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Top memorable first/second round upsets

By Times staff

© St. Petersburg Times, published March 20, 2003


1. No. 13 Princeton 43, No. 4 UCLA 41: 1st round, Southeast Region (Indianapolis), March 14, 1996. Retiring coach Pete Carril finally knocks off a giant, the defending champ, on -- what else? -- a backdoor layup.

2. No. 9 St. Joseph's 49, No. 1 DePaul 48: 2nd round, Mideast Region (Dayton, Ohio), March 14, 1981. Mark Aguirre, Terry Cummings, Clyde Bradshaw aren't enough for the nation's consensus No. 1 team. Aguirre's anguished look is a seminal moment.

3. No. 15 Richmond 73, No. 2 Syracuse 69: 1st round, East Region (College Park, Md.), March 14, 1991. The Spiders shoot 62 percent from the field to become the first No. 15 to win.

4. No. 14 Cleveland State 83, No. 3 Indiana 79: 1st round, East Region (Syracuse, N.Y.), March 14, 1986. Bob Knight loses in the first round for the first time in his storied IU career. It won't be his last.

5. No. 15 Santa Clara 64, No. 2 Arizona 61: 1st round, West Region (Salt Lake City), March 18, 1993. Dynamic duo Damon Stoudamire and Khalid Reeves shoot 2-for-16 as the Pac-10 champion Wildcats lose their opener for the second straight year.

6. No. 15 Hampton 58, No. 2 Iowa State 57: 1st round, West Region (Boise, Idaho), March 15, 2001. Jamaal Tinsley misses a driving layup, igniting a memorable post-game celebration as Hampton coach Steve Merfeld is carried around the court.

7. No. 14 Weber State 76, No. 3 North Carolina 74: 1st round, West Region (Seattle), March 11, 1999. For the first time since 1980, the Tar Heels go out early. Guard Harold "The Show" Arceneaux is unstoppable, scoring 36.

8. No. 14 Austin Peay 68, No. 3 Illinois 67: 1st round, Southeast Region (Birmingham, Ala.), March 12, 1987. Darryl Bedford scores 24 in the stunning win. Austin Peay then loses to Final Four-bound Providence and Billy Donovan in OT.

9. No. 13 Valparaiso 70, No. 4 Mississippi 69: 1st round, Midwest Region (Oklahoma City, Okla.), March 13, 1998. Bryce Drew hits one of the most remarkable shots in tournament history, a 3-pointer at the buzzer.

10. No. 11 LSU 94, No. 6 Purdue 87 (2OT): 1st round, Southeast Region (Baton Rouge, La.), March 13, 1986. Dale Brown's Tigers win a wild one on their march to the Final Four, becoming the lowest seeded team to get there.

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