Spring is in the air! St. Patrick’s Day! State standardized testing! This is how you know that March is here.

The most exciting and unpredictable event in sports also takes place during this month – March Madness. 

March Madness is a 68 team tournament to determine the 2018-2019 College Basketball champion. The teams that do the best earn number one seeds, which are supposed to have the easiest rounds in the bracket. When a team does the unthinkable by upsetting a blue blood, a powerhouse or a national championship contender, there is no way you can hide your smile.

The miracles, the bracket busters, and the Cinderellas are what makes this the greatest month in sports.

Whether your team just wins one game or travels down the path to the final four, it will be remembered for a long time.

This is the countdown of the greatest moments from the “big dance” in the past 15 years.

Georgia State 57 Baylor 56, 2015

Everyone should remember the iconic moment of head coach Ron Hunter falling off his stool with an injured foot after the biggest play in Georgia State history. The Baylor Bears were a number three seed heading into the tournament. Coming out of a good big 12 conference, the bears would end up facing the Georgia State Panthers, which were the thirteenth seed. The bears were surprised that the Panthers put up a fight in the first half, Baylor led by three at halftime. With 2:54 remaining in the game, Baylor had their biggest lead of the game. The Panthers cut into the bear’s 12 point lead by scoring 13 unanswered points. With less than three seconds left, Georgia State trailed by two points. When the head coach’s son RJ Hunter nailed the game-winning three, Ron Hunter fell off his stool in shock. RJ had 16 points and Baylor was sent home in an early shocker. Third-seeded Iowa State also was upset by thirteenth seeded UAB on the same day.

Norfolk State 86 Missouri 84, 2012

Their first time in the tournament, they’re a fifteen seed and there are 16,843 people in attendance; seems like a perfect place for an upset. A fifteenth seed has not beaten a two seed since Hampton in 2001. This year was special, two fifteen seeds moved on to the next round. One of those were the Norfolk State Spartans. Second-seeded Missouri Tigers had a 30 win season and were looking for a national championship. They were about to get the shock of their life. Norfolk State found themselves with a two-point lead with 3.8 seconds left in the game. Kyle O’Quinn had 26 points but missed two clutch free throws that would have iced the game. Instead of being up four, they only led by two. Missouri guard Phil Pressey got the inbound pass and fired the hopeful game-winning three. It clanked off the rim and the fans went crazy as Norfolk State upset Missouri.

Lehigh 75 Duke 70, 2012

The second upset of 2012 was even more surprising than Norfolk State’s win. Lehigh was led by future Portland Trailblazer guard CJ McCollum. Mason Plumlee and Austin Rivers helped Duke earn a number two seed. The game was held in North Carolina, which was basically a home game for the Blue Devils. During the game Rivers and Plumlee scored 19 points each. McCollum was not going sit by and watch fan favorite Duke move on with ease. He scored 30 points as the mountain hawks stunned and destroyed brackets across the nation. North Carolina fans cheered the hardest during David’s victory over the Goliath.

Middle Tennessee 90 Michigan State 81, 2016

Another 2nd seeded favorite goes down. The Spartans were one of the most picked to win the 2016 national championship, however, the blue raiders had other ideas. Reggie Upshaw Jr had 21 points as Middle Tennessee led for all 40 minutes. Michigan State was favored by over 16 points and lost by nine. They could not slow down the shooting of the blue raider’s. They shot 55 percent for the game, including 57 percent from three. The people in Murfreesboro will never forget what happened on March 18th, 2016.

Dayton reaches the elite eight, 2014

The Dayton Flyers made a statement during the 2014 NCAA tournament. They were the eleventh seed and knocked off three teams of a higher seeding. They started it off with the first round upset of Ohio State. Dyshawn Pierre had 12 points and eight rebounds to lead the way. The most impressive one of them all was when they took down third-seeded Syracuse. This time Pierre scored 14 points to hold off Jim Boeheim’s Orangemen 55-53. Next up was another surprise team in tenth seeded Stanford. Flyer guard Jordan Sibert scored 18 points and Dayton downed Stanford 82-72 to reach the elite eight for the first time since 1984. The run came to an end at the hands of number one Florida, but a run to elite eight will be remembered for a while in the city of Dayton Ohio.

Florida Gulf Coast’s sweet sixteen run, 2013

This is one of the few moments where a fifteenth seed made it past multiple rounds of the tournament. FGCU first burned millions of brackets by upsetting second-ranked Georgetown. Otto Porter Jr had an awful night, shooting 29 percent and only registering 13 points. Sherwood Brown and Bernard Thompson combined to score 47 points and the Eagles upset the Hoyas 78-68. Next up the Eagles defeated seventh-seeded San Diego State 71-61. Bernard Thompson dropped 23 points which helped make Florida Gulf Coast the first fifteenth seed to reach the sweet sixteen. The Cinderella story came to an end to the third-seeded Gators of Florida. The eagle’s surprise run proves that an upset can happen anywhere.

Steph Curry and Davidson’s elite eight run, 2008

The former MVP Stephen Curry led an underdog Davidson team to the elite eight. The Wildcats had to take on seventh-seeded Gonzaga in the first round. Curry had a monumental night by capping off 40 points as Davidson fended off Gonzaga 82-76. Davidson fit nicely in the David role as they took on the Goliath, second-seeded Georgetown in the round of 32. Georgetown led by as much as 17 points. The Hoyas felt comfortable, but the legend of Steph Curry began to grow. He scored 25 of his 30 points in the second half and Davidson stunned Georgetown 74-70. The Wildcats were heading to the sweet sixteen and going to take on the Wisconsin Badgers. Wisconsin was the third seed and was ready to make a trip to the elite eight. Curry and company had other ideas. Davidson and Wisconsin were tied at halftime, but the second half was a different story. Davidson pulled away, leading at one point by 21. Steph scored 33 points and Davidson shocked the badgers 73-56. Davidson was final four bound if they could dethrone number one Kansas. The Jayhawks only had 3 losses on the season and were not going to go down easy. Curry managed to score 25 points and Davidson hung around number one, but eventually fell two points short. Kansas may have gone to the final four, but the only thing people remember is Davidson.

Loyola Chicago heads to the final four, 2018.

2018 was a crazy year for the NCAA basketball tournament. The Ramblers were a great story. With 98-year-old Sister Jean by their side, the Ramblers made their way to the final four. The first-round match-up against Miami was first. Trailing 61-62 with a few seconds left, Donte Ingram nailed a deep 3 pointer with under a second remaining. The Ramblers took down the hurricanes earning their first tournament victory in 33 years. Loyola stepped up to face the third-seeded Tennessee Volunteers. The Ramblers led for almost the whole second half until the Vols took a 62-61 lead. Clayton Cluster hit a jump shot that gave Loyola the lead with five seconds left. Tennessee could not hit the game winner, and Loyola was gonna play in the sweet sixteen. Seventh-ranked Nevada was standing in their way of getting to the elite eight. The wolf pack held an early 12 point lead but Loyola and Sister Jean battled back. With a 66-65 lead, Marques Townes sunk a three-pointer to give Loyola a four-point lead with six seconds to play. Townes scored 18 points, the decibel measured off the charts, ramblers won 69-68, 40,000 Sister Jean bobbleheads were sold and Loyola Chicago went to the elite eight. The Ramblers moved on to face nine seeded Kansas State. The Wildcats also upset teams to make it to the elite eight, but their time was over. The Ramblers led for over 36 minutes and handled the Wildcats 78-62. The Ramblers went to the final four to face Michigan. Loyola held a 10 point lead in the second half, but the Wolverines came back and ended the Cinderella run. It will be hard to forget that season in the city of Chicago.

16 seeded UMBC defeats Virginia 74-54, 2018

The number one seed should have the easiest path to make the final four. It starts with the first round matchup against the lowest seed in the tournament. In fact, the number one seed has won 138 times and lost only once. That one time happens last year at the 2018 tournament. The Virginia Cavaliers were one of the best defensive teams in all of college basketball, got the shock of a lifetime when the golden retrievers put up 74 points. UMBC and Virginia were tied at halftime with a score of 21 each. In the second half, the Retrievers scored 53 points and outscored the Cavaliers by 20 points. Virginia had other a 98 percent chance to win, however, UMBC blew out the number one overall seed. Jairus Lyles led the team with 28 points and KJ Maura played all 40 minutes to lead the monumental and unforgettable moment in NCAA history.

George Mason destroys brackets, heads to final four, 2006

In 2006, the George Mason Patriots sent shock waves through the college basketball world. Most experts believed that they should not have even been invited to the big dance. The eleventh-seeded patriots started their tournament run with a match-up against the sixth-seeded Michigan State Spartans. Folarin Campbell led the first round upset by scoring 21 points and adding three assists, to beat the Spartans 75-65. Next, George Mason took on the third-ranked North Carolina Tar Heels. The heavily favored tar heels shot out of the gates with a quick 16-2 lead on the Patriots. Folarin Campbell scored 15 points and Lamar Butler dropped 18, to lead the Patriots to the sweet sixteen with a 65-60 win. The seventh-seeded shockers were the opposition for the sweet sixteen game against the Patriots. This one didn’t even seem contested. George Mason led the entire game and led by 19 at one point. George Mason advanced to the elite eight for the first time in school history after beating Wichita State by a score of 63-55. The number one seed came to play for a spot in the final four. The Uconn Huskies were a powerhouse back then and looked to prove that they were unstoppable. The eleventh-seeded patriots took the fight to the Huskies. George Mason almost won in regulation but, a buzzer-beating layup sent the game to overtime. In overtime, George Mason continued to battle and eventually win the game in overtime. Jai Lewis dropped 20 points, Lamar Butler and Will Thomas combined for 38 points and the Patriots went to the final four. The only thing that stood in the way of a trip to the NCAA national title game was the Florida Gators. This won’t be the last time that Florida would end up eliminating an upset-minded team in the NCAA tournament. George Mason fell 73-58, but the Patriots are the real winners for giving us one of the greatest runs in NCAA history.