By Kate Fishbone ‘22, Sports Editor 

As March rolled around the corner, the anticipation of March Madness grew. After a long year without the NCAA basketball games, due  to COVID, the beloved tournament finally returned. With the tournament came the many, many brackets made by people hoping to win big, whether it be money or bragging rights. However the road to victory in this tournament was rockier than normal as the tournament brought upon multiple upsets right from the start. 

After only the first two rounds, March Madness 2021 had close to the most upsets in history. The last record set was in 1999 when five double-digit seeds made it to the round of Sweet 16. This year, four out of the sixteen teams were double-digit seeds. In the first round, nine of the winners were double-digit seeds. 

One of the earliest and most surprising upsets was #15 Oral Roberts over #2 Ohio State in the first round. Led by Kevin Obaner with 30 points and 11 rebounds, the Oral Roberts Golden Eagles stunned the Buckeyes with a 75-72 overtime win. With this victory, Oral Roberts became the ninth #15 seed to win in the first round. This momentum continued into the second round when the Golden Eagles also took down number #7 Florida to secure a spot in the Sweet 16. 

Ohio State was not the only fan favorite to lose in the first round. #4 Purdue was also kicked out of the tournament by #13 North Texas in a 78-69 overtime loss. Although they lost to Villanova in the second round, they are one of the very few #13 seeds to win the first round game. 

Right up there with Ohio State and Purdue is Texas. With under 10 seconds left, #14 Abilene Christain was down one to the Texas Longhorns. However, Abilene Christian player Joe Pleasant was able to make it to the free throw line, make the  two shots, and give his team a one-point lead Unable to make anything happen in the last 1.2 seconds, Texas was out of the tournament earlier than expected. 

Ohio State, Purdue, and Texas were not the only high-seeded teams out in the first round. #4 Virginia lost 62-58 to #13 Ohio. #5 Tennessee lost 70-56 to #12 Oregon State, who went on to the elite eight. #6 San Diego State was knocked out by #11 Syracuse, and #7 Clemson fell to #10 Rutgers. 

Along with the initial upsets in the first two rounds, some double-digit seeds made it as far as the final four. After winning in their first-four matchup against Michigan State, #11 UCLA took down #6 Brigham Young University, #14 Abilene Christian, #2 Alabama, and most impressively, #1 Michigan. These four  victories led UCLA to the final four against #1 Gonzaga. After some admirable games, UCLA’s streak was ended by Gonzaga in heartbreaking fashion when Jalen Suggs hit an overtime buzzer beater to win the game and head to the finals. 

Despite all of the upsets, two #1 seeds headed to the finals to face off for the national title. Gonzaga and Baylor, two talented teams, did not fall to any upsets or get complacent, but one was forced to go home in the end. After playing an aggressive and impressive game, Baylor took down Gonzaga and won the tournament.