PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Omar Samhan was an unstoppable Gael force. The only time the Saint Mary's star slowed down was to enjoy the moment.

"Did it really happen?" he shouted outside the locker room. "We won? For real?"

For real, Omar.

Samhan's ascension into national prominence is blasting off -- and so is Saint Mary's run in the NCAA tournament as the Gaels are improbably headed to the round of 16.

Samhan played the game of his career on basketball's biggest stage, finishing with 32 points and seven rebounds to lead 10th-seeded Saint Mary's past Villanova 75-68 on Saturday and on to Houston for the South Regional's Sweet 16.

"Number One. Best win ever. Quote it," Samhan said. "Omar Samhan said, 'Best win ever.' It was."

Fitting for a team stocked with Australians, Saint Mary's (28-5) went way, way long for its winning shot.

Enter Samhan

Mickey McConnell stopped and fired a 25-footer that followed the path of the Gateway Arch and banked high off the glass and in to give Saint Mary's a 68-65 lead with 1:15 left.

"I got a little separation so I had an open look," a smiling McConnell said. "So I just let it go and luckily the backboard was there."

Samhan used a two-handed stuff to turn back Reggie Redding and McConnell made both ends of a 1-and-1 to make it 70-65 and turn most of a packed crowd into the country's biggest collection of Saint Mary's fans.

The Gaels, from Moraga, Calif., east of Oakland, will play third-seeded Baylor on Thursday.

Copyright 2010 By The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.