March Madness 2012: The 6 Most Shocking Upsets Thus Far

While the NCAA tournament has always been serious about finding who is truly the best college basketball team in the country, the upset factor has truly morphed the Dance into the most entertaining time of the year.

In the history of the tournament, we have seen every type of upset imaginable save a 16 seed toppling a top-ranked squad.

Every college basketball fan waits for that sacred day when one of the top four best teams in the nation takes the early train back home, but until then, we all have to savor what we get every postseason.

After two full rounds of action, this bracket has seen history made in some of the most marvelous upsets ever recorded.

Let's take a look back over the past four days, hammering out the seven top victories that no one saw coming. 

(12) USF over (5) Temple

After watching USF break into the third round, I realized that I was seeing many of the same qualities that VCU brought to the table last year in this South Florida squad.

In last season's biggest storyline, the Rams played some inspired basketball, rampaging their way into the Final Four in a brilliant display of strategy, talent and even a little luck. 

Unfortunately, the Bulls fell just short of the Sweet 16 in a close loss to Ohio.

They're an underrated squad led by two young men in sophomore forward Victor Rudd Jr. and freshman guard Anthony Collins, giving me the impression that USF will no doubt be back sometime soon. 

Their strong upset over A-10 regular-season champ Temple twanged my interest in them just enough for me to continue to watch their run at a Sweet 16 berth.

The Owls were a solid all-around team, making me look forward to the possible UNC-USF matchup that will never come.

(11) North Carolina State over (3) Georgetown

After a rough season in the top-heavy ACC, the fifth-placed Wolfpack were able to secure a bid to the Dance with a deep conference tourney run.

Taking a better-than-decent No. 11 seed, NC State immediately set their sights on the MWC's second-place squad, San Diego State.

A very discerning 79-65 victory over the Aztecs and this super-charged squad was on its way into the Round of 32.

While many had chosen the Wolfpack to be an upset squad in waiting against SDSU, choosing them over the revered Hoyas was a much different story.

Georgetown had resurfaced this year in the Big East, finally getting itself out of the second round this postseason with a win over Belmont. The impressive play of seniors Henry Sims and Jason Clark had this No. 3 seed looking unstoppable coming into the four-day series of games.

North Carolina State, however, had other plans. Their big-time players, Lorenzo Brown and CJ Leslie, forced the upset of the heavily-favored Hoyas. The Wolfpack will need a lot more magic, though, if they want to have any shot at toppling their region's No. 2 seed, Kansas.   

(11) Colorado over (6) UNLV

When the Buffaloes secured an outright bid into the field of 64 following their first Pac-12 tournament title, no one thought much of it.

If anything, many analysts believed that they received too high a seed considering how depressingly horrible their conference was this past season.

When matched up against the obviously superior UNLV Rebels, I personally considered it one of the easier picks of the first round.

The No. 6 seed had placed third in the MWC regular season, losing to a tough New Mexico team in the conference tournament championship. 

Colorado showed up to that game, however, with something to prove. At some point during the matchup, CU led by 20 points, shutting down the Rebels' three-point attack in a stunning display of offensive and defensive prowess. After a scary comeback attempt, the Buffaloes secured the win and stunned the South region.

Just due to the fact that the entire Pac-12 looked undeserving of a slot in the Big Dance all year, with Colorado placing a despairing fifth in the conference, this game's outcome was a giant bracket-buster for the nation's top region.

(13) Ohio over (4) Michigan

Placing third in the Mid-American Conference during the regular season, the Bobcats were able to steal the conference tournament title and head off to the Big Dance.

Their lowly seeding at 13 had them up against a Big Ten giant in Michigan, which, in many people's opinions, was a dark-horse favorite to win the Midwest Region.

Junior guard DJ Cooper had already made reservations for the Sweet 16 and, therefore, made sure the Wolverines wouldn't be a problem. His fantastic play, along with a strong supporting performance by the rest of the Bobcats, was the integral piece in the demise of one of the Big Ten's finest. 

Soon after, Ohio took down USF in the third round, moving onto to the Sweet 16 against the historically powerful No. 1 seed North Carolina.

Keep an eye out for this squad to more than compete against the Tar Heels in what should be one of the better matchups of the round. 

(15) Lehigh over (2) Duke

When it comes to upsets, there is almost nothing more fantastic than a No. 15 seed toppling a powerful No. 2 seed.

Considering it's the closest this tournament has ever gotten to the unfathomable 16th seed over a top-tiered squad, we must enjoy the rare occasion.

On the second day of the first round, we saw an unprecedented victory as Lehigh took down Duke in stunning fashion.

The Mountain Hawks hadn't beaten anyone inside the RPI Top 50 till then, disposing of the historically deadly Blue Devils by a score of 75-70.

While Duke was the worst No. 2 seed in the bracket and, in my opinion, the highest seed with largest chance of being upset, I never could have seen such a shocking loss coming. The Blue Devils' lack of size and experience on the court was their downfall, but such a low seed taking advantage in the first round was, as I said, unbelievable.

All the credit, however, certainly goes to the once-in-a-lifetime performance by Lehigh. Playing at the top of their game and beyond, the Mountain Hawks were the perfect kryptonite for one of college basketball's most historic programs.  

(15) Norfolk State over (2) Missouri

When it comes down to upsets this season, this has to be right up with the best of them.

The Big 12 tournament champion Missouri was the overall No. 2 seed in the Dance, set to make a much-anticipated run at the national title.

In all of the tournaments ever played before this season, a 15 seed has only defeated a two seed four times. We had the pleasure of witnessing history this year as not only Lehigh, but also Norfolk State was able to move on into the Round of 32. 

The Tigers' championship dreams were crushed in one game, losing 86-84 in the biggest tournament upset of the past decade.

The Tigers were actually my favorite to win the whole thing, basically destroying my entire bracket on only the second day of tournament play.

Mizzou's experience was what set them apart in my eyes, as seniors Marcus Denmon, Ricardo Ratliffe and Kim English all contributed extensively to this team's dangerous talent pools. Next to them, junior Michael Dixon and sophomore Phil Pressey were also major factors in the Tigers' success.

It was the extremely impressive play of Spartan senior forward Kyle O'Quinn, though, that doomed Missouri. His immense size, strength and pure drive to win ended the Tigers' journey before it even began.