After a day full of games that went the way of the NCAA selection committee, it took the last contest of the night to provide the biggest shocker.
No. 12 seed Western Kentucky, which lost a Sun Belt game on Jan. 24 at Denver, was up by 15 early in the second half against Illinois, then had to hold off the No. 5 Illini late to win 76-72. It was the 19th time in the last 21 years that a No. 12 seed has beaten a No. 5, including a Western Kentucky win against No. 5 Drake last season.
Also in the final wave of games Thursday night, Virginia Commonwealth gave No. 6 UCLA a scare before failing to make the game-winning shot.
The Hilltoppers were the one big upset — sorry, Maryland and Michigan fans, but your No. 10 seeds beating No. 7s don’t count.
Typical of how the day went, top-seeded Connecticut, playing without its head coach, won by 56 points.
