15 biggest NCAA Tournament upsets of all time

2. No. 8 Villanova over No. 1 Georgetown, 66-64 (1985, National Championship)

In the first year of the 64-team bracket for the NCAA Tournament, there were legit concerns about how things would play out in postseason college basketball. Critics wondered if the field would be too watered down and if the product put on display would ultimately just be not as good. Instead, what transpired was the greatest Cinderella run in March Madness history by the 8-seeded Villanova Wildcats, culminating in a monumental upset.

Villanova’s run under then head coach Rollie Massimo was anything but easy to even get to the National Championship Game. They first had to upset Len Bias’ Maryland Terrapins and then take down Dean Smith’s North Carolina Tar Heels before toppling a No. 1-seeded St. John’s team. That was just the prelude, however.

The Georgetown Hoyas, led by senior center Patrick Ewing under head coach John Thompson, were an absolute juggernaut in the 1984-85 season, having lost only two games on the year prior to the title game. Moreover, they played well in the matchup with Villanova, shooting 54.7 percent from the field and seeing their stars contribute.

That’s what makes this such a monumental upset, though — there was only one way Villanova could win against Georgetown when the Hoyas played as they did, and that was play a pristine game. And they did just that.

The Wildcats shut down the fast-paced Georgetown offense in transition with a stifling performance on the boards, first of all. But most importantly, Massimo’s team shot an absurd 78.6 percent from the floor to pick up the narrow win. Again, anything less than near-perfection would have seen them fall short, but they stepped up and delivered that in the biggest moment to win the program its first title.