Top 10 Biggest March Madness Upsets

You thought your bracket was solid. Then a school you've never heard of takes out a top seed and suddenly your Final Four dreams are in shambles. Welcome to March Madness, where logic goes to die and chaos signs autographs at center court.

Every year, fans watch in disbelief as double-digit seeds punch far above their weight, toppling teams that supposedly had a clear shot at the title. It's not just about bad nights or off shooting. These are games that rewrite expectations in real time. Players you couldn't name yesterday suddenly look like world-beaters. And coaches from tiny schools with gymnasiums smaller than most high school arenas start trending on Twitter.

Vote for the ones that left you speechless. The ones you still bring up in group chats. The ones that made history for no other reason than pure, unfiltered madness.

The Top Ten

  1. 11 VCU over 1 Kansas (2011)

    VCU defeated No. 1 seed Kansas 71-61 in the Elite Eight of the 2011 NCAA tournament. The game secured VCU's first-ever trip to the Final Four. VCU made 12 three-pointers and held Kansas to 2-of-21 from beyond the arc.

    This one is hard for me to wrap my head around. Kansas should have won this game. I can't even think how this happened. What happened here? It's even worse because I'm a Kansas fan myself.

  2. 16 UMBC over 1 Virginia (2018)

    UMBC became the first No. 16 seed in NCAA men's tournament history to defeat a No. 1 seed, winning 74-54 over Virginia. The game took place in the first round of the South Region on March 16, 2018. UMBC outscored Virginia 53-33 in the second half.

    Absolutely insane. This upset was historic as a number 16 seed takes down the number 1 seed for the first time after going 0-135 previously. And this was the overall number 1 seed Virginia who completely rolled through the ACC and the conference tournament. How did this happen?

  3. 15 Middle Tennessee over 2 Michigan State (2016)

    Middle Tennessee upset No. 2 seed Michigan State 90-81 in the first round of the 2016 tournament. Michigan State entered the game as one of the top title contenders. Middle Tennessee led wire-to-wire and never trailed.

    I've won my board at my old work 8 times out of 22. But this game put an early end to my board 2 tournaments ago. I had Izzo and his Spartans winning it all. It was an embarrassment for the MSU program.

    What's worse, personally, is MTSU bounced my Gophers out last year, and the program is now reeling. With all the controversy at MSU recently, who knows what will happen next there?

    It's funny I hated the green and white, and that was the year I believed they would win it all. Thank God I was wrong, though. It made the tournament more fun for me with the unpredictability it always delivers.

  4. 15 Florida Gulf Coast over 2 Georgetown (2013)

    Florida Gulf Coast beat No. 2 seed Georgetown 78-68 in the first round of the 2013 NCAA tournament. The win marked the first tournament victory in FGCU history. The team earned the nickname "Dunk City" due to its high-flying style.

    FGCU was only in its second year of tournament eligibility after moving to Division 1. They made a statement and earned the nickname Dunk City. They then beat San Diego State, becoming the first 15 seed to advance to the Sweet 16.

  5. 14 Mercer over 3 Duke (2014)

    Mercer defeated Duke 78-71 in the second round of the 2014 NCAA tournament. The win marked Mercer's first NCAA tournament victory. Mercer outscored Duke 20-8 in the final minutes of the game.

  6. 14 UAB over 3 Iowa State (2015)

    UAB upset Iowa State 60-59 in the second round of the 2015 NCAA tournament. The Blazers secured the program's first tournament win since 2005. William Lee scored the final four points for UAB to seal the victory.

  7. 15 Norfolk State over 2 Missouri (2012)

    Norfolk State upset Missouri 86-84 in the second round of the 2012 NCAA tournament. It was the school's first tournament appearance and victory. Kyle O'Quinn led Norfolk State with 26 points and 14 rebounds.

    Norfolk State made its first tournament appearance and outplayed a good Mizzou team. The Tigers could have avoided the upset, but they missed the buzzer beater.

  8. 14 Georgia State over 3 Baylor (2015)

    Georgia State rallied late to defeat No. 3 seed Baylor 57-56 in the second round of the 2015 NCAA Tournament. The Panthers ended the game on a 13-0 run, capped by a deep, game-winning three-pointer from R.J. Hunter with less than three seconds remaining. The shot famously caused Georgia State coach Ron Hunter to fall off his rolling stool on the sideline in celebration.

  9. 15 Lehigh over 2 Duke (2012)

    Lehigh defeated Duke 75-70 in the second round of the 2012 NCAA tournament. C.J. McCollum led Lehigh with 30 points. The win was Lehigh's first NCAA tournament victory.

  10. 14 Weber State over 3 North Carolina (1999)

    Weber State upset North Carolina 76-74 in the first round of the 1999 tournament. Harold Arceneaux scored 36 points in the win. It was Weber State's first tournament win since 1979.

    11. The Newcomers
  11. ?

    15 Oral Roberts over 7 Florida (2021)

    Oral Roberts defeated Florida 81-78 in the second round of the 2021 tournament. The win sent Oral Roberts to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 1974. They became only the second No. 15 seed to reach the Sweet 16.

    In the second round, a 15th seed? Oral Roberts did just that.

  12. ?

    15 Oral Roberts over 2 Ohio State (2021)

    Oral Roberts beat Ohio State 75-72 in overtime in the first round of the 2021 NCAA tournament. It was the ninth time a No. 15 seed beat a No. 2 seed. Max Abmas and Kevin Obanor combined for 59 points.

    13. The Contenders

  13. 14 Ohio over 3 Georgetown (2010)

    The Ohio Bobcats stunned the No. 3 seed Georgetown Hoyas with a convincing 97-83 victory in the first round of the 2010 NCAA Tournament. Armon Bassett led the offensive charge for Ohio, scoring 32 points and helping his team shoot nearly 60 percent from three-point range. This victory marked one of the few times a 14 seed has won by such a wide margin against a highly ranked opponent.

  14. 9 Northern Iowa over 1 Kansas (2010)

    Northern Iowa beat No. 1 seed Kansas 69-67 in the second round of the 2010 tournament. Ali Farokhmanesh hit a decisive three-pointer with 34 seconds left. Kansas was the tournament's overall No. 1 seed.

  15. 9 Wichita State over 1 Gonzaga (2013)

    Wichita State defeated top-seeded Gonzaga 76-70 in the third round of the 2013 NCAA tournament. The Shockers made 14 three-pointers during the game. Wichita State advanced to the Final Four that season.

    This was only the beginning of the Shockers' crazy Final Four run in 2013. Ron Baker and Fred VanVleet were a dynamic duo and the key reason why they went so far before losing to Louisville. However, since Louisville recently had wins vacated, including the 2013 championship due to a scandal, Wichita State would now technically be in that championship game. I would bet that Wichita State could beat Louisville in a rematch, either with the 2013 teams or the 2017-18 teams.

  16. 8 Kentucky over 1 Wichita State (2014)

    Kentucky defeated unbeaten Wichita State 78-76 in the third round of the 2014 NCAA tournament. The win ended Wichita State's 35-game winning streak. Kentucky's freshmen combined for 65 points.

    Wichita State wasn't only a number 1 seed, they were undefeated until this.

    Very unfortunate way to end the perfect season. Ironic that they got all the way to the Final Four as a 9 seed but couldn't get out of the second (then called third) round as a number 1.

    The craziness of March.

  17. 6 NC State over 1 Houston (1983)

    NC State beat Houston 54-52 in the 1983 NCAA championship game. Lorenzo Charles scored the winning basket at the buzzer. The win gave NC State its second national title.

    Being a Championship game, the seedings represent their regional seeds. A total shock, even at the end, no one I was watching the game with expected the Wolfpack to beat mighty Phi Slamma Jamma. Houston had an NBA Hall of Famer in Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler, a Naismith College Basketball Hall of Fame inductee.

  18. 8 Villanova over 1 Georgetown (1985)

    Villanova defeated Georgetown 66-64 in the 1985 NCAA championship game. The Wildcats shot 78.6 percent from the field, an NCAA title game record. It was the first tournament title for Villanova.

    Again, a Championship game. Villanova had to shoot a blistering 77% in the second half, and 70% for the game, to topple a great Georgetown team.

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