Opinion: Top 10 NCAA tournament upsets of all-time

10. No. 15 Middle Tennessee State over No. 2 Michigan State, 2016

No upset has destroyed more brackets than this one. It was a surprise to not see Michigan State as a No. 1 seed after finishing the year 29-5 with a Big Ten Championship and a No. 2 final ranking in the AP Poll. They were led by Big Ten Player of the Year Denzel Washington.

Middle Tennessee State took a 5-2 lead 1:05 into the game before jumping out to a double digit lead early. They would lead from then on having never trailed in the game thanks to all five starters scoring in double digits.

9. No. 15 Princeton Sweet 16 Run, 2023

Princeton became the third No. 15 seed in a row and fourth in history to make the Sweet 16. Their first test was against Arizona, who after a couple of down years had returned to being a top program winning the Pac-12 Championship under second-year head coach Tommy Lloyd.

Princeton didn’t lead in the game until 2:03 left, but it was enough to win 59-55 as Arizona didn’t score in the last four and a half minutes. Princeton would then meet No. 7 Missouri in the second round easily winning 78-63.

8. No. 15 Oral Roberts Sweet 16 Run, 2021

This was the first of the three in a row mentioned above. Oral Roberts was led by Summit League Player of the Year Max Abmas and fellow First Team All-conference teammate Kevin Obanor, who in one weekend became household names.

The two combined for 59 of Oral Roberts’s 75 points in a three point overtime win over No. 2 Ohio State. They then combined for 54 of 81 in another three point win in the second round, this time over No. 7 Florida.

7. No. 11 George Mason Final Four Run, 2006

George Mason before this year had never won an NCAA Tournament game. They knocked off blue bloods No. 6 Michigan State and No. 3 North Carolina in the first two rounds, then defeated No. 7 Wichita State to set up a matchup with No. 1 UConn, led by All-American Rudy Gay in the Elite Eight.

George Mason shocked UConn by having all five starters score in double figures to tie LSU in 1986 as the lowest seed to ever make the Final Four (that mark has since been tied by four different teams). They were also the first team outside of the power conferences to make the Final Four.

6. No. 15 Florida Gulf Coast Sweet 16 Run, 2013

When Florida Gulf Coast made its first tournament berth, many people had never even heard of it, as it was a fairly new school being founded in 1991 having only moved to Division I in 2011. Their high-flying, athletic style of play earned them the nickname Dunk City.

They lived up to their name in their defeat of No. 2 Georgetown 78-68. They then took over in the second half to beat No. 7 San Diego State to win 81-71 and become the first No. 15 seed to advance to the Sweet 16.

5. No. 6 NC State National Champions, 1983

The iconic image of Jimmy Valvano running across the court in celebration is still iconic to this day. His team may have not even made the tournament without winning the ACC Championship.

They beat Virginia, led by 3-time National Player of the Year Ralph Sampson in the ACC Championship, before doing it again to advance to the Final Four.

They beat Georgia to advance to the National Championship against No. 1 seed Houston led by Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler. A put-back shot at the buzzer gave NC State the National Title.

4. No. 16 Fairleigh Dickinson over No. 1 Purdue, 2023

Fairleigh Dickinson (FDU) was lucky just to make the tournament as they lost their conference championship game, but their opponent, Merrimack, was ineligible for the NCAA Tournament. They would face off in Columbus against Purdue, who spent a large portion of the season as the top ranked team in the country.

FDU overcame being the smallest team in the country with a team average height of just 6’1” going against Zach Edey who stood at 7’4”. Columbus native Sean Moore led FDU with 19 points to win 63-58 and become the second No. 16 to ever defeat a No. 1 seed.

3. No. 15 St. Peter’s Elite Eight Run, 2022

St. Peter’s magical run began with an 85-79 win in overtime over No. 2 Kentucky thanks to outshooting them 52% to 26% from the 3-point line and 85% to 65% at the free throw line. A 70-60 win over No. 7 Murray State sent them to the Sweet 16.

That set up a game against No. 3 Purdue. Late free throws from Daryl Banks III and Doug Edert, both of whom finished in double figures in this game and against Kentucky, would secure a 67-64 win making St. Peter’s the first No. 15 seed to ever make the Elite Eight.

2. No. 8 Villanova National Champions, 1985

Villanova defeated No. 1 seed Michigan and No. 2 seed North Carolina in their route to the Final Four where they beat No. 2 seed Memphis State. That set up a matchup with Big East foe, No. 1 seed Georgetown, who were the defending National Champions and led by National Player of the Year Patrick Ewing.

Villanova had the highest field goal percentage in Final Four history, and missed just one shot in the second half to win 66-64, becoming the lowest seed to ever win the National Championship.

1. No. 16 UMBC over No. 1 Virginia

Virginia was the most dominant team in the country thanks to the defensive scheme they had become known for under head coach Tony Bennett. They finished the year 31-2 and easily won the ACC Tournament to clinch the No. 1 overall seed in the tournament.

Then, on this particular night, everything seemed to go wrong, and everything was going right for UMBC’s Jairus Lyles who finished with 28 points. UMBC would win 74-54 to become the first No. 16 seed to defeat a No. 1 in history.

Honorable Mentions: No. 11 Loyola Chicago Final Four run 2018, No. 11 NC State Final Four run 2024, No. 15 Richmond over No. 2 Syracuse 1991, No. 15 Lehigh over No. 2 Duke, 2012

Jacob Rudy is a second-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email jar7371@psu.edu.