On Day 1 of March Madness 2023, it’s likely that less than 1% of brackets are still perfect, according to the major bracket makers.

This is because of two seeds with a number below 13: No. 13 Furman beat No. 4 Virginia, which was a huge disappointment for the Cavaliers, and No. 15 Princeton beat No. 2 Arizona with two runs in the last few minutes of the game.

They are the latest in a long line of surprises during March Madness, and they show how crazy the college basketball playoffs can be.

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J.P. Pegues saved the game for Furman by making a 3-point shot in the last few seconds. Princeton, on the other hand, won thanks to great defense and the offense of forward Tosan Evbuomwan.

In the nightcap, Penn State shocked the college basketball world by beating No. 7 when they were ranked No. 10. They did this in a very strong way. The Nittany Lions beat Texas A&M 76-59 and won the game from start to finish. They will now play Texas in the Round of 32.

Upsets on Day 1 of March Madness in 2023

On Day 1 of March Madness, there were two big surprises. No. 13 Furman beat No. 4 Virginia, and No. 15 Princeton beat No. 2 Arizona. Both of these games were in the South Region. Here are the first-day surprises.

At the end of the night, Penn State beat No. 7 Texas A&M by a large margin. They won from the first tip to the last buzzer.

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  • Furman beat Virginia thanks to a 3-pointer by J.P. Pegues and a bad call by the Cavaliers. Garrett Hien stopped a shot by a trapped Kihei Clark after UVA coach Tony Bennett forgot to call a timeout. With 2.2 seconds left, he passed the ball to Pegues for the game-winning shot from the right wing.
  • Princeton’s win over Arizona was less dramatic, but still shocking. Arizona lost because they couldn’t score in the last few minutes of either half. Arizona couldn’t make any runs, even though only one Tiger scored in the double digits.
  • Penn State beat No. 7 Texas A&M 76-59, which was the only upset of the night. Andrew Funk scored a ridiculous 27 points for the Nittany Lions, and both Jalen Pickett and Seth Lundy scored 10 or more points. Now, No. 2 Texas will play Penn State in the Round of 32.

March Madness 2023 Day 1 schedule

On the first day, games are still going on, and more surprises could happen. Here is everything that will happen on Thursday for the first round.

Round 1

Thursday March 16

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