Top-Ranked Spartans Severely Spanked at Home by Visiting North Carolina

December 4th, 2013 - 22:47

Michigan State incurred the worst homecourt defeat in non-league competition for a nationally top-ranked team in more than 20 years when the Spartans bowed to visiting North Carolina, 79-65. Coach Roy Williams was on the other end of a #1 upset at home in 1992-93 when Kansas succumbed to Long Beach State, 64-49. The only other homecourt advantage defeat in non-conference play for a #1 by a wider margin was #1 in that category - Missouri vs. CCNY at New York during the 1950-51 campaign.

The overwhelming majority of setbacks for #1 clubs are on the road or neutral courts in tournament competition. But there is a clear and present danger for pole sitters such as MSU racing to the head of the pack. Following is a chronological look at the times when nationally top-ranked teams were knocked off their lofty perch at home or with a decided homecourt advantage since AP national rankings were introduced in the late 1940s:

Season Date Home Team Ranked #1 Score Visiting Team Winning Coach
1950-51 12-9-50 CCNY 54-37 Missouri Sparky Stalcup
1954-55 12-18-54 La Salle 79-69 Utah Jack Gardner
1954-55 1-8-55 Kentucky 59-58 Georgia Tech Whack Hyder
1957-58 1-2-58 Kansas 52-50 in OT Oklahoma State Hank Iba
1957-58 2-3-58 Kansas 79-75 in 2OT Kansas State Tex Winter
1957-58 3-8-58 Kansas State 61-44 Kansas Dick Harp
1958-59 1-14-59 North Carolina State 72-68 North Carolina Frank McGuire
1962-63 1-5-63 Kentucky 86-85 in 2OT Georgia Tech Whack Hyder
1968-69 3-8-69 UCLA 46-44 Southern California Bob Boyd
1969-70 3-6-70 UCLA 87-86 Southern California Bob Boyd
1978-79 2-11-79 Notre Dame 56-52 UCLA Gary Cunningham
1979-80 1-12-80 Duke 82-67 North Carolina Dean Smith
1980-81 12-27-80 Kentucky 67-61 Notre Dame at Louisville Digger Phelps
1980-81 1-10-81 DePaul 63-62 Old Dominion Paul Webb
1980-81 3-7-81 Oregon State 87-67 Arizona State Ned Wulk
1981-82 1-21-82 North Carolina 55-48 Wake Forest Carl Tacy
1981-82 2-6-82 Missouri 67-51 Nebraska Danny Nee
1982-83 1-28-83 UCLA 70-67 Alabama Wimp Sanderson
1982-83 2-13-83 North Carolina 56-53 Villanova Rollie Massimino
1982-83 2-16-83 Indiana 58-57 Iowa Lute Olson
1984-85 1-26-85 Georgetown 66-65 St. John's Lou Carnesecca
1984-85 2-27-85 St. John's 85-69 Georgetown John Thompson Jr.
1985-86 2-20-86 North Carolina 77-72 in OT Maryland Lefty Driesell
1986-87 1-24-87 Iowa 80-76 Ohio State Gary Williams
1987-88 1-9-88 Kentucky 53-52 Auburn Sonny Smith
1987-88 2-4-88 Arizona 82-74 Stanford Mike Montgomery
1988-89 1-18-89 Duke 91-71 North Carolina Dean Smith
1989-90 1-6-90 Syracuse 93-74 Villanova Rollie Massimino
1989-90 2-13-90 Kansas 77-71 Missouri Norm Stewart
1992-93 12-5-92 Indiana 74-69 Kansas at Indianapolis Roy Williams
1992-93 1-25-93 Kansas 64-49 Long Beach State Seth Greenberg
1993-94 1-17-94 Kansas 68-64 Kansas State Dana Altman
1993-94 2-12-94 North Carolina 96-89 Georgia Tech Bobby Cremins
1994-95 2-18-95 Connecticut 96-73 Villanova Steve Lappas
1995-96 2-24-96 Massachusetts 86-76 George Washington Mike Jarvis
1996-97 11-26-96 Cincinnati 71-69 Xavier Skip Prosser
1997-98 2-21-98 North Carolina 86-72 North Carolina State Herb Sendek
1998-99 2-1-99 Connecticut 59-42 Syracuse Jim Boeheim
1999-00 1-8-00 Stanford 68-65 Arizona Lute Olson
1999-00 2-20-00 Cincinnati 77-69 Temple John Chaney
1999-00 3-4-00 Stanford 94-93 in OT UCLA Steve Lavin
2000-01 2-3-01 Stanford 79-73 UCLA Steve Lavin
2000-01 3-8-01 Stanford 76-75 Arizona Lute Olson
2002-03 1-30-03 Arizona 82-77 Stanford Mike Montgomery
2003-04 12-10-03 Florida 69-68 in OT Maryland Gary Williams
2005-06 3-4-06 Duke 83-76 North Carolina Roy Williams
2007-08 1-19-08 North Carolina 82-80 Maryland Gary Williams
2007-08 2-23-08 Memphis 66-62 Tennessee Bruce Pearl
2008-09 1-4-09 North Carolina 85-78 Boston College Al Skinner
2008-09 1-21-09 Wake Forest 78-71 Virginia Tech Seth Greenberg
2008-09 2-16-09 Connecticut 76-68 Pittsburgh Jamie Dixon
2012-13 1-19-13 Louisville 70-68 Syracuse Jim Boeheim
2013-14 12-4-13 Michigan State 79-65 North Carolina Roy Williams