant run in college basketball has been highlighted by a rotating cast of characters, with the team losing a chunk of its roster from the previous year. However, new additions and the emergence of a guy like Tristen Newton, not highly recruited coming in, gave the Huskies the edge they needed.
During the national championship game, Newton was critical to UConn's success, recording 20 points and seven assists, with Stephon Castle, Cam Spencer and Donovan Clingan also chipping in with double-digit efforts.
It was another monstrous night for Zach Edey on the Boilermakers side as he fell just seven points shy of the all-time NCAA Tournament scoring record, adding 37 points and 10 rebounds.
With sub-par shooting from Purdue beside Edey, they mustered just 31% from the field, the Boilermakers could not muster enough offense to battle UConn.
This is UConn's 6th national title game appearance and victory, each of them taking place after 1999. At the end of the game, coach Dan Hurley called their run even more impressive than the Florida Gators in the 2000s due to the roster differential for them.
Which back-to-back title was more impressive for you? Let us know in the comments below.