As much seeing a double-digit seed knocking off a perennial powerhouse in the first round is a staple of NCAA Tournament, this year did not provide such a moment. All but one of the teams seeded No. 1-5 in the 2017 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament advanced past the Round of 64.
Minnesota holds the distinction of being the outlier in this group. The fifth-seeded Golden Gophers fell to No. 12 Middle Tennessee 81-72 Thursday. The result, however, was no surprise as the Blue Raiders were favored entering the game despite being a lower seed.
“People will say that it was a 12-5 upset but a lot of the analysts and us as a team, we came into this game thinking it wouldn’t be an upset,” said junior guard Giddy Potts, who scored 15 points in the victory, according to NCAA.com.
Middle Tennessee is no stranger to March Madness. A year ago, the Blue Raiders, a No. 15 seed, stunned No. 2 Michigan State.
While Minnesota was the only top-5 seed to suffer defeat, several others faced scares or their own. Villanova, the overall No. 1 seed, held a narrow one-point lead at halftime over No. 16 Mount Saint Mary’s. The Wildcats cruised in the second half to a 76-56 victory.
No. 12 Princeton nearly beat No. 5 Notre Dame. The Ivy League champions had a 3-point attempt at the buzzer that hit the rim and fell into the hands of the Fighting Irish, who came away with the 60-58 win.
No. 5 Virginia was taken to the limit by No. 12 UNC Wilmington but came away with a 76-71 win.
While there were no major upsets, the No. 6 seeds struggled with only one of them advancing (Cincinnati defeated Kansas State). USC staged a furious comeback to edge SMU 66-65. Rhode Island raced past Creighton, and Xavier toppled Maryland.
The only other lower seeds to advance were No. 10 Wichita State, who edged No. 7 Dayton 64-58, and No. 9 Michigan State, who topped No. 8 Miami 78-58.
Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo has won 14 games in the NCAA Tournament as the lower seed, which is the most of any coach.
Northwestern made the most of its first ever NCAA Tournament appearance. The eighth-seeded Wildcats topped No. 9 Vanderbilt 68-66 in dramatic fashion. Bryant McIntosh and Sanjay Lumpkin were both successful at the free throw line in the final 14 seconds to seal the Wildcats’ first tournament win.
Looking ahead:
The two most compelling matchup in the Round of 32 are No. 4 Florida vs. No. 5 Virginia and No. 10 Wichita State vs. No. 2 Kentucky.
Florida won nine straight games in the heart of the SEC schedule. This stretch included a 20-point win over Kentucky. Virginia is the best defensive team in the country, as it allows 56.1 points per game.
The last time Kentucky and Wichita State saw each other in the NCAA Tournament, the Shockers were an undefeated No. 1 seed and the Wildcats were a No. 8 seed. The Cats pulled off the win in the second round there en route to the national title game. This year, the Shockers are looking to play the role of spoilers.