There was yet another upset in the first round of the March Madness tournament, as No. 15 Princeton pulled off a stunning win over No. 2 Arizona.
On the first day of the first round of the 2023 men’s NCAA Tournament, there was a pretty big upset in the form of No. 13 Furman beating No. 4 Virginia. That is pretty massive, considering the Cavaliers were expected to make it past the first round in the South Region. But then, hours later, there was a gigantic upset in that very region.
The No. 2 Arizona Wildcats, who just won the Pac-12 Tournament last week by defeating the UCLA Bruins, faced off against the No. 15 Princeton Tigers. Following the theme of the day, Arizona lost by the score of 59-55. And now, well under one percent of perfect brackets remain.
Let’s take a look at some of the reactions to Princeton busting nearly everyone’s brackets on Thursday.
Twitter reacts to Princeton upsetting Arizona and busting March Madness brackets
NO. 15 PRINCETON WITH THE UPSET OVER NO. 2 ARIZONA.
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) March 16, 2023
WOW. pic.twitter.com/ySlhceiEHj
THE PRINCETON TIGERS ARE GRRRRRRRREAT! 🐅#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/92hRvsuBLX
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 16, 2023
Everyone: "No shot a 15-seed New Jersey team pulls off another upset this year"
— BetMGM 🦁 (@BetMGM) March 16, 2023
Princeton: pic.twitter.com/Dei9UsjStl
Princeton to my bracket: pic.twitter.com/BBnJ871kqK
— Pickswise (@Pickswise) March 16, 2023
WE DID IT WE DID IT WHAT A HUGE MOMENT FOR US LIFELONG PRINCETON FANS SINCE EIGHT MINUTES AGO WOW ALL OUR DEDICATION TO THIS TEAM HAS PAID OFF
— Shea Serrano (@SheaSerrano) March 16, 2023
Everybody who picked Virginia and Arizona in their brackets pic.twitter.com/V5I1du4cdp
— Complex Sports (@ComplexSports) March 16, 2023
My bracket…. pic.twitter.com/mbdfdaCSGf
— Donovan Mitchell (@spidadmitchell) March 16, 2023
Princeton lost Ethan Wright to Colorado and Jaelin Llewellyn to Michigan off last season's team that didn't win the Ivy League title.
— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) March 16, 2023
It just beat Arizona in the NCAA Tournament.
Anarchy?
Nope. Just College Basketball.
The Arizona Wildcats just made *history!
— SB Nation (@SBNation) March 16, 2023
*Not the good kind. pic.twitter.com/BzIqUuPARK
Arizona held a 55-50 lead with a little under five minutes remaining in the second half. But then, the Wildcats went 0-for-7 from the field the remainder of the game. That is when Princeton capitalized. A two-point tip shot from Keeshawn Kellman, four points scored by Ryan Langborg, and three free throws made by Caden Pierce (two) and Tosan Evbuomwan sealed the deal for Princeton.
This is the Princeton men’s basketball team’s first NCAA Tournament victory since 2011.
Not just that, but this is now the third consecutive year in which a No. 15 seed defeated a No. 2 seed. In 2022, the Saint Peter’s Peacocks defeated the Kentucky Wildcats, and went on a run to the Elite Eight. In 2021, the Oral Roberts Golden Eagles defeated the Ohio State Buckeyes, and made a run to the Sweet 16.
Based off recent history, can we expect Princeton to make a deep run in March Madness? We’ll find out, as they face the No. 7 Missouri Tigers in the second round.
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