by Andrew Bohardt

Created on: December 21, 2008

For many casual fans of college basketball, the greatest thing about the NCAA Tournament is the upsets. They love rooting for the underdog to pull off an epic stunner and ruin everyone's bracket predictions. And because the NCAA Tournament has a win-and-advance format (as opposed to the NBA's best-of-7 format), upsets happen every year. Fans can always bank on a 12-seed beating a 5-seed and a few double-digit seeds to advance to the second weekend, but every once in a while, there is a monumental upset that nobody could have predicted. Here are five upsets that fall into this category.

Villanova 66, Georgetown 64 (1985 National Championship) - Georgetown, the reigning National Champion, was supposed to beat eighth-seeded and Big East foe Villanova to a pulp in this game. The heavily favored Hoyas were led by All-American Patrick Ewing, but even his presence couldn't stop Ed Pinckney and Villanova on this day. The Wildcats virtually played a perfect game, shooting an astounding 78.6 percent from the floor. Without a shot clock, the Wildcats took the air out of the ball and out of the Hoyas' dynamic offense.

North Carolina State 54, Houston 52 (1983 National Championship) - The sixth-seeded Wolfpack were lucky just to get into the NCAA Tournament in 1983, but they made the most of their opportunity. Just like Villanova two years later, NC State was a huge underdog in the championship game, as Houston's roster included future NBA Hall-of-Famers Akeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler. Nevertheless, the Wolfpack hung in, and with time winding down, they executed one of the most famous plays in college basketball history. With five seconds to play in a tie game, the Wolfpack's Dereck Whittenburg lofted a 30-footer toward the hoop. The shot was a foot short but Lorenzo Charles caught the ball in midair and dunked it home as time expired to give NC State their second title in school history.

Richmond 73, Syracuse 69 (1991 First Round) - With Billy Owens and Dave Johnson leading the way, the second-seeded Orange had high hopes entering the 1991 NCAA Tournament, but Dick Tarrant and his Spiders quickly dashed any dreams of a Syracuse title run. The Spiders outplayed the Orange in every facet of the game, and in the process, Richmond became the first 15 seed to win a game in the tournament.

Hampton 58, Iowa State 57 (2001 First Round) - The 15th-seeded Pirates made the most of their first trip in school history to the NCAA Tournament, taking down Jamaal Tinsley and the Cyclones. Hampton trailed by as many as 11 points in the second half, but a 14-2 run in the final eight minutes of the game lifted them to victory. Tarvis Williams made the game-winning bucket with 6.9 seconds left to play.

George Mason's 2006 Final Four Run - The Patriots had a very successful regular season, earning them an 11 seed in the NCAA Tournament, but no one was prepared for what was to come. On their way to the Final Four, George Mason took down three basketball powerhouses-Michigan St., North Carolina and Connecticut. Their elite eight contest against UConn (the team most considered the favorite to win the championship) was an instant classic, with the Patriots holding on for a two-point overtime victory. The Patriots would lose in the next round to the eventual National Champion, Florida, but it was an unforgettable run.

Learn more about this author, Andrew Bohardt.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.