Which teams are among the 10 biggest underdogs to win an NCAA Tournament game?

The NCAA Tournament is nearly here, with conference tournament play already underway across Division-I.

With March Madness upon us, it got us thinking— which teams truly cause the "madness"? And what were the largest underdogs to win from a point spread perspective? Using our NCAA Tournament database, we were able to find the 10 biggest underdogs to win a tournament game since 1985— which is the same year the big dance expanded to 64 teams. 

Every team on the list was at least a 15-point underdog in their matchup, while some were as high as 20+ point ‘dogs despite winning outright. Let’s take a look:

Starting off the list, the 15th seeded Golden Eagles took down 2-seed Ohio State in the Round of 64 despite being 15-point underdogs. The game was an absolute thriller, with Oral Roberts squeaking out a 75-72 overtime win. At the time, they were just the ninth 15 seed ever to win a first round game. They were led by Max Abmas and Kevin Obanor, who combined for 59 points in the upset. Oral Roberts would make it all the way to the Sweet 16, losing by two points to Arkansas in that round.  

Just three seasons ago, Princeton began a magical run to the Sweet 16 with a massive win against Arizona in another 15 vs 2 upset. It was the Tigers' first tournament win since 1998, with Tosan Evbuomwan leading the way with 15 points in a 59-55 win. Arizona was fresh off winning the Pac-12 Tournament, but Princeton was able to hold them scoreless for the final 4:43 of the game. At the time, it marked the third straight year a No. 15 seed won in the first round. 

The 15th seeded Blue Raiders only lasted until the second round in the 2016 NCAA Tournament, but their 90-81 first round win against second-seeded Michigan State as 17-point