Did Saint Peter’s Basketball Pull Off the Biggest NCAA Tournament Upset Ever?
America has fallen in love with Saint Peter’s Basketball. The No. 15 seed Peacocks knocked off the No. 2 seed Kentucky Wildcats in the first round of the 2022 NCAA Tournament. It was an exciting game that had it all: overtime, missed free throws, big three-pointers, Doug Edert’s mustache, and the little guy taking down the heavy favorite. Many brackets with Kentucky in the Final Four or even winning the entire tournament were immediately shattered. The Saint Peter’s Peacocks then defeated No. 7 Murray State in the second round to become the third No. 15 seed in history to reach the Sweet Sixteen.
With the dust settling, a question emerges: was Saint Peter’s upset of Kentucky the biggest upset in NCAA Tournament history? You may immediately scoff at the notion. In total, a No. 15 seed has beaten a No. 2 seed on 10 different occasions. UMBC was the lone No. 16 seed to defeat a No. 1 seed in their dominant victory over Virginia a few years back. How could Biggest Upset not be UMBC’s crown?
Going by seeds, I’ll grant that UMBC takes the cake as the biggest upset in tournament history. However, there are other ways to look at an upset.
Saint Peter’s Over Kentucky: Biggest Upset in Tournament History?
Your first thought might be that I am referring to point spread. No, Saint Peter’s Basketball does not have the biggest upset in NCAA Tournament history based on the spread. That distinction belongs to the 2012 No. 15 Norfolk State team that defeated a No. 2 Missouri squad favored by 21 points. The Peacocks slot in at fifth on this list as 17.5-point underdogs to Kentucky.
Saint Peter’s may not have the biggest upset based on seed or point spread, but this is the biggest financial upset of all time. For reference, Virginia Basketball had a budget 5.9 times bigger than UMBC Basketball. Per Sportico, the most recent public data shows that Kentucky’s basketball budget is $18.3 million to Saint Peter’s $1.6 million. That means UK’s basketball budget is a whopping 11.7 times larger than that of SPU. Read that again. Given how much Kentucky spends on basketball year in and year out, this upset should be all the more impressive.
Inside Saint Peter’s Basketball
Based on the stories going around about the Peacocks program, the financial disparity should come as no surprise. A thread made the rounds on Twitter yesterday that provides some crazy details about SPU Basketball. I don’t want to spoil any of it, but go through and read some of this when you get the chance.
So while Saint Peter’s may not have the largest NCAA Tournament upset as far as seed lines or point spreads are concerned, the financial gap between the small Jersey City school and the powerhouse Kentucky program gives them a case. Can’t wait to see how far Shaheen Holloway takes this team.
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