One Shining Moment: Evansville Could Have Set NCAA Tournament History

As #BasementJoe might say, "Come on, man!" If Kentucky had captured the 2020 NCAA Tournament title, Evansville (0-18 in Missouri Valley) would have become the first team in history to go winless in league competition but defeat the national champion during the regular season. The Purple Aces prevailed at UK, 67-64, before finishing the campaign with a 9-23 overall record.

All-time great Wilt Chamberlain's final season at Kansas in 1958 included one of the most amazing turnarounds in NCAA history. Nebraska, in the midst of 15 consecutive losing campaigns, was clobbered at Kansas by 56 points (102-46) before upsetting the Jayhawks (43-41) four games later in Omaha. In the Huskers' next outing, they defeated top-ranked Kansas State (55-48) after the Wildcats overwhelmed them by a total of 46 points in two previous match-ups. Nebraska never has won an NCAA Tournament game, making the Huskers treasure the moment even more when their second-division squad upended NCAA champion-to-be Kansas in the regular season in 1988.

Cincinnati, compiling only one winning record in Metro Conference competition (8-6 in 1985) in a 12-year span from 1978 through 1989, was the lone school registering a losing mark in a season it won a road game against a league rival later becoming NCAA kingpin until St. John's duplicated the feat in 2017-18. The 12-16 Bearcats, notching a 5-7 Metro worksheet, won at Louisville (84-82) midway through 1985-86 when guard Roger McClendon poured in 24 of his 35 points in the second half. The Cardinals recovered from their only home-court loss that year and the embarrassment of squandering a 13-point, second-half lead against Cincy to wind up capturing the NCAA title.

Michigan State dominated the 1979 NCAA tourney, handing all five playoff opponents, a quintet averaging 25.6 victories, their worst defeat of the year - Lamar (31-point margin), LSU (16), Notre Dame (12), Penn (34) and Indiana State (11). Consequently, most observers don't remember the glaring defect of the Magic Johnson-led Spartans earlier in the season when they succumbed to four Big Ten Conference second-division members (including three finishing at least four games below .500 in league play). One of MSU's setbacks was by 18 points against perennial cellar dweller Northwestern.

Florida '98 is the only school at least four games below .500 in league play to win on the road against a conference opponent (Kentucky) finishing season with an NCAA playoff crown. Following is a chronological list of the 11 schools at least four games under .500 in conference competition to defeat a league foe ending the season as NCAA titlist: