Fairleigh Dickinson Makes NCAA History, Toppling Purdue In Friday Win

COLUMBUS, OHIO - New Jersey’s own Fairleigh Dickinson University broke records Friday night, marking only the second time ever a No. 16 seed beat a No. 1 in NCAA history.

The Teaneck-based mens’ college basketball team stunned sports fans in the first round during a game against the Purdue Boilermakers in Columbus, Ohio.

The only other time a No. 16 seed beat a No. 1 took place in 2018 when the University of Maryland Baltimore County Retrievers faced off against the Virginia Cavaliers. The Knights finished against Purdue 63-58 in the round of 64 (for a womens’ team, Harvards’ No. 16 seed toppled No. 1 Stanford in 1998).

“If we played them 100 times, they’d probably beat us 99 times,” Knights coach Tobin Anderson told The New York Times. The 23-point underdog team “had to be unique,” he told the outlet. “We had to be unorthodox.”

For many, the Knights’ win was a classic March Madness underdog story:

“For those who don’t know: Fairleigh Dickinson only made the First Four because of a technicality, they lost the NEC Tournament final,” ESPN’s Mike Greenberg tweeted Friday night. “And now, they’ve made history. This is genuinely the best sporting event of the year.”

“It's rare I get truly shocked by college basketball,” Sports Illustrated writer Kevin Sweeney tweeted. “Tonight, I am.”