How frequently do No.14 seeds in the NCAA Tournament defeat No.3 seeds? – More than twice as many No.14 seeds as No.15 seeds have advanced to the second round. In the first round, No.14 seeds are 22-122 versus No.3 seeds. Three times, two such upsets have occurred in the same tournament, and since 1985, a No.14 seed has won a first-round game in 19 of 36 tournaments.
How frequently do 13 seeds defeat 4 seeds?
History of March Madness 13 vs.4 seeds – Since 1985, when the NCAA tournament field was extended, 31 13 seeds have defeated 4 seeds. No.13 seeded entered the 2022 NCAA tournament with an all-time record of 31-113. That yielded a winning percentage of 21.53 percent. Here are every instance in which it has ever occurred.
These are the times a 13 seed upset a 4 seed in men’s March Madness| Year | Result | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | Navy def. LSU | 78-55 |
| 1987 | Missouri State def. Clemson | 65-60 |
| 1987 | Xavier def. Missouri | 70-69 |
| 1988 | Richmond def. Indiana | 72-69 |
| 1989 | Middle Tennessee def. Florida State | 97-83 |
| 1991 | Penn State def. UCLA | 74-69 |
| 1992 | Southwestern Louisiana def. Oklahoma | 87-83 |
| 1993 | Southern def. Georgia Tech | 93-78 |
| 1995 | Manhattan def. Oklahoma | 77-67 |
| 1996 | Princeton def. UCLA | 43-41 |
| 1998 | Valparaiso def. Ole Miss | 70-69 |
| 1999 | Oklahoma def. Arizona | 61-60 |
| 2001 | Indiana State def. Oklahoma | 70-68 |
| 2001 | Kent State def. Indiana | 77-73 |
| 2002 | UNC Wilmington def. USC | 93-89 |
| 2003 | Tulsa def. Dayton | 84-71 |
| 2005 | Vermont def. Syracuse | 60-57 |
| 2006 | Bradley def. Kansas | 77-73 |
| 2008 | Siena def. Vanderbilt | 83-62 |
| 2008 | San Diego def. UConn | 70-69 |
| 2009 | Cleveland State def. Wake Forest | 84-69 |
| 2010 | Murray State def. Vanderbilt | 66-65 |
| 2011 | Morehead State def. Louisville | 62-61 |
| 2012 | Ohio def. Michigan | 65-60 |
| 2013 | La Salle def. Kansas State | 63-61 |
| 2016 | Hawaii def. California | 77-66 |
| 2018 | Buffalo def. Arizona | 89-69 |
| 2018 | Marshall def. Wichita State | 81-75 |
| 2019 | UC Irvine def. Kansas State | 70-64 |
| 2021 | North Texas def. Purdue | 78-69 (OT) |
| 2021 | Ohio def. Virginia | 62-58 |
Additional tidbits: In 1985, basketball star David Robinson was on the winning side of the initial 13-4 shock. In the opening round, Robinson’s Navy Midshipmen cruised to a 78-55 victory against fourth-seeded LSU. Six of the 31 shock winners reached the Sweet 16, beginning with Richmond in 1988 and concluding with La Salle in 2013.
The aroma of an unofficial holiday is in the air – the NCAA March Madness tournament is returned, and this year will be wild. Fans root for upsets, and 12-seed vs.5-seed games include a disproportionate number of them. Since 2000, there have only been five years (2000, 2007, 2015, 2018, and 2020) in which a 12 seed did not win at least one game.
While these upsets do not typically produce bracket busters that advance deep into the tournament, they do create a sense of chaos that fans look forward to once March arrives. This year, the four 12-vs-5 matchups are exactly as difficult as in previous years, giving the higher seeds a difficult first-round encounter.
While 5 seeds have a 64.6 winning % against 12 seeds dating back to 1985, there have been five instances of a 12 seed defeating a higher-seeded opponent since 2017. Four 5-12 matches in this year’s March Madness tournament are broken out here.
How often has a 14 defeated a 3?
History of March Madness 14 vs.3 seeds – Since 1985, 22 14 seeds have defeated 3 seeds, giving them an overall record of 22-122. That corresponds to a 15.3 percent victory rate. Here are every instance in which it has ever occurred.
14 vs.3 March Madness upsets| Year | Result | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Cleveland State def. Indiana | 83-79 |
| 1986 | Arkansas Little-Rock def. Notre Dame | 90-83 |
| 1987 | Austin Peay def. Illinois | 68-67 |
| 1988 | Murray State def. NC State | 78-75 |
| 1989 | Siena def. Stanford | 80-78 |
| 1990 | Northern Iowa def. Missouri | 74-71 |
| 1991 | Xavier def. Nebraska | 89-84 |
| 1992 | ETSU def. Arizona | 87-80 |
| 1995 | Old Dominion def. Villanova | 89-81 |
| 1995 | Weber State def. Michigan State | 79-72 |
| 1997 | Chattanooga def. Georgia | 73-70 |
| 1998 | Richmond def. South Carolina | 62-61 |
| 1999 | Weber State def. North Carolina | 76-74 |
| 2005 | Bucknell def. Kansas | 64-63 |
| 2006 | Northwestern State def. Iowa | 64-63 |
| 2010 | Ohio def. Georgetown | 97-83 |
| 2013 | Harvard def. New Mexico | 68-62 |
| 2014 | Mercer def. Duke | 78-71 |
| 2015 | UAB def. Iowa State | 60-59 |
| 2015 | Georgia State def. Baylor | 57-56 |
| 2016 | Stephen F. Austin def. West Virginia | 70-56 |
| 2021 | Abilene Christian def. Texas | 53-52 |
Some additional tidbits: In 19 of the 36 years since the tournament field expanded to 64 teams, a No.14 seed has defeated a No.3 seed at least once. Only two fourteenth-seeded teams have ever gotten past the second round: Cleveland State in 1986 and Chattanooga in 1997.14th-ranked seeds are 12-9 in games decided by three points or less.
- Three of the most recent 14-over-3 upsets (Georgia State over Baylor in 2015, UAB over Iowa State in 2016, and Abilene Christian over Texas in 2021) were settled by a single point.
- The largest upset in a 14 vs.3 game, by 14 points, was equaled between SFA’s victory in 2016 and Ohio’s victory against Georgetown in 2010.
Only one 14-3 upset has required extra time. This was the 1995 match between Old Dominion and Villanova, which required three additional periods. A 14 seed defeated a 3 seed for seven consecutive years, from 1986 to 1992. This run came to an end in 1993.
