Throw your brackets away, the NCAA Tournament, otherwise known as “March Madness”, is over.
I am not saying this because many people picked Virginia to win the national championship, but rather because it doesn’t matter what happens the rest of the tournament. What transpired in Charlotte, N.C., on Friday night cannot be topped.
The University of Maryland-Baltimore County (UMBC) didn’t beat just any No. 1 seed. The 16-seed Retrievers ousted the overall No. 1 seed by 20 points, 74-54.
Should we be shocked by this? According to UMBC athletics’ Twitter page, no.
“We won 24 games and a conference title, it’s not like we are a YMCA team…”
There have been many close calls over the years. Most recently in 2013, both Kansas and Gonzaga trailed at halftime against 16-seeds, only to come back and win.
Even Virginia flirted with disaster in 2014 against Coastal Carolina before pulling away late for a 70-59 win.
Of course, many people reading this paper probably relate more to the year 1989, when Oklahoma escaped with a one-point win over 16-seed Eastern Tennessee State after trailing by 17 points in the first half and nine points with 6:14 remaining.
Georgetown experienced a similar result that same year, squeaking past Princeton, 50-49.
Since then, six 1v16 matchups have been decided by fewer than 10 points. It was only a matter of time before the glass slipper fit, thus introducing us to the ultimate Cinderella.
There is no question UMBC is a team of destiny, but not for the reasons some might think. Here are three reasons this win is even more amazing (and crazy) than you thought.
The 007 of college basketball
It might not be possible to best the Baltimore Sun’s ‘U Must Be Cinderella’ headline, but there is probably one coincidence many people haven’t thought of yet.
With the Retrievers’ victory, a 16-seed has now defeated a 1-seed only once in 136 tries — a winning percentage of 0.007, which might bring a certain fictional Secret Service agent to mind.
Let me explain: The ‘00’ in James Bond’s code number means he has the License to Kill, and the ‘7’ indicates he is the seventh agent to receive the title. UMBC might as well be named Agent 007, for the team appears to be licensed to kill brackets and major tournament favorites.
The analogy makes even more sense when you consider there were six lower seeds upsets in this year’s tournament — excluding 9-seeds over 8-seeds — before this game, making UMBC the seventh “bracket killer” of 2018.
Even if we went beyond this year and only counted the occasions 1 and 2-seeds lost in the first round, the comparison would still apply because No. 15 seeds have beaten No. 2 seeds six times in tournament history (2016, ‘13, ‘12 x2, ‘01, ‘97).
To close out this trivial coincidence, “The name’s Retrievers. UMBC Retrievers.”
Family divided
Remember Jairus Lyles?
He is the guy who shot 9-of-11 from the floor, dropping 28 points to lead UMBC. That’s not even the craziest part, though.
It just so happens his parents are graduates of Virginia.
“It was unbelievable to see them whip up on my alma mater,” Lyles’ mother, Carol Motley, told ESPN. “I was part of Retriever Nation tonight.”
His father, Lester, played four years of football for the Cavaliers before spending seven years in the NFL.
“I think they wanted us to get the win, most importantly, but it probably will be a topic of discussion for a little while,” Lyles said after the game.
However, Lyles isn’t the only person in the UMBC basketball program with connections to Virginia.
Coming full circle
Friday night wasn’t the first time UMBC coach Ryan Odom was in the same building as a No. 1 ranked Virginia team.
In fact, he used to be considered an honorary member of the Cavaliers. When Virginia ascended to the top of the rankings during the 1980s, Odom served as the Cavaliers’ ball boy.
Odom’s father worked as an assistant under coach Terry Holland from 1982-89, according to Yahoo Sports. The Cavaliers appeared in five NCAA Tournaments during that time, including a Final Four and two Elight Eights.
ESPN.com’s Wayne Drehs broke the news on Twitter during the game with a picture of a young Odom holding a basketball while wearing a Virginia T-shirt, writing, “Just a reminder: The last time (Virginia) was #1 this was their ball boy. That ball boy is now (UMBC) head coach Ryan Odom. Tonight it all comes full circle.”
Odom paid respect to his roots after the historic win.
“Obviously Virginia is a special place,” Odom said. “I mean, it’s a special place. It was a special time for the Odom family when we were there. You know, so many high-level people, so many high-character people, so many successful people, and we were just fortunate to be a part of it.”
The one and only
As you can see, these things set up quite nicely for perhaps the biggest upset in sports history.
We can’t write them off as pure coincidences. As Odom said, it all came full circle.
Regardless of how UMBC does the remainder of the tournament, it will forever have more of a claim to a national championship than the UCF football team that went undefeated this year.
The Retrievers beat the unanimous No. 1 team in the country in convincing fashion. The Knights’ best win, on the other hand, was against a three-loss Auburn team.
Those are hardly comparable.
It was destiny in the making — UMBC was meant to make history all along, we just didn’t know it.
It wouldn’t have been the same if any team other than the Retrievers broke the seemingly indestructible 34-year streak.
It had to happen eventually, and it finally did. UMBC etched its name in history, becoming the ‘1’ in 135-1.