Virginia Goes Down Hard To UMBC

If you were looking for a 16 seed finally beating a 1 seed, you finally got one, courtesy of UMBC.

Yes, after 34 years of trying and trying, a 16 seed finally took down a 1 seed as UMBC pulled off the greatest upset in college history by knocking off the Virginia Cavaliers 74-54. Yes, that was a 20 point win by a 16 seed over a 1 seed. 20 points! That's an NBA score almost.

You know the name Jairus Lyles? Well, probably not til tonight, as he's now a part of NCAA history as he led the way for UMBC with 28 points and now joins Bryce Drew and Reggie Upshaw as perhaps the unlikeliest of heroes who pulled off spectacular upsets in their times.

Many have said that Virginia probably had the toughest road to the Final Four, and they didn't even play catch-up against UMBC when all was said and done. Coming into this game, they were the ACC regular season and conference title champs. They went through the season 31-2. Now, they'll sit at home and let UMBC handle it the rest of the way.

As for UMBC, they took the night and ran with it, thanks in part to three-pointers all night long. They also got to the rim with almost no problem. They were tied at 21 going into the half. After that, UMBC scored six straight points and for Virginia, it was trouble when the deficit just increased.

Virginia had no business being in this game after the half. They caved to a 16 seed. They didn't play with intensity, with purpose, with nothing except just looking at UMBC rack up the points. They were outplayed at every turn, beaten to the rim every time, and allowed UMBC to hit three after three after three. If you're Virginia, that's inexcusable. Not to mention their 4-of-22 from three-point range was probably their Achilles Heel.

UMBC did everything than Virginia had done leading up to this game. UMBC looked like it was in the ACC and completely took advantage of a Virginia team, especially coming out of halftime. And this wasn't the first time Virginia was on the wrong end. They lost to Chaminade in 1982. At that time, it was considered the greatest upset in college basketball history. Now, this may triumph over it. Plus, that game was in a Hawaii tournament. This was in the NCAA tournament. This will be longer and have a longer lasting impact than many we have seen before.

I've never seen it before. I can't believe it, but it did happen. And Virginia, with perhaps the toughest road in the tournament, didn't play a game. The way they played, they shouldn't have been in the tournament. Now, we'll wait to see what UMBC has up their sleeves for the next game. One thing's for sure: UMBC is our Cinderella this year.