March Madness Upsets Shake Brackets
March Madness is living up to its name with a series of major upsets shaking up tournament brackets. Marquette toppled No. 4 UConn in their regular-season finale, while lower-seeded Northern Iowa stunned Bradley to advance to their conference title game. The results have forced ESPN's Joe Lunardi to adjust seed projections for several key teams.
The Marquette victory on their Senior Day was powered by freshman guard Nigel James Jr., who scored 19 points, and sophomore forward Royce Parham, who added 13. The Golden Eagles held UConn to just 3-of-24 shooting from three-point range and forced head coach Dan Hurley into two technical fouls, leading to his ejection in the final seconds. This win marked Marquette's first over UConn since joining the Big East, snapping a losing streak in their head-to-head matchups. UConn's loss has significant implications for their top-seed aspirations in the NCAA Tournament. Prior to the game, ESPN's Joe Lunardi had the Huskies projected as a No. 1 seed, but the upset will likely drop them to a No. 2 seed, opening a path for teams like Florida to move into a top spot. Historically, seven of the last eight national champions have been a No. 1 seed. In the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament, No. 6 seed Northern Iowa's 73-69 victory over No. 2 seed Bradley was a significant upset. The Panthers were led by Leon Bond III's 19 points on 7-of-8 shooting. Northern Iowa capitalized on Bradley's foul trouble and built a 45-32 lead by halftime. With the win, Northern Iowa advanced to the MVC Tournament championship game against No. 5 seed UIC. The winner of that game will receive an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, representing the only path for either team to make the 68-team field. Bradley, despite the loss, still holds a slim chance for an at-large bid depending on other conference tournament outcomes.
