By Charlie Erdman
The first day of March Madness started yesterday and it began like it always does, with massive upsets. The biggest upset of them all was 15th seed Saint Peter’s taking down Goliath 2nd seed Kentucky. The Kentucky basketball program has won the men’s NCAA tournament a staggering eight times! Which ranks them second all-time and they’ve made it to the finals twelve times which is tied for most of all time with UCLA. Furthermore, Kentucky had the third-highest betting odds to win the tournament out of the 68 qualified teams. And yet the Goliath that is Kentucky basketball was taken down by 15th seed Saint Peter’s with a student population of just over 2,000 undergraduates.
This is what March Madness is all about, the classic David versus Goliath storyline. Saint Peter’s came in with zero expectations and all heart. They have only qualified for the NCAA tournament four times! A team that no one expected to win and certainly not at the fate of Kentucky, a powerhouse in men’s NCAA basketball.
Amongst the heroics of Saint Peter’s, there were a few more upsets that shocked the basketball world. Two 12th seeds Richmond and New Mexico State, came out victorious over 5th seeded Iowa and Connecticut. Look for more upsets to develop in the coming days and for Saint Peter’s, the Cinderella team of the tournament, to continue their hot streak and make the improbable possible.