<P> An upset is a victory by an underdog team . In the context of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament, a single - elimination tournament, this generally constitutes a lower seeded team defeating a higher - seeded (i.e., higher - ranked) team; a widely recognized upset is one performed by a team ranked substantially lower than its opponent . </P> <P> This is the list of victories by teams seeded 11 or lower in the tournament since it expanded to 64 teams in 1985; as these low - seeded teams were automatically paired against higher - seeded teams at the start of the tournament, their opening victories are almost always considered upsets (to date only one 11th or lower seeded team in the first round won having been the betting "favorite"; this occurred in 2017 when twelfth seeded Middle Tennessee defeated fifth seeded Minnesota in the Round of 64). Most victories by these teams in later rounds were usually against better seeded opponents as well . </P> <P> On March 16, 2018, the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) Retrievers became the first 16 - seed to upset a 1 - seed when they defeated the Virginia Cavaliers 74--54 in the first round . </P> <P> This round was called the First Round until 2011, when the introduction of the First Four caused the round to be renamed the Second Round . Starting with the 2016 tournament, it returned to being called the First Round . There were ten wins by double - digit seeds in 2016, which was the most in tournament history . In 2001 and 2012, there were nine upsets during First Round play . </P>

Has a 16 seed ever won a ncaa tournament game