March Madness is the common term for the NCAA Tournament, which is held each year in March and April to determine the national champion in Division I men's and women's collegiate basketball. March Madness is also known as "The Big Dance." It is now among the major yearly sports events held in the US.
68 teams participate in seven rounds to win the national championship in the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, which is a single-elimination competition. The Final Four, which occurs when there are just four teams remaining, is the penultimate round.
In 1939, Oregon, Texas, Oklahoma, Utah State, Villanova, Brown, Wake Forest, and Ohio State were the eight teams that took part in the first March Madness. In the decisive game, Oregon defeated Ohio State 46–33.
Together with the 36 universities that get at-large bids, the 32 Division I conference winners are also included in the tournament teams. Following their selection by an NCAA selection committee, these "at-large" teams are revealed on Selection Sunday, a nationally broadcast event. It is scheduled for March 17, 2024, with the First Four taking place on March 19 and 20.
Lowest Seed to Win March Madness
The Villanova Wildcats defeated the Georgetown Hoyas 66-64, seeded No. 8 in 1985, and were the lowest-seeded team to win March Madness in history.
The Wildcats' victory was all the more noteworthy because the Georgetown Hoyas, one of the top-seeded teams in the tournament, included NBA legend Patrick Ewing in their ranks. Coached by Rollie Massimino, Villanova upset No. 9-ranked Dayton in the Southeast region to start their amazing journey to the finals.
The Wildcats' subsequent exploits cemented the legendary nature of their run, as they upset the No. 5 ranked Maryland Terrapins in the Sweet Sixteen and defeated the No. 1 seeded Michigan Wolverines in the second round. They then defeated the No. 2 seeded Memphis State Tigers in the Final Four after taking down the North Carolina Tar Heels in the Elite Eight.
As the last team standing before the shot clock was implemented in collegiate basketball, they squared off against the East's champions and the defending national champions, the Georgetown Hoyas, in the championship game.
Since then, the No. 7 UConn team from 2014 is the lowest seed to win the tournament; North Carolina in 2022 is the last No. 8 seed to reach the championship game.
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What are Seeds?
There are 68 teams competing in the NCAA men's basketball tournament. Prior to any tournament play on Selection Sunday, the Selection Committee ranks all of those teams from 1 through 68, with the top college basketball team in the country—determined by regular season and conference tournament results—sitting at No. 1.
There is a field of 64 for the first round of the competition after four of those teams are eliminated in the First Four rounds. The 64 teams are divided into four zones, each including 16 teams, and the teams are ranked 1 through 16. The seed for the team is that ranking.
First-round pairings are decided by placing the best team in the region against the lowest club (No. 1 vs. No. 16) in an effort to reward superior teams. The next highest number versus the next lowest (No. 2 versus No. 15), and so forth. This implies that, theoretically, the first seed in the bracket gets the easiest initial matchup.
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Other National Champions that weren’t Seed No. 1
The top seeds have mostly controlled the championship-winning teams since the field was increased to 64 teams. There have been 23 national champions who began the tournament as one of the top seeds, with only 13 from any other seed. Every national winner who wasn't the first seed is as follows:
| Year | Champion | Opponent |
| 1986 | No. 2 Louisville | No. 1 Duke |
| 1991 | No. 2 Duke | No. 3 Kansas |
| 1998 | No. 2 Kentucky | No. 3 Utah |
| 2004 | No. 2 Connecticut | No. 3 Georgia Tech |
| 2016 | No. 2 Villanova | No. 1 North Carolina |
| 1989 | No. 3 Michigan | No. 3 Seton Hall |
| 2003 | No. 3 Syracuse | No. 2 Kansas |
| 2006 | No. 3 Florida | No. 2 UCLA |
| 2011 | No. 3 Connecticut | No. 8 Butler |
| 1997 | No. 4 Arizona | No. 1 Kentucky |
| 1988 | No. 6 Kansas | No. 1 Oklahoma |
| 2014 | No. 7 Connecticut | No. 8 Kentucky |
| 1985 | No. 8 Villanova | No. 1 Georgetown |
FAQ's on Who was the lowest seed to win the NCAA Tournament?
A. Selection Sunday for the 2023–24 season falls on March 17, followed by the First Four games on March 19 and March 20.
A. UConn, a fourth-seeded team, clinched its fifth national championship by defeating San Diego State 76-59 in the final game.
A. The lowest-seeded team to win March Madness was the Villanova Wildcats, seeded No. 8, who defeated Georgetown in 1985's championship game.
A. Teams are seeded based on their ranking, from 1 to 16, assigned by the Selection Committee. The matchups are determined to reward superior teams.
A. UConn, a fourth-seeded team, clinched its fifth national championship by defeating San Diego State 76-59 in the final game.
