Who’s The Highest Seed to Win March Madness?

As the calendar flips to March, college basketball betting fans start to feel it. After missing out in 2020 and enduring a diluted experience last spring, the most wonderful time of the year has returned like a lion. March Madness 2022 betting season and the annual NCAA men’s basketball tournament is on the horizon. Soon experienced and novice bettors alike will be welcoming Selection Sunday and filling out numerous tournament brackets as they await the most dramatic weekend of the sports betting calendar. The research for this moment is intense and, at times, futile. After all, who would have thought UCLA, as a No. 11 seed, would not only advance out of last year’s play-in game in Dayton, but make a Cinderella run all the way to the Final Four? Despite becoming just the fifth No. 11 seed to reach the national semifinals, the Bruins fell two wins shy of becoming the highest seed to win March Madness.

For that honor, we need to take a trip back in our college basketball betting time machine and travel to 1985 when REO Speedwagon’s “Can’t Fight This Feeling” was dominating airwaves and vibrant Villanova head coach Rollie Massimino was roaming the sidelines. As a No. 8 seed, his Wildcats earned a spot in the National Championship game by beating No. 2 Memphis State in the Final Four to set up a date with No. 1 seed Georgetown.

As 8-point favorites, the Hoyas were led by All-American center Patrick Ewing who would go on to become an NBA Hall of Famer. However, Dwayne McClain and Ed Pinckney combined to score 33 of the Wildcats 66 points in Villanova’s upset win. Heading into the 2022 NCAA basketball tournament, the 1985 Villanova squad remains the highest seed to win March Madness.

What do you Mean by ‘seed’ in Basketball?

On Selection Sunday, ahead of the first round of the NCAA Tournament, a committee assigns the top 64 college basketball programs a value called a seed. Eight other teams need to earn their seed by participating in a play-in game the Tuesday and Wednesday before main bracket tips off. Heading into the tournament, the “strongest” teams during the regular season earn No. 1 seeds, while the “weakest” teams to qualify for the tournament are assigned a No. 16 seed.

So, first round match-ups pair a No. 1 seed against a No. 16 seed, a No. 2 seed against a No. 15, a No. 3 seed against a No. 14 seed and so on. The seed is only used for placement within the bracket and, as we have learned in recent years, doesn’t mean a win is guaranteed for the higher seed once the game starts.

What is the Lowest Seed to Win March Madness?

Oregon guard Will Richardson, right, drives up court in front of Southern California guard Tahj Eaddy (2) during the first half of a Sweet 16 game in the NCAA men’s college basketball tournament at Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Sunday, March 28, 2021, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)

A No. 1 seed has won the NCAA basketball tournament a record 23 times or 64% of the time since 1985.

Has a No. 16 seed ever beat a No. 1 seed in March Madness?

It took 33 years, but in 2018 the UMBC Retrievers upset top seed Virginia, 74-54. The game was tied 21-21 at halftime, but Maryland-Baltimore County caught fire from beyond the arc in the second half, while the Cavaliers couldn’t buy a bucket. UMBC shot 54.2% from the floor and 50% on three-pointers as they scored 53 second half points against a defense that allowed an average of 54 points per game!

Has an Unranked Team Ever Won the NCAA Tournament?

Yes, but only four times since 1985. The aforementioned 1985 Villanova WildCats entered the NCAA tournament unranked and finished unranked despite the National Championship to show for its efforts. Nearly 20 years later, in 2003, freshman phenom Carmelo Anthony helped Syracuse cut down the nets and finished ranked No. 13 at tournament’s end. A couple years later, in 2006, Billy Donovan’s Florida Gators won its first of back-to-back nattys. In 2011, Kemba Walker’s University of Connecticut Huskies beat Butler, 53-41, in a low-energy, defensive 40-minute battle.

For more on college basketball betting, be sure to check out our March Madness 2022 odds guide to learn how to bet on the NCAA basketball tournament at the best online sportsbooks.