100 Most Memorable March Madness Moments (100-76)

We all now in the month of March, which means one thing to many sports fans: March Madness or the NCAA's Men Basketball Tournament.

Since its inception in 1939, the NCAA Tournament has produces numerous magical moments that are remembered greatly not only by college basketball fans, but by casual sports fans.

With March Madness now upon us, I wanted to do a list of great moments from the Tournament but I couldn't decide on whether to do a list of the greatest upsets or greatest buzzer beaters or greatest performances.

So I put try to put them all in as I complied of what I think are the 100 most memorable moments in the history of March Madness.

The countdown is comprised of four 25-moments sections: 100-76, 75-51, 50-26, and 25-1.

Here now are moments 100-76 in the 100 Most Memorable March Madness Moments:

100. 1939-Oregon Wins First Tourney

The inaugural NCAA Tournament is held with the Oregon Ducks winning the eight-team tournament by defeating Ohio State in the championship game 46-33.

Bobby Anet(20) accepts the trophy for his Oregon Ducks winning the first NCAA Tournament.

99. 1953-Indiana Nips Kansas for Championship

Indiana denies Kansas a second straight national championship when guard Bob Leonard hits a free throw that breaks a 68-68 tie with 27 seconds left, then watch as the Jayhawks’ Jerry Alberts’ one-hander from the corner in the final seconds bounce off the rim and no good to give the Hoosiers a 69-68 victory and their second national championship ever.

98. 1961-Battle of the Buckeye State

Even though they lost three of their top four scorers from the 1960 Final Four team(including Oscar Robertson), the Cincinnati Bearcats stun defending champion Ohio State 70-65 in the title game to win the first of their back-to-back national titles and end the Buckeyes’ 32-game winning streak.

Paul Hague(22) tips in a basket for Cincinnati as they defeated Ohio State to win the 1961 national title.

97. 2014-Aaron Harrison’s Clutch 3 Pointers

The Kentucky Wildcats, underseeded as a #8 seed, make a memorable run to the title game, thanks to the clutch 3-point shooting of Aaron Harrison in three straight wins.

First, Harrison hit the go-ahead 3-pointer with 39 seconds left as Kentucky defeated arch rival Louisville 74-69 in the Sweet 16.

Then in the Elite Eight against Michigan, he hit a 3-pointer from 25 feet out that broke a 72-72 tie and sent the Wildcats to the Final Four where he hit the game-winner with 5.7 seconds left to give Kentucky a 74-73 win over Wisconsin. 

96. 2016-Jesperson's Halfcourt Shot
The round of 64 game between Northern Iowa and Texas seems destined for overtime until Paul Jesperson launches a shot from halfcourt that banks off the backboard and into the basket for the game-winning three pointer as time expires to give the #11 seeded Panthers a 75-72 upset win over the Texas Longhorns.

95. 2008-Tampa Becomes Upset City

The St. Pete Times Forum(now Amalie Arena) in Tampa had, pardon the pun, “madness” all day on March 21st as all four lower seeds won, the first and only time that has happened at one site in the NCAA Tournament.

First, #12 Western Kentucky stuns #5 Drake 101-99 in overtime on a 26-foot three pointer by Ty Rogers as time expired.

This was followed by #13 San Diego upsetting #4 UConn 70-69 in with De’Jon Jackson hitting the game-winning shot with 1.2 seconds left in overtime.(Both of these games were in the West Region)

Then in the evening session, the Midwest’s #13 seed Siena destroyed #4 Vanderbilt 83-62 while #12 Villanova overcame an 18-point first half deficit to knock off #5 Clemson 75-69.

94. 2012-Comebacks in the First 4

The opening night of the 2012 NCAA Tournament saw two comebacks for the ages.

First, Western Kentucky overcomes a 16-point deficit in the final 5 minutes with a 22-5 run to give them a 59-58 win over Mississippi Valley State.

Not to be outdone, BYU pulls off the biggest comeback in NCAA Tournament history when they overcome a 25-point 1st half deficit to defeat Iona 78-72.

Brandon Davies(left) and Noah Hartsock celebrate after their historic comeback against Iona in the 2012 First Four.

93. 1990-Kenny Anderson’s Controversial Shot

Down 75-73 with six seconds left, Georgia Tech point guard Kenny Anderson drives down the court and fires a shot from about the 3-point line that goes in at the buzzer, giving the Yellow Jackets an apparent victory over Michigan State.

But the officials confer after the shot and rule that Anderson’s foot was on the line, making it a 2-point shot and sending the game into overtime.

While the officials were got the scoring right, they did not get the timing right as television replays showed that the ball was still in Anderson’s hand as time expired.

Nevertheless, the game went into overtime where Dennis Scott hit the game-winner with eight seconds left to give Georgia Tech a 81-80 victory and sending them to the Elite Eight.

92. 1996-Mile High Madness

On their way to the national title game, Syracuse endures a back-and-forth affair in the Sweet 16 in Denver against Georgia.

Down by 10 in the second half, the Orange come back and are able to force overtime when Jason Cipolla hits a 12-foot jumper as the buzzer.

Then, All-American forward John Wallace made a layup with 15 seconds left in the extra period to give Syracuse a 80-78 lead, only to see Georgia point guard Pertha Robinson come back down the floor and hit a 3-pointer with seven seconds to go, giving the Bulldogs a 81-80 lead.

But Wallace would come back and hit his own 3-pointer with 2.8 seconds left that proved to be the game-winner as Syracuse held off Georgia 83-81.

91. 2003-Wade’s Triple Double

Dwyane Wade leads Marquette to its first Final Four appearance since their 1977 national championship with a memorable triple double; 29 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists, as the Golden Eagles knocked off tournament favorite Kentucky 83-69 in the Midwest Regional Final.

Dwyane Wade recorded the fourth official triple double in Marquette's 83-69 win over Kentucky in the 2003 Elite Eight.

90. 1992-Shaq Dominates

Even though he never made it out of the first weekend in his three seasons at LSU, Shaquille O’ Neal did leave his mark in NCAA Tournament history when he recorded a triple double with 26 points, 13 rebounds, and an NCAA tournament record 11 blocks in the Tigers’ 94-83 win over the BYU Cougars.

89. 1992-Fab Five Makes Final Four

Michigan became the first team to make the Final Four with a starting lineup of all freshmen; Chris Webber, Jalen Rose, Juwan Howard, Jimmy King, and Ray Jackson, otherwise known as the “Fab Five” as they defeated arch rival Ohio State 75-71 in overtime in the 1992 Southeast Regional Final.

They would eventually make it to the title game where they would lose to Duke 71-51.

The Fab Five would make the first of back-to-back appearances in the Final Four in 1992.

88. 1997-Coppin State Upsets South Carolina

A 30-point underdog, Coppin State becomes the third #15 seed to win a NCAA tournament game as they stun the #2 seed Gamecocks 78-65.

Danny Singletary leads the way for the Eagles, as he scores 22 points, including a 18-footer that put Coppin State in the lead for good with 6:12 to play in the game.

87. 1979-Black Sunday

UNC and Duke fans were anticipating a showdown in Greensboro, North Carolina to play for a spot in the Final Four as they were the East Region’s top 2 seeds with UNC #1 and Duke #2.

But playing on their conference rival NC State’s home court, both teams were upset on the same day in the round of 32 as the Tar Heels fell 72-71 to #9 Pennsylvania while Duke lost 80-78 to #10 St. John’s, earning the nickname “Black Sunday” in the state of North Carolina.

Tony Price had 25 points and nine rebounds in Penn's upset win over North Carolina on "Black Sunday".

86. 1985-Three Out of Four Ain’t Bad

The Big East becomes the first and thus far only conference to have three teams make it to the Final Four as Georgetown, St. John’s, and Villanova all make it to the final weekend.

The three Big East teams(Villanova, St. John's, Georgetown) on the cover of Sports Illustrated after all three teams made it to the Final Four.

85. 1984-Jordan is Stopped by Who?

In what turns out to be the final game of his collegiate career, North Carolina’s Michael Jordan is held to just 13 points, thanks in large part to a great defensive effort from guard Dan Dakich, who only averaged almost 4 points per game, as the Hoosiers upset the Tar Heels 72-68 in the Sweet 16.

Dan Dakich(11) slowed down Michael Jordan in their 1984 Sweet 16 matchup.

84. 1959-Going Through the Big O and Mr. Clutch

The California Golden Bears win the national title being going through Oscar Robertson and Cincinnati in the National Semifinal which they win 64-58, then face off with Jerry West and West Virginia where center Darrell Imhoff tips in the game-winning basket with 17 seconds to play, giving the Bears a 71-70 win and the only national championship for Hall-of-Fame coach Pete Newell.

Cal head coach Pete Newell holds the national championship trophy after defeating West Virginia in the title game.

83. 1944-Utah Wins National Title In Overtime

Herb Wilkinson hits a 17-footer with five seconds left in overtime to give the Utah Utes a 42-40 win over Dartmouth in the first title game to go into overtime.

82. 2006-Heartbreak City for Gonzaga

With 3:26 left in the game, the Zags appeared on their way to the Elite 8 as they held a 71-62 lead over UCLA in their Sweet 16 matchup.

But the Bruins got on a run and took a the lead with 10 seconds left on a basket by Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, which was followed by Mbah a Moute stealing the ball from Derek Raivio with 2.6 seconds left, leading the UCLA forward being fouled and beginning a flow of tears from Gonzaga star Adam Morrison.

After Mbah a Moute made one of two free throws, the Zags had one last chance to win the game, but J.P. Batista missed a 15-footer at the buzzer to give UCLA the 73-71 win and make Morrison fall on the court in tears.

Aaron Afflalo(4) tries to console a crying Adam Morrison after UCLA's dramatic 73-71 comeback win against Gonzaga.

81. 1985-Andre The Giant

Andre Turner hit not one, but two game-winning shots during the Tigers’ run to the 1985 Final Four.

The first one came in the round of 32 and was a 14-footer with five seconds left in overtime that gave Memphis a 67-66 win over UAB.

The second one came in the Sweet 16 against Boston College and was a 17-footer with one second left that gave Memphis a 59-57 win.

Turner did not hit a last-second shot in the Elite Eight against Oklahoma, but his 12 points and 12 assists help Memphis to a 63-61 win and a berth in the Final Four

Andre Turner's last-second game-winning shots against UAB and Boston College propelled Memphis to the 1985 Final Four.

80. 1987-Providence Lives By The Three to Make Final Four

The 1987 Tournament was the first time that the three-point line was used during NCAA tournament play.

The Providence Friars, the #6 seed in the Southeast Regional, use the three-point line to their advantage as they make 43 of 78 three-pointers during their four victories over UAB, Austin Peay, Alabama, and Georgetown to reach the Final Four.

However, the Friars would hit only 5 of 19 threes in their national semifinal loss to Syracuse.

Future head coach Billy Donovan and head coach Rick Pitino lead the Providence Friars to a surprise run to the Final Four in 1987.

79. 1956-The Greatest Winner Ever

Bill Russell ends his college career with a second straight national championship as he leads the San Francisco Dons to a 83-71 win over Iowa in the title game thanks to a 26-point, 27-rebound performance by Russell as San Francisco becomes the first undefeated team to win the NCAA tournament as they finish with a 29-0 record.

Bill Russell is hoisted up on the shoulders after leading San Francisco to its second straight national championship.

78. 2014-UcConn's Unexcpected Title Run

Led by guard Shabizz Napier, the  #7 seeded Huskies become the second lowest seed to ever win the national championship as they knock off #10 St.Joseph's, #2 Villanova, #3 Iowa State, and #4 Michigan State to win the East Regional and advance to the Final Four where they would beat Florida in the national semifinal, then Kentucky in the title game to earn UConn its fourth national title in school history.

Shabazz Napier averaged more than 21 points per game in leading UConn to the 2014 national championship.

77, 1986-LSU's Freaky Final Four Run

The LSU Tigers become the first double digit seed to reach the Final Four as they win the Southeast Regional as a #11 seed.

Using their “Freak Defense”, the Tigers knocked off Purdue in the first round, then top three seeds in succession, Memphis(3), Georgia Tech(2), and Kentucky(1).

LSU had lost to Kentucky three times during the season but defeated the Wildcats 59-57 to make it to Dallas for the Final Four, where their run would end with a loss to Louisville.

Derrick Taylor (10) and Anthony Wilson celebrate after LSU shocked Kentucky in the Elite Eight to become the lowest seed to reach the Final Four.

76. 2007-Florida Goes Back-to-Back

After winning the 2006 NCAA Tournament, many experts felt that some players from that team such as Al Horford and Joakim Noah would leave to go for the NBA.

But Horford, Noah, and the rest of the starting lineup(Corey Brewer, Taurean Green, Lee Humphrey) came back to school to win another national championship which they did as they defeated the Ohio State Buckeyes 84-75 in the title game to become only the second team since UCLA’s seven titles in a row to repeat as national champion(Duke did it in 1991-92).

Al Horford(42), Corey Brewer(2), Lee Humphrey(12), Joakim Noah(behind Humphrey), and Taurean Green are the only starting lineup to win back-to-back NCAA titles.

For the rest of the countdown, click on the numbers below:

75-51 50-26 25-1