16-Seed UMBC Shocks Virginia, The World With Greatest Upset in NCAA Tournament History
By Kyle Koster
It happened. It finally happened. On the 136rd try since the NCAA Tournament expanded to 64 teams in 1985, a No. 16 seed defeated a No. 1 as UMBC shocked Virginia, 74-54. The Retrievers outscored the Cavaliers 53-33 in the second half to do the once-unthinkable and will go down in as history as the smallest David to slay a Goliath of such imposing stature.
Jairius Lyles scored 28 points on 9-of-11 shooting (23 in the second half), Joe Sherburne added 14 and spark plug K.J Maura chipped in 10.
UMBC began the second half on a 24-8 run to extend its lead to 16 and held off a desperate Virginia team fighting to stay out of the record books. The Cavaliers would get no closer than 12 points at the 5:40 mark.
Virginia was not just any 1-seed but the No. 1 overall team in the entire tournament, a team that suffered only two losses all season. They were 20.5-point favorites.
UMBC’s upset played out in real time not as a fluke but the logical result as one team clearly outplayed the other.
Holy cow. We all saw it happen, but it still doesn’t feel real.