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After slow start to tourney, Iowa State, Purdue stars light it up

Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports

While basketball diehards certainly have no complaints with the first three days of the NCAA tournament, casual fans have complained that the first 39 games lacked the usual drama.

Hopefully those people were watching Iowa State-Purdue late Saturday night, because the matchup of the No. 4 and No. 5 seeds in the Midwest was crazy down the stretch.

Purdue raced out to a 19-point lead early in the second half, before Iowa State ripped off a 34-13 run to grab the lead with 3:11 left.

The second half actually broke down into a heavyweight bout between Iowa State's Deonte Burton and Purdue's Caleb Swanigan, with the Boilermakers forward eventually claiming victory in the 80-76 win.

Here's how the final moments played out between the two stars.

Burton brings down the house

Burton quickly became the talk of Twitter during the closing stages of the contest, first with this monster dunk on Swanigan to bring the Cyclones within one point with just over seven minutes to play.

Swanigan polishes off Burton with slick move

As much as Burton's speed was a mismatch for Swanigan at the offensive end, the man known as "Biggie" gave the smaller Iowa State swingman fits at the defensive end. Swanigan showed his low-post polish with 2:30 to play, shedding Burton with a nifty fake, before laying in a bucket to put the Boilermakers up three.

Burton comes from nowhere for monster block

With 16 seconds left and Purdue holding a two-point lead, the Boilermakers easily broke the Iowa State press and threw it ahead for Swanigan to cap the win with a free dunk. Burton had other plans however, as the senior soared in from nowhere to swat the Big Ten player of the year with an incredible block.

Swanigan clinches win with offensive board

Forced to foul after Purdue inbounded the ball following Burton's block, the Cyclones put Dakota Mathias on the line with 11 seconds to play for a one-and-one. The 6-foot-4 guard is an 84-percent shooter from the free-throw line, but missed the first shot, giving the Cyclones a chance for a game-tying possession. Swanigan had other ideas however, and scaled four Iowa State players to secure the offensive rebound and give the Boilermakers the win.

Burton finished with 25 points on the night, but Swanigan got the last laugh with a ridiculous line of 20 points, 12 rebounds, seven assists, and, most importantly, the win.

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