Senior Guard K.J. Maura scored 10 points and played a team-high 40 minutes. @YahooSports
Charlotte, N.C.- One of the most incredible moments in March Madness history occurred on Friday, March 16.
The University of Virginia entered the NCAA men’s basketball tournament as the number one team in the country. There wasn’t too much worry surrounding their matchup against No. 16 University of Maryland-Baltimore County.
The UMBC Retrievers snuck into the tournament after defeating the University of Vermont Catamounts (15-1 Conf) in the American East Conference finals. They were able to continue the momentum into their first-round game against Virginia, beating the Cavaliers 74-54.
Of the 135 matchups in March Madness history that included a number one seed and a number 16 seed, the underdog had never been victorious. On Friday, the 136th try, the 16-seed finally emerged victorious.
By halftime in Friday’s game, the two teams were tied at the low score of 21-21, but UMBC really exploded in the second half outscoring the Cavaliers 53-33. The night started and ended slowly for Virginia as they shot a dreadful 4-22 from the beyond the arc and were only successful on half of their free throw attempts.
The Retrievers were hot from three-point range making half of their 24 attempts and shot 54 percent overall. Virginia was also dominated on the boards by UMBC who outrebounded them 33-22 and had a tough time passing the ball as they were only able to accumulate five assists through the 40 minutes of play.
UMBC was led by senior guards K.J. Maura and Jairus Lyles who played practically the entire game. Lyles recorded a game-high 28 points as he was very efficient from the floor making 9 of his 11 attempts. Maura only scored 10 points but handled the ball plenty and made sure not to turn the ball over to the opposition. Sophomore forward Arkel Lamar led the game in rebounds with 10 and was the only player to record a double-double as he also recorded 12 points.
On the Cavaliers side, sophomore guards Ty Jerome and Kyle Guy led the team with a combined 30 points, which was clearly not enough to get the victory. Jerome and Guy were the only Virginia players to record double-digit points but were responsible for five turnovers and six personal fouls.
Advancing into the Second Round, No. 16 UMBC will take on No. 9 Kansas State on Sunday, March 18. The Wildcats are coming off of an upset of their own when they defeated No. 8 Creighton 69-59.
The Kansas State Wildcats are going to be a tough challenge for the Retrievers, but after already taking down the No. 1 seed in the south bracket, the sky’s the limit. If UMBC can advance past the Second Round, it is going to be fun to see how far this group of players can go.
