It’s that time again. The craziest three weeks in sports are upon us. It is mid-March, and madness is sure to ensue.
Millions of people across the country are carefully filling out their brackets, while college players and coaches from championship favorites to Cinderella hopefuls are preparing to take center stage in the sporting world.
No matter how much time you spend pondering your bracket, it’s bound to get busted. Every year a nobody knocks-off a national powerhouse and becomes the darling of the country — until April anyway. Here is a look back at the 10 most memorable upsets and the 10 best Cinderella runs in March Madness history.
UPSETS
Honorable Mention: 1999 – (14) Weber State defeats (3) North Carolina, 76-74
10.) 1996 – (13) Princeton defeats defending national champions (4) UCLA, 43-41
9.) 2005 – (14) Bucknell defeats (3) Kansas, 64-63
8.) 2006 – (14) Northwestern State defeats (3) Iowa, 64-63
7.) 1995 – (14) Old Dominion defeats (3) Villanova, 89-81 in triple overtime
6.) 1997 – (15) Coppin State defeats (2) South Carolina, 78-65
5.) 2012 – (15) Lehigh defeats (2) Duke, 75-70
4.) 1991 – (15) Richmond defeats (2) Syracuse, 73-69
3.) 2012 – (15) Norfolk State defeats (2) Missouri, 86-84
2.) 2001 – (15) Hampton defeats (2) Iowa State, 58-57
1.) 1993 – (15) Santa Clara defeats (2) Arizona, 64-61
CINDERELLA RUNS
Honorable Mention: 2010 (9) Northern Iowa to the Sweet Sixteen
The Panthers defeated (8) UNLV and (1) Kansas before losing in the Sweet Sixteen to (5) Michigan State.
10.) 2013 – (13) LaSalle to the Sweet Sixteen
The Explorers knocked off (13) Boise State in a First Four play-in game to make the official field of 64. They then defeated (4) Kansas State and (12) Ole Miss before losing to (9) Wichita State in the Sweet Sixteen.
9.) 2006 – (13) Bradley to the Sweet Sixteen
The Braves knocked off (4) Kansas and (5) Pittsburgh before losing to (1) Memphis in the Sweet Sixteen.
8.) 1998 – (13) Valparaiso to the Sweet Sixteen
The Crusaders defeated (4) Ole Miss on a miraculous buzzer-beating 3 pointer to advance to the second round. They then beat (12) Florida State to move to the Sweet Sixteen, where they lost to (8) Rhode Island.
7.) 2010, 2011 – Butler back-to-back trips to national championship game
In 2010, the 5th-seeded Bulldogs defeated (12) UTEP, (13) Murray State, (1) Syracuse, (2) Kansas State and (5) Michigan State to advance to the finals. They lost the (1) Duke in the championship game. Gordon Hayward nearly drained a half-court shot at the buzzer that would have won the game.
In 2011, the Bulldogs did it again — this time as No. 8 seed. They defeated (9) Old Dominion, (1) Pittsburgh, (4) Wisconsin, (2) Florida and (11) Virginia Commonwealth to advance to the championship. This time they lost to (3) Connecticut.
6.) 1983 – (6) North Carolina State wins national championship
The Wolfpack, coached by the legendary Jim Valvano, defeated (11) Pepperdine, (3) UNLV, (10) Utah, (1) Virginia and (4) Georgia to advance to the finals. They then defeated the heavily-favored (1) Houston Cougars, who were led by Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler, on a buzzer-beating dunk to win the title.
5.) 1985 – (8) Villanova wins national championship
The Wildcats defeated (9) Dayton, (1) Michigan, (5) Maryland, (2) North Carolina and (2) Memphis State to advance to championship game. They completed their miraculous run by defeating (1) Georgetown to take home the title.
4.) 2013 – (15) Florida Gulf Coast to the Sweet Sixteen
In their first ever NCAA Tournament appearance, the Eagles of appropriately dubbed ‘Florida Dunk Coast,’ defeated (2) Georgetown and (7) San Diego State to advance to the Sweet Sixteen, where they ultimately lost to (3) Florida.
3.) 2008 – (10) Davidson to the Elite Eight
The Wildcats, led by future NBA superstar Stephen Curry, upset (7) Gonzaga, (2) Georgetown and (3) Wisconsin to make the Elite Eight, where they lost a heart-breaker to (1) Kansas, 59-57.
2.) 2011 – (11) Virginia Commonwealth to the Final Four
The Rams defeated (11) Southern California in a play-in game to make the field of 64. They then beat (6) Georgetown, (3) Purdue, (10) Florida State and (1) Kansas to become the first play-in team to ever make the Final Four. They lost their Final Four matchup to another Cinderella, (8) Butler.
1.) 2006 – George Mason to the Final Four
The Patriots defeated (6) Michigan State, (3) North Carolina and (7) Wichita State to move to the Elite Eight. They then beat number-one ranked Connecticut in a thriller to advance to the Final Four, where they ultimately lost to (3) Florida.