Oral Roberts shocked the college basketball world on Friday with an upset over No. 2 seed Ohio State in first round action from Indiana. The win marked the ninth time in NCAA Tournament history that a No. 15 seed has pulled off the feat -- the first since Middle Tennessee took down Michigan State in 2016.
The Golden Eagles closed as 15-point underdogs against the Buckeyes so their advancement into Round 2 also marked the biggest upset against the spread since No. 16 seed UMBC, a 20.5 point underdog, stunned No. 1 overall seed Virginia.
Oral Roberts star Max Abmas, the nation's leading scorer, is a huge credit for getting him and his club to pull off the unthinkable. Abmas scored 29 points -- including 18 in the first half -- to pace the Golden Eagles. But his fellow running mate Kevin Obanor deserves plenty of credit too, as he scored a game-high 30 points.
The nation's leading scorer put on a SHOW!
— NCAA March Madness (@marchmadness) March 19, 2021
Take a bow, Max Abmas. 👏 @ORUMBB #MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/oH8FRdiSVG
It's not quite 16-over-1 exclusive territory for Oral Roberts, a club that is a party of one for UMBC. But joining a list of only eight other teams to pull off such an upset is remarkable company to keep.
Here are the eight other prior instances.
2016: Middle Tennessee 90, Michigan State 81: One of the best Tom Izzo-coached Spartans teams fizzled in 2016 when Middle Tennessee stunned them in Round 1. This game was similar to the Oral Roberts vs. Ohio State game in that Middle Tennessee was the aggressor early. MTSU led 15-2 five minutes into the game and never looked back. They fell to 10th-seeded Syracuse -- which later advanced to the Final Four -- in Round 2.
2013: Florida Gulf Coast 78, Georgetown 68 -- In Florida Gulf Coast's second full year of Division I postseason eligibility, the Eagles introduced themselves to the world as the high-flying bunch we all came to know as "Dunk City." Led by coach Andy Enfield, FGCU made it to the Sweet 16 before falling to eventual national runner-up North Carolina. Senior guard Sherwood Brown had a team-high 24 points and sophomore Bernard Thompson had 23 of his own.
2012: Norfolk State 86, Missouri 84 -- Against one of the most fun Missouri teams in program history, Norfolk State upended the Tigers 86-84. Missouri guard Phil Pressey had a decent look at a game-winning 3-pointer, but it bounced off the back iron and missed.
2012: Lehigh 75, Duke 70 -- The legend of C.J. McCollum was officially born on March 16, 2012, when he led Lehigh to a 75-70 win over Duke. McCollum dropped 30 points and played 39 minutes.
2001: Hampton 58, Iowa State 57 -- A layup from Iowa State's Jamaal Tinsley at the buzzer missed, giving Hampton its first NCAA Tournament win in program history. Pirates star Travis Williams was the hero of the day, as his jumper in the lane in the closing seconds put Hampton on top for good.
1997: Coppin State 78, South Carolina 65 -- Coppin State needed two overtime wins in its conference tournament just to get to March Madness. But it became the third-ever No. 15 seed to oust a No. 2 seed by beating South Carolina 78-65 by outscoring the SEC regular-season champs by 20 in the game's final 13 minutes.
1993: Santa Clara 64, Arizona 61 -- Young guard Steve Nash scored 10 points and had 7 rebounds and 4 assists in Santa Clara's stunning victory over Hall of Fame coach Lute Olson and Arizona. Nash missed a pair of free throws in the final 10 seconds, as did teammate Kevin Dunne, but the Wildcats' potential game-tying 3-pointer just before the buzzer rimmed out.
1991: Richmond 73, Syracuse 69 -- Richmond advanced to its third-ever Round of 32 after defeating Jim Boeheim and Syracuse 73-69. Syracuse was the regular-season Big East champion that year, led by three future first-rounders in Dave Johnson, Billy Owens and LeRon Ellis. Owens missed a 3-pointer as time expired.
