UMBC has company.
Fairleigh Dickinson joined the Retrievers in NCAA tournament lore and became the second No. 16 seed to beat a No. 1 in the first round when it beat Purdue 63-58 Friday night.
The Knights simply outplayed Purdue in the second half as no one other than Zach Edey was able to do much of anything for Purdue. And even Edey had two crucial turnovers in the final three minutes.
Sean Moore scored the crucial points for FDU with a three from the top of the key with 1:03 to go as the 7-4 Edey closed in on him. That gave the Knights a 61-56 lead and was Moore’s ninth consecutive point for FDU.
Purdue then had the ball with 30 seconds left down three but Moore blocked a layup attempt and a Fletcher Loyer 3-point attempt with under 10 seconds left didn’t hit the rim.
UMBC — the University of Maryland-Baltimore County — became the first No. 16 seed to beat a No. 1 in 2018 when it defeated Virginia. And FDU’s upset may be even bigger than UMBC’s. The Retrievers were a 20.5-point underdog ahead of the game against Virginia and FDU was a 23.5-point underdog against the Boilermakers.
It’s also the second straight tournament loss for Purdue against a low-seeded team from New Jersey. The Boilermakers lost to No. 15 seed St. Peter’s in the Sweet 16 as a No. 3 seed a year ago.