UMBC Basketball

Virginia. Sharpie.

Say what?

The No. 1 seed Cavaliers only had a 5-2 lead over the No. 16 UMBC Retrievers in the first round of the NCAA tournament, but CBS Sports' Seth Davis was already saying the game was over. As the person in charge of the UMBC Athletics Twitter account that night, I fired back.

Frustrated by seven years of watching my now alma mater struggle in basketball, I began replying to his tweets with repeated score updates. I didn't know how long I would do it, but the game remained close.

While tweeting, all I could think about was the tough road UMBC took to get to this moment.

From 2009-10 through 2015-16, the Retrievers won only 41 games. Prior to this past season, they had won only one conference tournament in 31 years and made one NCAA tournament appearance.

Fueled by a buzzer-beating three-pointer against Vermont in the America East tournament championship game, the Retrievers earned their spot in this year's NCAA tournament. They drew Virginia, the nation's top-ranked team, as their first-round opponent.

The Retrievers came in as a No. 16 seed, and a No. 16 had never beaten a No. 1 before.

Fast-forward to our squad walking into the arena in Charlotte, North Carolina, where nobody thought we could make history. The only ones who did believe were the coaches and players. That's all that mattered.

When it was tied at the half, we had a glimmer of hope. That's when I started to have some real fun with the social media channels. UMBC was in the national spotlight, and you're damn right I was going to do what I could to make the most of it. 

Virginia leads UMBC 13-10 in a game that is still happening, in fact, there's 7:20 left in the 1st half. https://t.co/vQ4SeT6Roi

— UMBC Athletics (@UMBCAthletics) March 17, 2018

I started joking around with people and being even more snarky on Twitter. It must've caught some eyes, because we had roughly 5,400 followers at tipoff Friday night. By Monday morning, we had nearly 111,000, along with a place in college basketball history.

Zach Seidel directs all digital and social media and broadcasts for UMBC Athletics. Follow him on Twitter @SeidelUMBC.

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UMBC athletic director Tim Hall said the school plans to offer men's head basketball coach Ryan Odom a raise and a long-term extension after the Retrievers became the first men's No. 16 seed to knock off a No. 1 in NCAA tournament history.

"We need to do within our realm what we can," Hall told Jeff Goodman of ESPN on Sunday. "We obviously can't do what the Power Five schools can do, or anything near that. I think at some point Ryan wants to do it on a bigger stage. I'm just hoping it's down the road instead of now.

"We're going to put something on the table that will be really good for where we're at. We're going to do everything in our power to incentivize him to stay here."

Odom's current contract pays him a base salary of $230,000, which pales in comparison to the compensation of coaches at larger schools. It's unclear how much UMBC would be willing or able to pay a basketball coach due to its smaller standing.

Odom, 43, is 46-24 in his two seasons at UMBC. He previously served as the head coach at Lenoir–Rhyne and was an interim head coach at Charlotte. In addition to his head coaching experience, Odom has been an assistant at Charlotte, Virginia Tech, American, UNC Asheville, Furman and South Florida.

"I haven't even thought about it right now," Odom said after Sunday's loss. "I'm their coach. I'm here. I'm sure they'd like me to be here and I want to still be here."

There may be something said to striking while the iron is hot. Perhaps the most similar situation in recent memory is Andy Enfield, who parlayed Florida Gulf Coast's surprise run to the Sweet 16 in 2013 into the USC head coaching job.

Take heart, UMBC. Even the real Cinderella lost a shoe and saw her carriage revert to a pumpkin as time ran out on her fairy tale night.

But just as Cinderella went on to find her Prince Charming, so too will UMBC forever remain part of college basketball royalty.

The team with the hard-to-remember name made an unforgettable trip to the NCAA tournament. Not only did the University of Maryland-Baltimore County become the first men's No. 16 seed to win a game, but it also nearly doubled down on its lucky number and became the first one to reach the Sweet 16.

Alas, no. But Sunday's 50-43 loss was still a one-possession game until Kansas State's Xavier Sneed beat the shot clock by a fraction and pushed his team ahead by five points with 1:11 left.

Yeah, with just a little luck, the impossible dream that started with UMBC's knocking off No. 1 overall seed Virginia could have had a sequel.

The Cinderella story is over for the No. 16 UMBC Retrievers…#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/le7xRkAGDm

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) March 19, 2018

UMBC hung around and made K-State's Wildcats earn it despite getting only 12 points from Jairus Lyles, the senior whose 28-point night led the way against Virginia. Fighting cramps, Lyles soldiered through the final minutes against Virginia by licking salt from a cracker and drinking vinegar, but he couldn't find a magic elixir to fix his 4-of-15 shooting Sunday.

The Retrievers also kept hounding Kansas State despite not getting a single point from Joe Sherburne, who had 14 against Virginia but was 0-of-9 this time. There were other UMBC obstacles too, such as shooting a dreadful 29.8 percent from the field, missing half its free-throw attempts and giving up 13 steals to Kansas State's pickpockets.

All those negatives, and the Retrievers were still in it to the end. How?

If UMBC gets fouled four times on a play, maybe they’ll call it. Three times wasn’t enough.

— Jay Bilas (@JayBilas) March 19, 2018

Maybe CBS' Bill Raftery said it best when discussing the height and weight of K.J. Maura, UMBC's point guard from Puerto Rico. Maura has acknowledged that no matter what the various programs and rosters say, he's only 5'7" "on a good day" and about 132 pounds.

Raftery said it's more like, "110 pounds, and the rest is all heart."

Maura buried two threes early in the second half, but, more impressively, he stayed in the game after he took a charge that would have sent most guys his size to the bench. He and his gigantic heart personified a team that played gutsy defense throughout and managed not to get starry-eyed after a day of adoration from the national media.

But coming up short the second time doesn't change UMBC's story. The Retrievers are still top dogs of this NCAA tourney, even if they were undone by K-State's Cats.

Kansas State coach Bruce Weber understood the magnitude of what UMBC accomplished against Virginia. After the Retrievers' victory, he addressed his players at their hotel. 

"I wanted to make sure they understood the task they had and how good they were," Weber said, per George Willis of the New York Post. "We've got to be ready for them."

UMBC's story gives hope not only to future No. 16 seeds but also to every smallish sports program. As ESPN's Darren Rovell pointed out, Kansas State's athletic budget is $73.4 million, and UMBC's is only $13 million.

Athletic Department Budgets

UMBC: $13 million

Kansas State: $73.4 million

— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) March 19, 2018

UMBC's visit to hoops heaven lasted only about 48 hours before the clock struck midnight, but it delivered millions in publicity and awareness for a university whose previous best claim to celebrity fame was alum/actress Kathleen Turner.

As the Baltimore Sun reported, the school's bookstore received more than 3,000 orders for merchandise the day after the Virginia upset, which more than doubled sales from all of last year.

And with UMBC guaranteed a permanent place in March Madness lore, the school realized it better take full possession of its chapter of basketball history, which is certain to be revisited for decades to come.

Lawyers got busy, per Rovell, and filed with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to trademark "16 over 1." Also protected were "Retrievers" and "Retriever Nation."

"With all the attention, it made sense for us to take care of it right away," said UMBC athletic director Tim Hall.

Even dog lovers celebrated the stunning rise of the Retrievers, with some telling ABC News that the breed was long overdue for some attention. Take note, Huskies and Bulldogs.

And speaking of pedigree, a salute also is in order for UMBC coach Ryan Odom, son of Dave Odom, who coached Tim Duncan at Wake Forest and also had a stellar run at South Carolina. Ryan's accomplishment is one more reason I hate giving out Coach of the Year awards before the NCAA tournament. No matter what happens on the rest of the road to the Final Four, Ryan Odom should get a nod for breaking the 135-game losing streak by No. 16 seeds. Nothing else that happens in this tournament will compare to it. Period.

So even though the Retrievers leave without championship rings, they will be remembered forever. Maybe not the way Texas Western and Loyola-Chicago are remembered—as small schools that won it all—but still as giant killers who did what was beginning to seem impossible.

For that, one of the shoe companies needs to send them some glass slippers.

    

Tom Weir covered 15 Final Fours as a columnist for USA Today.

The UMBC Retrievers are America's darlings after becoming the first 16th seed to defeat a No. 1 seed in the men's Division I NCAA basketball tournament, knocking off Virginia on Friday night.

And two-time NBA MVP and Golden State Warriors superstar Steph Curry decided to hook up the underdogs with a unique gift to celebrate their achievement:

Thanks to @StephenCurry30 for hooking @UMBC_MBB up with unreleased shoes and new swag for tonight’s game! #curry5 #RetrieverNation @UnderArmour @UMBCAthletics pic.twitter.com/M6rfPcl6Mz

— UMBC (@UMBC) March 18, 2018

https://twitter.com/_jlyles/status/975470892326191107

Curry knows a bit about shocking the world at the NCAA tournament. In 2008, he led 10th-seeded Davidson to the Elite Eight, beating Gonzaga, Georgetown and Wisconsin before losing to Kansas by just two points.

Curry and UMBC have one more trait in common: Both are signed to Under Armour, per Myron Medcalf of ESPN.com, which enables UMBC to wear Curry's swag against Kansas State on Sunday evening.

UMBC senior guard Jairus Lyles led the Retrievers to a 74-54 blowout of Virginia on Friday night to become the first No. 16 seed in the men's NCAA tournament to defeat a No. 1 seed. The Cavaliers also happen to be his parents' alma mater.

Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com spoke with Carol Motley, Lyles' mother, who graduated from Virginia with the March Madness sensation's father, Lester Lyles, in 1985.

"It was unbelievable to see them whip up on my alma mater," Motley said. "I was part of Retriever Nation tonight."

She added: "I still can't believe it. We've done the amazing."

Lyles scored 28 points, 13 more than anybody else in the game, while also grabbing four rebounds and dishing out three assists in the upset.

The Retrievers return to action Sunday for a second-round clash with Kansas State.    

Among the many wonderful things about the greatest upset in college basketball history is that even ardent fans will have to think twice before naming the miraculous team that finally became the first No. 16 seed to win in the NCAA men's tournament.      

As university acronyms go, UMBC isn't exactly up there with UCLA, LSU or MIT.       

But the world is rapidly learning about the team with the comma in its name, University of Maryland, Baltimore County.

The Retrievers—yes, Retrievers—might sound like PETA's weekend softball team. But on Friday, they fetched a victory that will forever define them as best of show, in the underdog division.

How impossible a task was this?

Going into the game, No. 16 seeds possessed an all-time record of 0-135 in the tournament. And just to make an upset doubly improbable, UMBC was matched with the Virginia Cavaliers, the tournament's overall top seed whom oddsmakers installed as a 20.5-point favorite, per OddsShark.

Those same oddsmakers no doubt would have also predicted that the only way UMBC could win was in a nail-biter. It couldn't possibly miss free throws or commit turnovers and expect to pull off this heist.

Instead, the upstarts from the America East Conference made it all look ridiculously easy. They won going away in what was a laugher for everyone except Cavaliers fans, 74-54. It was like David taking down Goliath and then having a giggle fest about it.

Virginia was 20-1 in games against ACC opponents this season. The Cavs defense crushed the spirit of North Carolina, 61-49, in January. Against then-No. 18 Clemson a couple of weeks later, they won 61-36. Their only losses before Friday night were on the road at West Virginia and in overtime to Virginia Tech.

And how about UMBC's resume? Well, the Retrievers got lost during an 83-39 loss to almighty Albany in January and about two weeks later got hammered by Vermont by the count of 81-53. At home, no less.

Yet UMBC's smaller roster, best personified by 5'8" point guard K.J. Maura, out-rebounded Virginia 33-22

Jairus Lyles was the most lethal giant-killer, scoring 28 points and getting to the rim with shocking ease against what many thought was the nation's best defensive team. And, just to rub it in for UVA loyalists, both his parents are Virginia alums. Ouch!

Just spoke with Jairus Lyles’ whole family who is here from Maryland. Get this: Both his parents are UVA grads.

— Dan Wolken (@DanWolken) March 17, 2018

No one on Virginia's bewildered team had more than 15 points or five rebounds, and the Cavaliers distributed the ball for a mere five assists.

Equally stunning was that UMBC head coach Ryan Odom could not have been more blase about the victory during his postgame interview on CBS. He was collected while talking in a monotone about how his Retrievers had improved in recent weeks, but maybe he'll get a little more amped up when his $10,000 bonus lands. 

"We got our butts whipped," Virginia head coach Tony Bennett readily admitted to CBS afterward, via ESPN.com. "That was not even close. And that's first a credit to the job Ryan did. Coach Odom, their offense was very hard to guard. They shot it well. We kept getting broken down and did a poor job."

How could it suddenly be so easy for a 16th seed?

If fans had given up on ever seeing the planets align for a No. 16 victory, they couldn't be blamed. We had taken the bait on this tease so many times, only to be heartlessly denied.

The worst of the heartbreak came in 1989, when not one but two No. 1 seeds came within a whisker and an eyelash of falling. Princeton executed the backdoor cuts of coach Pete Carril's perplexing offense with razor-sharp effectiveness but still fell to Georgetown by a single point, 50-49. Also losing by just a point to Oklahoma, 72-71, was East Tennessee State, which had been up by 17 in the first half.

A year later, forward Popeye Jones inspired plenty of spinach-eating analogies as his No. 16 Murray State team took No. 1 Michigan into overtime before losing 75-71.

And in 1996, Western Carolina missed its last two desperation shots while getting nudged out of the history books by Purdue, 73-71.

One irony is that the NCAA thrives on the March Madness reputation of its tournament, but a warning on its official website told fans this year not to make the mistake of picking a No. 16 to win.

NCAA.com's Daniel Wilco wrote: "Don't pick a 16-seed to upset a 1-seed. Just...don't." And for good reasons beyond the seed's 0-for-forever record.    

As Wilco noted, going into this year's tourney: Only 15 No. 1-No. 16 games had been decided by fewer than 10 points and none since 2014.

Last time a 1 vs. 16 seed game came down to one possession was the Purdue-Western Carolina thriller in 1996.

In the last 11 years, 13 1 vs. 16 games had been decided by more than 30 points. And all-time, the average winning margin for No. 1s over No. 16s was 24.9 points.

Until now, of course.   

            

Tom Weir covered 15 Final Fours as a columnist for USA Today.