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Every year there are big upsets in the NCAA tournament. Small schools such as Santa Clara, Richmond, Winthrop, Cleveland State, and Valparaiso have pulled upsets over the bigger schools from the major conferences. My all-time favorite upset occurred on March 17,1995 when my alma mater (yes, of course, I am biased!), Old Dominion University took down one of that year's top teams, the Villanova Wildcats. No only was it a huge upset, but the game was a thriller, lasting three overtimes before Old Dominion won 89-81. Villanova came into the first round tournament game seeded fourth in their bracket, which means they were considered one of the top 16 teams in the country. Their leading scorer was Kerry Kittles, who went on to a fine NBA career. Old Dominion was seeded a lowly 14th in Villanova's bracket, which means they entered the tournament as one of the lowest seeded teams. Many so-called experts had given Villanova a good chance to advance all the way to the Final Four. The Monarchs of ODU were unfazed, however, and showed no fear against their powerful opponent. The game took place at Knickerbocker Arena in Albany, New York. Mid-way through the game the crowd of 15,000, sensing a potential upset, began to cheer for the upstart school from Norfolk, Va. ODU lead 29-24 at halftime, but the Wildcats clawed back and tied the game 58-58 at the end of regulation. Both teams scored nine points during the first overtime, leaving the score 67-67. Both teams had a tough time scoring in the second overtime, tallying just five points each to keep the score tied at 72-72. By this time the crowd was in a frenzy and CBS TV decided the show the game nationally (because there are so many first round games being played simultaneously, games are usually shown on a regional basis). In the third overtime, ODU, lead by three point sharp shooter Petey Sessoms, outscored Villanova 17-9 to win the game. Sessoms finished with 35 points. Kittles had 22, but was shut down in the third overtime. A tired Monarch team couldn't sustain the same effort in the second round game played against Tulsa two days later, losing 64-52. As an ODU alumnus and fan, that victory over Villanova ranks as my all-time favorite ODU victory.

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