ON THIS DAY IN COLLEGE BASKETBALL
March 23.
Different years. Same date. Games worth remembering.
ON THIS DAY · March 23PAINT
Unranked. Unforgettable.
Unranked wins over ranked teams. Best rank beaten first.
| Season | Winner | Opponent | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Wichita State76 | #1 Gonzaga70 | Neutral site · Delta Center · Salt Lake City, UT |
| 1968 | Ohio State89 | #1 Houston85 | Neutral site |
| 2014 | Kentucky78 | #2 Wichita State76 | Neutral site · Enterprise Center · St. Louis, MO |
| 1950 | City College of New York56 | #2 Ohio State55 | Neutral site |
| 2017 | Xavier73 | #4 Arizona71 | Neutral site · SAP Center at San Jose · San Jose, CA |
| 1989 | Virginia86 | #4 Oklahoma80 | Neutral site |
| 2003 | Auburn68 | #8 Wake Forest62 | Neutral site · Amalie Arena · Tampa, FL |
| 2014 | Stanford60 | #10 Kansas57 | Neutral site · Enterprise Center · St. Louis, MO |
| 2003 | Michigan State68 | #10 Florida46 | Neutral site · Amalie Arena · Tampa, FL |
| 2000 | Wisconsin61 | #10 Louisiana State48 | Neutral site |
| 1957 | San Francisco67 | #11 Michigan State60 | Neutral site |
| 2003 | Butler79 | #14 Louisville71 | Neutral site |
| 2025 | Mississippi91 | #15 Iowa State78 | Neutral site · Fiserv Forum · Milwaukee, WI |
| 1984 | Dayton64 | #15 Washington58 | Neutral site |
ON THIS DAY · March 23PAINT
When the ranked collide
Ranked matchups, highest-ranked team first. Showing 10 of 64.
| Season | Winner | Opponent | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | #1 NC State80 | #2 UCLA77 | Neutral site · 2OT · Final Four |
| 1957 | #1 North Carolina54 | #2 Kansas53 | Neutral site · 3OT · Kansas |
| 1963 | #3 Loyola (IL)60 | #1 Cincinnati58 | Neutral site · OT · Louisville, KY |
| 1996 | #1 Massachusetts86 | #4 Georgetown62 | Neutral site |
| 1972 | #1 UCLA96 | #4 Louisville77 | Neutral site · Final Four |
| 1956 | #1 San Francisco83 | #4 Iowa71 | Neutral site · Evanston, IL |
| 1968 | #2 UCLA78 | #4 North Carolina55 | Neutral site · LA |
| 1985 | #1 Georgetown60 | #6 Georgia Tech54 | Neutral site |
| 1985 | #5 Memphis63 | #4 Oklahoma61 | Neutral site |
| 1974 | #3 Marquette64 | #6 Kansas51 | Neutral site |
ON THIS DAY · March 23PAINT
Down to the wire
Ranked teams. Three points or fewer between them.
| Season | Winner | Opponent | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1957 | #1 North Carolina54 | #2 Kansas53 | 1 pt |
| 1990 | #9 Georgia Tech81 | #4 Michigan State80 | 1 pt |
| 2017 | #9 Oregon69 | #23 Michigan68 | 1 pt |
| 1989 | #15 Nevada-Las Vegas68 | #1 Arizona67 | 1 pt |
| 1984 | #19 Wake Forest73 | #4 DePaul71 | 2 pts |
ON THIS DAY · March 23PAINT
Top ten. Taken down.
The widest losses by a team ranked in the top ten.
| Season | Winner | Opponent | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | #1 Massachusetts86 | #4 Georgetown62 | 24 pts |
| 1968 | #2 UCLA78 | #4 North Carolina55 | 23 pts |
| 2003 | Michigan State68 | #10 Florida46 | 22 pts |
| 1996 | #2 Kentucky83 | #9 Wake Forest63 | 20 pts |
| 1972 | #1 UCLA96 | #4 Louisville77 | 19 pts |
ON THIS DAY · March 23PAINT
Games for the title
Conference tournament and NCAA Tournament championship games played on this date.
| Season | Winner | Opponent | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1968 | #2 UCLA78 | #4 North Carolina55 | Neutral site · LA |
| 1963 | #3 Loyola (IL)60 | #1 Cincinnati58 | Neutral site · OT · Louisville, KY |
| 1957 | #1 North Carolina54 | #2 Kansas53 | Neutral site · 3OT · Kansas |
| 1956 | #1 San Francisco83 | #4 Iowa71 | Neutral site · Evanston, IL |
| 1948 | Kentucky58 | Baylor42 | Neutral site · New |
ON THIS DAY · March 23PAINT
Never count them out
Largest deficits erased, measured from play-by-play. Earliest on file: 2006.
| Season | Winner | Opponent | Trailed by |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Canisius84 | Youngstown State82 | Trailed by 22 |
| 2025 | Army83 | Elon78 | Trailed by 21 |
| 2015 | Louisiana-Monroe71 | Mercer69 | Trailed by 20 |
| 2025 | UAB88 | Santa Clara84 | Trailed by 17 |
| 2008 | #23 Davidson74 | #8 Georgetown70 | Trailed by 17 |
ON THIS DAY · March 23PAINT
Points on points
The highest combined scores on this date.
| Season | Winner | Opponent | Combined |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | Utah117 | Boston College93 | 210 total pts |
| 2012 | #1 Kentucky102 | #16 Indiana90 | 192 total pts |
| 2023 | #15 Kansas State98 | Michigan State93 | 191 total pts |
| 1997 | #15 Arizona96 | Providence92 | 188 total pts |
| 1995 | #8 Connecticut99 | #10 Maryland89 | 188 total pts |
ON THIS DAY · March 23PAINT
You had to be there
The biggest crowds, by announced attendance.
| Season | Winner | Opponent | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | #10 Oregon76 | #19 Nevada-Las Vegas72 | 26,307 fans |
| 2012 | #1 Kentucky102 | #16 Indiana90 | 24,731 fans |
| 2012 | #6 Kansas60 | NC State57 | 23,964 fans |
| 2013 | #9 Michigan State70 | #19 Memphis48 | 21,723 fans |
| 2013 | #10 Michigan78 | Virginia Commonwealth53 | 21,723 fans |
ON THIS DAY · March 23PAINT
Big nights
The highest-scoring individual games on this date.
| Season | Player | Game | Line |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1956 | Hal Lear | Temple vs. Southern Methodist | 48 pts · 7 reb |
| 2019 | Carsen Edwards | Purdue vs. Villanova | 42 pts · 6 reb · 1 ast · 9 threes |
| 2025 | Malik Thomas | San Francisco vs. Loyola (IL) | 36 pts · 7 reb · 5 ast · 3 threes |
| 2023 | Drew Timme | Gonzaga vs. UCLA | 36 pts · 13 reb · 4 ast · 1 threes |
| 1962 | Paul Hogue | Cincinnati vs. UCLA | 36 pts · 19 reb |