ON THIS DAY IN COLLEGE BASKETBALL
January 27.
Different years. Same date. Games worth remembering.
ON THIS DAY · January 27PAINT
Unranked. Unforgettable.
Unranked wins over ranked teams. Best rank beaten first. Showing 14 of 78.
| Season | Winner | Opponent | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | Maryland67 | #1 Notre Dame66 | On the road · Cole Field House, College Park, MD |
| 1958 | Duke72 | #1 West Virginia68 | At home · H |
| 1979 | Clemson66 | #2 North Carolina61 | At home · Littlejohn Coliseum · Clemson, SC |
| 1951 | California69 | #2 Long Island University67 | Neutral site |
| 2025 | Arizona86 | #3 Iowa State75 | At home · OT · McKale Memorial Center · Tucson, AZ |
| 2001 | Ohio State64 | #3 Michigan State55 | At home · The Schottenstein Center · Columbus, OH |
| 1990 | DePaul66 | #4 Louisville62 | At home |
| 1979 | Northwestern83 | #4 Michigan State65 | At home · McGaw Memorial Hall · Evanston, IL |
| 2016 | Arkansas74 | #5 Texas A&M71 | At home · Bud Walton Arena · Fayetteville, AR |
| 2019 | Purdue73 | #6 Michigan State63 | At home · Mackey Arena · West Lafayette, IN |
| 2001 | Georgia77 | #6 Tennessee75 | At home · 2OT · Stegeman Coliseum · Athens, GA |
| 1996 | St. John's (NY)83 | #6 Georgetown72 | At home |
| 2018 | Kentucky83 | #7 West Virginia76 | On the road · WVU Coliseum · Morgantown, WV |
| 1994 | Penn State71 | #7 Purdue68 | At home · Recreation Building · University Park, PA |
ON THIS DAY · January 27PAINT
When the ranked collide
Ranked matchups, highest-ranked team first. Showing 10 of 41.
| Season | Winner | Opponent | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | #2 Virginia65 | #4 Duke63 | On the road · Cameron Indoor Stadium · Durham, NC |
| 1973 | #4 Maryland94 | #3 North Carolina88 | At home |
| 2026 | #3 Michigan75 | #5 Nebraska72 | At home · Crisler Center · Ann Arbor, MI |
| 2002 | #1 Duke94 | #7 Virginia81 | At home · Cameron Indoor Stadium · Durham, NC |
| 2003 | #6 Kansas90 | #4 Texas87 | At home · Allen Fieldhouse · Lawrence, KS |
| 2001 | #2 Duke98 | #8 Maryland96 | On the road · OT |
| 1999 | #2 Duke89 | #10 North Carolina77 | At home · Cameron Indoor Stadium · Durham, NC |
| 1990 | #11 Syracuse95 | #3 Georgetown76 | On the road |
| 1985 | #6 Illinois52 | #13 Indiana41 | At home · Assembly Hall · Champaign, IL |
| 2013 | #7 Indiana75 | #13 Michigan State70 | At home · Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall · Bloomington, IN |
ON THIS DAY · January 27PAINT
Down to the wire
Ranked teams. Three points or fewer between them.
| Season | Winner | Opponent | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | #22 Georgia Tech102 | #5 Wake Forest101 | 1 pt |
| 2024 | #20 Texas Tech85 | #11 Oklahoma84 | 1 pt |
| 2001 | #2 Duke98 | #8 Maryland96 | 2 pts |
| 2018 | #2 Virginia65 | #4 Duke63 | 2 pts |
| 1983 | #3 North Carolina80 | #19 Wake Forest78 | 2 pts |
ON THIS DAY · January 27PAINT
Top ten. Taken down.
The widest losses by a team ranked in the top ten.
| Season | Winner | Opponent | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | #11 Syracuse95 | #3 Georgetown76 | 19 pts |
| 1958 | Georgia Tech71 | #9 Kentucky52 | 19 pts |
| 1979 | Northwestern83 | #4 Michigan State65 | 18 pts |
| 1988 | Vanderbilt83 | #9 Kentucky66 | 17 pts |
ON THIS DAY · January 27PAINT
Never count them out
Largest deficits erased, measured from play-by-play. Earliest on file: 2006.
| Season | Winner | Opponent | Trailed by |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Hartford77 | Massachusetts-Lowell70 | Trailed by 26 |
| 2022 | Saint Mary's72 | San Francisco70 | Trailed by 23 |
| 2024 | NJIT75 | Maryland-Baltimore County74 | Trailed by 22 |
| 2024 | Southern Illinois60 | Murray State58 | Trailed by 20 |
| 2026 | #17 Virginia100 | Notre Dame97 | Trailed by 19 |
ON THIS DAY · January 27PAINT
Points on points
The highest combined scores on this date.
| Season | Winner | Opponent | Combined |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 | #3 Nevada-Las Vegas139 | Northern Arizona101 | 240 total pts |
| 2007 | Liberty122 | Virginia Military Institute117 | 239 total pts |
| 1977 | New Mexico State117 | Bradley109 | 226 total pts |
| 2011 | Chattanooga111 | UNC Greensboro110 | 221 total pts |
| 1973 | Oral Roberts121 | Loyola Marymount100 | 221 total pts |
ON THIS DAY · January 27PAINT
You had to be there
The biggest crowds, by announced attendance.
| Season | Winner | Opponent | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | #20 Kentucky88 | Missouri54 | 23,933 fans |
| 2008 | Syracuse71 | Providence64 | 23,309 fans |
| 2007 | Brigham Young61 | #16 Air Force52 | 22,700 fans |
| 2024 | Syracuse77 | NC State65 | 21,814 fans |
| 2018 | NC State95 | #10 North Carolina91 | 21,750 fans |
ON THIS DAY · January 27PAINT
Big nights
The highest-scoring individual games on this date.
| Season | Player | Game | Line |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Jimond Ivey | Akron vs. Ball State | 48 pts · 8 reb · 2 ast · 9 threes |
| 2024 | Kaiyem Cleary | Le Moyne vs. Long Island University | 43 pts · 7 reb · 1 ast · 6 threes |
| 2003 | Willie Green | Detroit Mercy vs. Illinois-Chicago | 43 pts · 9 reb · 4 ast · 0 threes |
| 2001 | Chris Spatola | Army vs. Lafayette | 43 pts · 0 reb · 2 ast · 7 threes |
| 2013 | Trevis Simpson | UNC Greensboro vs. Chattanooga | 41 pts · 7 reb · 1 ast · 7 threes |