Tennessee basketball earns a spot as a 2-seed in the NCAA Tournament after putting together another great season under Rick Barnes. With the Vols' spot in March Madness, Tennessee is at the center of potential upset talks as a 15-seed hopes to make history.
Tennessee has survived a couple of scares as the 2-seed. Most recently, Tennessee beat Colgate 77-70, and in 2006, with a 63-61 win over Winthrop, but have not lost to a 15-seed as a 2-seed.
Only 11 times has a 15-seed upset a 2-seed in the NCAA Tournament. The 11-145 all-time record puts the 15-seed at a significant disadvantage, but it doesn't mean there will not be a 2-seed upset this year.
Here are all 11 times a 15-seed has upset a 2-seed in March Madness history:
1991 Richmond defeated Syracuse 73-69
Richmond became the first 15-seed to upset a 2-seed with its win over Syracuse. Although it was virtually a home game for Syracuse, played in Maryland, the Spiders outlasted the Orange. Richmond's season came to an end in round two with a 77-64 loss to Temple.
1993 Santa Clara defeated Arizona 64-61
Two years after Richmond's historic win, Santa Clara upset Arizona 64-61. Arizona was the No. 5 team in the conference, but that wasn't enough to hold off an 18-win Santa Clara team. The Broncos lost 68-57 in round two to Temple.
1997 Coppin State defeated South Carolina 78-65
For the first time in March Madness history, a 15-seed dominated a 2-seed in 1997 as Coppin State destroyed South Carolina with a 13-point win. Coppin State was eliminated in the second round with an 81-82 loss to No. 10 Texas.
2001 Hampton defeated Iowa State 58-57
Hampton shocked Iowa State in the first round of the 2001 NCAA Tournament with a 58-57 win over the Cyclones. 10-seed Georgetown didn't let Hampton enjoy the win for long with a 76-57 win over the Pirates.
2012 Norfolk State defeated Missouri 86-84
Norfolk State upset one of the best teams in the 2012 NCAA Tournament with its win over No. 2 Missouri. The shocking win didn't result in a Cinderella run after a second-round 84-50 loss to Florida.
2012 Lehigh defeated Duke 75-70
Lehigh followed Norfolk State's win with another upset a few hours later. For the first time, two 15-seeds beat two 2-seeds in the same tournament, much less on the same day.
Lehigh traveled to Greensboro, North Carolina, to pull off the heist of the decade, a 75-70 win over No. 2 Duke less than an hour from the Blue Devils' campus. The Hawks' season came to an end in the second round with a 70-58 loss to Xavier.
2013 Florida Gulf Coast defeated Georgetown 78-68
Florida Gulf Coast is the first 15-seed to make the Sweet Sixteen. They defeated No. 2 seed Georgetown 78-68 and followed up the win with another upset 81-71 win over San Diego State before losing to No. 3 Florida 62-50.
2016 Middle Tennessee defeated Michigan State 90-81
Tennessee's own MTSU won its first March Madness game as a 15-seed with its 90-81 upset win over Michigan State. There was no Cinderella run one year after Florida Gulf Coast's run, as the Blue Raiders lost 75-50 to Syracuse in round two.
2021 Oral Roberts defeated Ohio State 75-72
Oral Roberts shocked the nation in hostile territory with its win over Ohio State in West Lafayette, Indiana. They parlayed the first-round win with a second-round win over Florida before being eliminated in the Sweet Sixteen against Arkansas.
2022 Saint Peter'sPeter's defeated Kentucky 85-79
Saint Peter's entered the MAAC Tournament with only 16 wins but went on to win six straight games. The Peacocks upset No. 2 Kentucky, No. 7 Murray State, and No. 3 Purdue on their run to the Elite Eight, marking the deepest run ever for a 15-seed.
2023 Princeton defeated Arizona 59-55
Princeton is the most recent 15-seed to defeat a 2-seed with its shocking win over Arizona. The pride of the Ivy League followed that with an upset win over No. 7 Missouri before being eliminated in the Sweet Sixteen against Creighton.
We didn't see a 15-seed win a game in the 2024 NCAA Tournament after three straight tournaments with a 15-seed upset. Not only were there no wins, but a 15-seed wasn't anywhere close to upsetting a 2-seed last year.
Four of the last five No. 15 seeds to upset a No. 2 seed have won at least two games in their NCAA Tournament run, making each 15-seed a threat to bust brackets throughout the country.
Tennessee is matched up with 15-seed Wofford in their first-round matchup after dominating 15-seed Saint Peter's in last year's tournament. The Vols and Terriers are scheduled to tip-off on Thursday at 6:50 PM ET on TNT.