March Madness is coming to a close on Monday with the Florida-Houston game in the men’s tournament.
Like many other sporting events, March Madness in 2025 has been full of ups and downs, upsets and expected outcomes, cheers of joy and tears of defeat.
Through it all, moments and stories emerged to inspire everyone from casual viewers to die-hard fans.
Here are the most inspiring moments from this year’s men’s and women’s tournaments.
Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl calls a play during the first half in the national semifinals at the Final Four of the NCAA college basketball tournament, Saturday, April 5, 2025, in San Antonio. | Eric Gay, Associated Press
Inspiring moments from men’s tournament
Mentor and mentee reunion
After making it through to this year’s Final Four, Florida head coach Todd Golden and Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl faced off on the basketball court a little under a decade after working together for the same team.
Golden was an assistant under Pearl before getting the head coaching job at Florida, according to Sports Illustrated.
The Gators’ coach considers Pearl to be his “biggest and best mentor,” according to a video of an interview leading up to the Final Four game.
“I know he’s incredibly proud of me and I’m incredibly grateful for him and his family and the opportunities they provided for me,” Golden said in the video. “I would not be here, you know, if I did not have my relationship and experience working with and around Bruce and his son Steven.”
During the game, Florida was able to overcome an 8 point halftime deficit to take down the Tigers and advance to Monday’s title game.
Walk-on scholarship for Ole Miss
Advancing to the Sweet 16 was even sweeter for the Ole Miss Rebels than for other teams.
While in the locker room after the game, Rebels head coach Chris Beard celebrated the win by surprising walk-on Cam Brent with a scholarship, according to CBS Sports.
“Congratulations on your free education,” Beard said, according to a video posted by NCAA March Madness on X.
Brent has been part of the program for the past four seasons, but he only began to appear in games during the 2023-24 season, according to CBS Sports.
He played in seven games this season and was part of Ole Miss’ push to advance to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2001, per CBS Sports.
A referee moment
Being part of the NCAA Tournament is a memorable experience for any basketball player, but not all of them get the opportunity to actually play.
But thanks to an attentive referee, Liberty guard JC Shirer Jr. was fortunate enough to have the opportunity.
With less than a minute on the clock during Liberty’s game against Oregon, with the Ducks leading 78-46, referee Roger Ayers noticed Shirer — the last Liberty player that hadn’t played in the game — waiting by the scorers’ table for a moment to sub in, according to CBS Sports.
Recognizing that there might not be another stoppage for Shirer to sub in and that this might be his only chance to play on this stage, Ayers stopped the game to clean a “wet spot” on the floor, per CBS Sports.
This gesture from Ayers may have been small but it still gave Shirer his March Madness moment.
Father and son
One of the most inspiring moments of March Madness in 2025 was when Mount St. Mary’s head coach Donny Lind took a moment to share what basketball is all about.
After falling to Duke in the first round of the tournament, Lind had an emotional moment during his press conference as he sat next to his young son and talked about how much he’s enjoyed having him by his side, according to a video shared on X.
“This is a hard business for husbands and fathers,” Lind said in the video. “And so to be able to bring him here with me, my wife and my daughter are here too, it’s been a blast.”
“These have been the best few weeks of my life,” Lind’s son added. “And I hope we have many many more of them.”
Inspiring moments from the women’s tournament
Hailey Van Lith’s journey
Hailey Van Lith is the only player in NCAA history to lead three different schools to the Elite Eight in the NCAA Tournament, according to a post on X by ESPNW.
However, her journey in college basketball has not been an easy one.
After falling to the Texas Longhorns in the Elite Eight, Van Lith offered inspiring remarks about her journey in college basketball.
“It was a lot of nights of being like I feel like God has put this thing on my heart to be great but it’s not working out right now,” Van Lith said during a press conference, according to a video posted by ESPN.
She continued, “I’m grateful for the fact that he gave me a hard journey because I would not be the woman I am sitting up here with out it.”
@espnHailey Van Lith opened up about her faith and the meaningful journey of her five-year college career. Content warning: This post includes discussion of suicide. If you or someone you know is having thoughts of suicide or is in emotional distress, contact the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988 or at 988lifeline.org. #wbb #marchmadness #cbb
Van Lith began her college basketball career in Louisville, where she experienced a lot of success for three years.
She then transferred to LSU but had a hard time finding her footing, which led her to take a leap of faith and transfer to TCU where she found redemption during her fifth and final season of college basketball, according to USA Today.
Jana El Alfy’s celebration with family
UConn’s freshman center, Jana El Alfy, shared a special moment with her family after her team’s championship win on Sunday. Her parents had flown all the way from Cairo, Egypt, to Tampa, to see her play for the first time, according to The Associated Press.
El Alfy and her parents embraced after they came down from the stands to join the postgame celebrations, according to a video shared on Instagram by Just Women Sports.
“It’s awesome,” Ehab El Alfy told the AP about his daughter winning a national title. “I’m so happy to watch my daughter live in the final. I’m so proud of her. It’s an amazing moment for me.”
Between winning a championship title and having family in the stands cheering her on, Sunday was more than Jana could have ever imagined it would be.
“It means everything. I’m so happy that they’re here to get to experience it with me,” she told the AP. “It’s a feeling I never would’ve imagined. Having them here is unexplainable. I know they’re super proud and that’s all I ever wanted.”
A fairytale ending for Paige Bueckers
In a list of inspiring moments from the women’s tournament, it would be impossible to not highlight the emotional hug between UConn guard Paige Bueckers and her coach, Geno Auriemma.
With a minute and a half left in the title game between the Huskies and South Carolina, Bueckers came off the court and embraced Auriemma, according to a video posted on X. Afterward, the tears were flowing.
During the embrace, Auriemma said, “I love you,” according to ESPN.
While the 10-second hug may seem like a small moment between player and coach, it meant far more to the pair considering the five-year run they had experienced together.
From a freshman year disrupted by COVID-19 to an injury that kept her from playing for a year and a half, Bueckers experienced many different challenges during her years at UConn, ESPN reported. No matter how many times she got knocked down, she always picked herself back up.
“(Bueckers’) journey has been the most incredible for any kid I’ve had,” Auriemma said, according to ESPN.
