In 1982, Chaminade, an NAIA school in Hawaii, upset the undefeated, #1 Virginia Cavaliers in Hawaii. Led by 7-4 center Ralph Sampson, they were considered pretty much unbeatable. Virginia had beaten Houston—peak Phi Slamma Jamma with Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler—playing without Sampson. Yet Chaminade won by 5 points, 77-72.
Today's upset of Purdue by Fairleigh Dickinson is the modern day equivalent: a small school with undersized players (they are the shortest team in the nation) managed to beat a 1-seed with a dominant 7-4 center, Zack Edey. They won by 5 points, 63-58.
I pointed out this similarity in my game preview where I pointed out why the upset would not happen:
Like they say, never say never again.
I think I had a similar blowout score predicted for Virginia over UMBC. Note to self: When I pick the 1-seed by 40+ points, think twice.
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