ON THIS DAY IN COLLEGE BASKETBALL
January 17.
Different years. Same date. Games worth remembering.
ON THIS DAY · January 17PAINT
Unranked. Unforgettable.
Unranked wins over ranked teams. Best rank beaten first. Showing 14 of 75.
| Season | Winner | Opponent | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Cincinnati79 | #2 Iowa State70 | At home · Fifth Third Arena · Cincinnati, OH |
| 1985 | Wake Forest91 | #2 Duke89 | On the road · OT · Cameron Indoor Stadium · Durham, NC |
| 1975 | Stanford64 | #2 UCLA60 | At home · Maples Pavilion · Stanford, CA |
| 1950 | DePaul74 | #2 St. John's (NY)68 | On the road |
| 1994 | Kansas State68 | #3 Kansas64 | On the road · Allen Fieldhouse · Lawrence, KS |
| 1984 | Florida69 | #3 Kentucky57 | At home · Exactech Arena at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center · Gainesville, FL |
| 1981 | Alabama59 | #3 Kentucky55 | At home · Memorial Coliseum · Tuscaloosa, AL |
| 1953 | DePaul68 | #3 La Salle62 | At home · University Auditorium · Chicago, IL |
| 2016 | Wisconsin77 | #4 Michigan State76 | At home · Kohl Center · Madison, WI |
| 2004 | Georgia65 | #5 Kentucky57 | On the road · Rupp Arena · Lexington, KY |
| 1976 | Clemson86 | #5 Wake Forest81 | On the road |
| 1950 | Georgia71 | #5 Kentucky60 | At home · Woodruff Hall · Athens-Clarke County, GA |
| 2018 | Southern Methodist83 | #7 Wichita State78 | On the road · Charles Koch Arena · Wichita, KS |
| 2001 | Georgia75 | #7 Florida72 | On the road · Exactech Arena at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center · Gainesville, FL |
ON THIS DAY · January 17PAINT
When the ranked collide
Ranked matchups, highest-ranked team first. Showing 10 of 56.
| Season | Winner | Opponent | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | #1 Duke99 | #3 Maryland78 | At home · Cameron Indoor Stadium · Durham, NC |
| 2004 | #2 Duke84 | #4 Wake Forest72 | At home · Cameron Indoor Stadium · Durham, NC |
| 2011 | #5 Pittsburgh74 | #4 Syracuse66 | At home · Petersen Events Center · Pittsburgh, PA |
| 1951 | #1 Oklahoma State55 | #8 Saint Louis44 | At home · Gallagher Hall · Stillwater, OK |
| 2015 | #4 Duke63 | #6 Louisville52 | On the road · KFC Yum! Center · Louisville, KY |
| 2004 | #9 North Carolina86 | #1 Connecticut83 | At home · Dean E. Smith Center · Chapel Hill, NC |
| 1953 | #6 Indiana74 | #4 Illinois70 | At home · OT |
| 2009 | #2 Wake Forest78 | #10 Clemson68 | On the road · Littlejohn Coliseum · Clemson, SC |
| 2013 | #5 Michigan83 | #9 Minnesota75 | On the road · Williams Arena · Minneapolis, Minn. |
| 2023 | #13 Kansas State83 | #2 Kansas82 | At home · OT · Bramlage Coliseum · Manhattan, KS |
ON THIS DAY · January 17PAINT
Down to the wire
Ranked teams. Three points or fewer between them.
| Season | Winner | Opponent | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | #13 Kansas State83 | #2 Kansas82 | 1 pt |
| 2012 | #20 Michigan60 | #9 Michigan State59 | 1 pt |
| 1987 | #16 Oklahoma89 | #1 Nevada-Las Vegas88 | 1 pt |
| 1979 | #2 North Carolina70 | #14 NC State69 | 1 pt |
| 1952 | #20 Holy Cross66 | #5 Saint Louis65 | 1 pt |
ON THIS DAY · January 17PAINT
Top ten. Taken down.
The widest losses by a team ranked in the top ten.
| Season | Winner | Opponent | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Vanderbilt94 | #10 Alabama73 | 21 pts |
| 2002 | #1 Duke99 | #3 Maryland78 | 21 pts |
| 1990 | North Carolina79 | #8 Duke60 | 19 pts |
| 2015 | #10 Arizona69 | #8 Utah51 | 18 pts |
| 1987 | Vanderbilt91 | #10 Auburn75 | 16 pts |
ON THIS DAY · January 17PAINT
Never count them out
Largest deficits erased, measured from play-by-play. Earliest on file: 2006.
| Season | Winner | Opponent | Trailed by |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Bradley70 | Southern Illinois69 | Trailed by 23 |
| 2013 | Valparaiso89 | Detroit Mercy88 | Trailed by 22 |
| 2015 | Mount St. Mary's61 | Long Island University54 | Trailed by 21 |
| 2015 | South Dakota State71 | South Dakota57 | Trailed by 20 |
| 2013 | Chattanooga91 | Appalachian State88 | Trailed by 19 |
ON THIS DAY · January 17PAINT
Points on points
The highest combined scores on this date.
| Season | Winner | Opponent | Combined |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | #12 Syracuse144 | Siena92 | 236 total pts |
| 1972 | Oral Roberts118 | Butler107 | 225 total pts |
| 2026 | Stony Brook112 | College of Charleston106 | 218 total pts |
| 1972 | Austin Peay113 | Morehead State104 | 217 total pts |
| 1987 | Gonzaga114 | Loyola Marymount101 | 215 total pts |
ON THIS DAY · January 17PAINT
You had to be there
The biggest crowds, by announced attendance.
| Season | Winner | Opponent | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | #8 Syracuse93 | #12 Notre Dame74 | 30,021 fans |
| 2012 | #2 Kentucky86 | Arkansas63 | 24,093 fans |
| 2004 | Georgia65 | #5 Kentucky57 | 23,102 fans |
| 2015 | #4 Duke63 | #6 Louisville52 | 22,791 fans |
| 2007 | Syracuse77 | Cincinnati76 | 22,248 fans |
ON THIS DAY · January 17PAINT
Big nights
The highest-scoring individual games on this date.
| Season | Player | Game | Line |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | T.J. Sorrentine | Vermont vs. Northeastern | 45 pts · 2 reb · 5 ast · 11 threes |
| 2005 | Elton Nesbitt | Georgia Southern vs. Chattanooga | 43 pts · 1 reb · 2 ast · 11 threes |
| 2008 | Adris DeLeon | Eastern Washington vs. Northern Colorado | 42 pts · 4 reb · 3 ast · 3 threes |
| 2001 | Brandon Armstrong | Pepperdine vs. Loyola Marymount | 40 pts · 3 reb · 2 ast · 3 threes |
| 2026 | Erik Pratt | Stony Brook vs. College of Charleston | 39 pts · 7 reb · 13 ast · 4 threes |