AUSTIN, Texas – A 3-point prayer, answered. One overtime, then another. And when the dust settled on the most breathtaking finish of an astonishing weekend, Michigan State was holding the last ticket to the Final Four.

Patrick Sparks’s desperation 3 pointer at the end of regulation danced on the rim, bouncing four times before falling through. But was his right toe on the line?

Five minutes of tension passed while the referees reviewed the replay over and over again at the scorer’s table. It was a 3-pointer, all right, forcing OT.

Even with the wind knocked out of them, the Spartans refused to fold.

As the final seconds of the first overtime ticked away, Kevin Torbert stood near half court, smiled at his Michigan State teammates and screamed, “Let’s go!” – and they did, not even allowing a last shot.

Then the Spartans took over in the second overtime, pulling away for a 94-88 victory and capping a weekend filled with heart-stopping finishes. Michigan State is headed to its fourth Final Four in seven years, and will face North Carolina on Saturday.

The trip to St. Louis will be sweet vindication for the Spartans’ upperclassmen, a group that’s been chided for being soft, weak, and underachieving. Torbert, Alan Anderson, and Chris Hill – seniors who were so close to breaking the chain of Final Fours begun by their predecessors from 1999-2001 – simply wouldn’t let it happen.

Torbert went 5-of-6 from the foul line in the second overtime, and Anderson was 4-of-4, keeping Kentucky from ever leading again.

After Louisville and Illinois both advanced Saturday with improbable comebacks that ended in overtime, this was the first time in NCAA tournament in history that three regional finals went to an extra period. And only once before had it happened in two of the four games, in 1992.

Fueled by Sparks’s long ball at the end of regulation, the second-seeded Wildcats jumped to a 79-75 lead at the start of the first extra period. But they never led again, and coach Tubby Smith remains without a trip back to the Final Four since winning it all in 1998. They’ve gone down in the regional finals three times, twice now to the Spartans.

Instead, there’s the chance for a title game matchup between Michigan State and Illinois, the only team that finished ahead of the Spartans (26-6) in the Big Ten this season.

With 5:25 left in regulation, fifth-seeded Michigan State seemed poised to advance easily. Torbert followed a block on defense with a dunk on the other end, putting the Spartans up 70-62.

But Ravi Moss hit a 3-pointer with 1:55 left and Kelenna Azubuike made another with 1:06 left, making it a one point game. Shannon Brown upped it to 75-72 by hitting two free throws with 19.8 seconds left.

What followed is a play that was scrutinized for more than five minutes. Sparks missed a 3-pointer, then Azubuike got the rebound and dribbled to the right corner, only to miss another. The rebound went all the way to Sparks near the top of the key and his shot bounced four times, hung on the rim, and then fell in.

But the Wildcats were out of magic. Michigan State pulled away in OT, led by sophomore Shannon Brown, who scored 24 points on 8-of-10 shooting.