NCAA Tournament 2017: 10 best moments from opening weekend

Mar 19, 2017; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Wichita State Shockers guard Daishon Smith (2) controls the ball against Kentucky Wildcats guard Dominique Hawkins (25) during the first half in the second round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports /

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Mar 18, 2017; Buffalo, NY, USA; Wisconsin Badgers players celebrate their victory as Villanova Wildcats guard Jalen Brunson (1) walks off the court as during the second round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament at KeyBank Center. Wisconsin won 65-62. Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports /

1. Wisconsin Takes Down No. 1 Overall

During Thursday’s First Round action, the prevalent theme was the higher seeds not playing their best basketball for 40 minutes, but doing enough in the end to advance. While that made for fun games, it inherently led to the lack of upsets and also left several fanbases feeling less confident in their team. Fans of the defending National Champions, the Villanova Wildcats, probably should’ve had that feeling—and it was warranted.

In their opening matchup with No. 16 seed Mount Saint Mary’s, Jay Wright’s Villanova team didn’t look much like the No. 1 overall seed in the tournament. They led by just a single point at halftime and, though they pulled away for the 20-point win, it wasn’t a stellar performance.

Following their survival, however, the Wildcats went up against the Wisconsin Badgers, a team that joined many others in truthfully not being seeded properly. Even still, the slow and methodical Badgers should’ve been just another stepping stone for Villanova as they aimed to repeat. Unfortunately for Jalen Brunson and Co., that wasn’t the case.

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Thanks to Wisconsin dictating the pace throughout, they put themselves in a position to strike late against Villanova and did so. Bronson Koenig came up with clutch jumpers once again, the defense forced the Wildcats into tougher shots than they’d have liked which didn’t fall, and Nigel Hayes channeled Michael Jordan to get the game-winning layup. The No. 1 overall seed didn’t even get to see the Sweet 16. And even if Wisconsin deserved a better seed, ousting the Wildcats this early would’ve always gone done as a great and memorable moment.

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