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That team from the Ivy League is moving on.
The 15th-seeded Princeton Tigers defeated the second-seeded Arizona Wildcats 59-55 Thursday in the first round of the men’s NCAA tournament for what was arguably the biggest upset of the day following No. 13 Furman’s 68-67 win over No. 4 Virginia.
NCAA March Madness @MarchMadnessMBB
PRINCETON KNOCKS OFF 2-SEED ARIZONA 🤯#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/U9XHuN41ON
Princeton entered halftime down 31-30 and rallied for 29 points in the second half to defeat a Wildcats team that saw junior forward Azuolas Tubelis score 22 points. Aside from Tubelis, the remainder of Arizona’s roster was disappointing as junior center Oumar Ballo was the team’s second-leading scorer with just 13 points.
The Tigers, meanwhile, got a consistent effort from nearly every player on their roster. Senior forward Tosan Evbuomwan led the team with 15 points, and six other players on their roster scored at least six points.
Following the game, college basketball fans couldn’t help but share how stunned they were by Princeton’s big win:
Mark Giannotto @mgiannotto
All those hot takes about Tony Bennett being a bad NCAA tournament coach should instead be reserved for Tommy Lloyd. Two years in a row now that guy has blown it.
Michael Casagrande @ByCasagrande
Wow. Princeton takes down the No. 2 seed in Alabama’s region, Arizona. Only the 11th team with a 15 seed to beat a No. 2.
Joe Fann @Joe_Fann
Really tough look for Tommy Lloyd. His team got outplayed immensely in this game.
Mick Shaffer @mickshaffer
Is Arizona the first program to lose twice to a #15 seed in the first round?
Arizona reached the Sweet 16 last year but hasn’t made it past that round since the 2014-15 season when it reached the Elite Eight.
Princeton, meanwhile, is in the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2017. Entering Thursday, the Tigers hadn’t made it past the first round since 1999. Now they’ll take on No. 7 seed Missouri.
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