September 20, 2024

March Madness 2023 upsets: Princeton, Furman bust brackets on wild Day 1

Princeton #Princeton

It’s Day 1 of March Madness 2023, and according to the major bracket makers, it’s likely that fewer than 1 percent of brackets are still perfect.

That comes courtesy of two seeds No. 13 or lower: No. 13 Furman defeated No. 4 Virginia in a heartbreak for the Cavaliers, and No. 15 Princeton stunned No. 2 Arizona behind two late-half runs.

They’re just the latest in a long history of March Madness shockers, and they’re emblematic of how crazy the college basketball postseason can be.

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For Furman, the hero was J.P. Pegues, who hit a 3-pointer in the waning seconds. Princeton, meanwhile, was propelled by outstanding defense and forward Tosan Evbuomwan’s offense.

On top of that, the day isn’t even over. Here are all of the upsets from a crazy first day of March Madness.

March Madness 2023 Day 1 upsets

There have been two major upsets on Day 1 of March Madness, with No. 13 Furman defeating No. 4 Virginia and No. 15 Princeton beating No. 2 Arizona, both in the South Region. Here are the upsets from the first day.

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Results No. 13 Furman 68, No. 4 Virginia 67 No. 15 Princeton 59, No. 2 Arizona 55

  • Furman was able to defeat Virginia with a J.P. Pegues 3 and a horrible decision by the Cavs. After Garrett Hien picked off a heave by a trapped Kihei Clark, a moment spurred by UVA coach Tony Bennett failing to call a timeout, he found Pegues for the winning shot from the right wing with 2.2 seconds remaining.
  • Princeton’s win over Arizona was a bit less dramatic, but equally shocking. Arizona’s inability to score down the stretch in both halves ultimately sunk the Wildcats. Despite just one Tiger scoring in double digits, Arizona couldn’t muster any runs.
  • MORE: Mitch Henderson part of another Princeton March Madness upset, this time as coach

    March Madness 2023 Day 1 schedule

    Games are still raging on in the first day, and more upsets could be in the pipeline. Here is the full schedule for the first round on Thursday.

    Round 1

    Thursday, March 16

    Game (8) Maryland 67, (9) West Virginia 65 (13) Furman 68, (4) Virginia 67 (7) Missouri 76, (10) Utah State 65 (1) Kansas 96, (16) Howard 68 (1) Alabama 96, (16) Texas A&M-Corpus-Christi 75 (5) San Diego State 63, (12) Charleston 57 (15) Princeton 59, (2) Arizona 55 (8) Arkansas 73, (9) Illinois 63 (9) Auburn 83, (8) Iowa 75 (5) Duke 74, (12) Oral Roberts 51 (15) Colgate vs. (2) Texas (10) Boise State vs. (7) Northwestern (16) N. Kentucky vs. (1) Houston (13) Louisiana vs. (4) Tennessee (10) Penn St. vs. (7) Texas A&M (15) UNC Asheville vs. (2) UCLA

    Houston, Tennessee and Texas A&M are on upset watch in the late games Thursday.

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