The first major upset of the 2025 NCAA Tournament came in a 12-seed vs. 5-seed matchup. No. 12 McNeese defeated No. 5 Clemson in the opening round of March Madness 2025.
No. 12 McNeese Defeats No. 5 Clemson
UPSET ALERT 🚨
(12) McNeese completes the upset against (5) Clemson 😤#MarchMadness @McNeeseMBB pic.twitter.com/Lga7nfI35n
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 20, 2025
The first brackets have been busted.
McNeese pulled off the 69-67 victory over Clemson. Despite the two-point victory, the game was never close until the end.
McNeese jumped out to a 24-point advantage in the first half and went into halftime with a 31-13 lead.
Per ESPN, Clemson’s 13-point first-half performance was the third-worst scoring half for a team seeded No. 5 or better.
Will Wade, who already accepted the head coaching position at NC State, gives McNeese its first NCAA Tournament victory.
McNeese’s Brandon Murray had a team-high 21 points, including 14 at halftime. Quadir Copeland finished with 16 points, while Christian Shumate added 13.
Clemson’s Jaeden Zackery had a game-high 24 points, while Chase Hunter finished with 21 points.
Clemson will turn to their first-half struggles as to why things got out of hand. Clemson only made 5 of 24 field goal attempts in the first half, including 1 of 15 from 3-point range.
McNeese now moves on to play No. 4 Purdue on Saturday.
McNeese The Latest No. 12 Seed To Beat A No. 5 Seed
Will Wade is very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, excited. pic.twitter.com/FmyBAXfVml
— CBS Sports College Basketball 🏀 (@CBSSportsCBB) March 20, 2025
With the McNeese’s win, it’s the 56th time a No. 12 seed has beat a No. 5 seed since the tournament expanded to 64 teams in 1985.
Two No. 12 seeds defeated No. 5 seeds in the 2024 Tournament: No. 12 James Madison over No. 5 Wisconsin and No. 12 Grand Canyon over No. 5 Saint Mary’s.
| Year | Result | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | Kentucky def. Washington | 66-58 |
| 1986 | DePaul def. Virginia | 72-68 |
| 1987 | Wyoming def. Virginia | 64-60 |
| 1989 | DePaul def. Memphis State | 66-63 |
| 1990 | Dayton def. Illinois | 88-86 |
| 1990 | Ball State def. Oregon State | 54-53 |
| 1991 | Eastern Michigan def. Mississippi State | 76-56 |
| 1992 | New Mexico State def. DePaul | 81-73 |
| 1993 | George Washington def. New Mexico | 82-68 |
| 1994 | UW-Green Bay def. California | 61-57 |
| 1994 | Tulsa def. UCLA | 112-102 |
| 1995 | Miami (Ohio) def. Arizona | 71-62 |
| 1996 | Drexel def. Memphis | 75-63 |
| 1996 | Arkansas def. Penn State | 86-80 |
| 1997 | College of Charleston def. Maryland | 75-66 |
| 1998 | Florida State def. TCU | 96-87 |
| 1999 | Detroit def. UCLA | 56-53 |
| 1999 | Missouri State def. TCU | 96-87 |
| 2001 | Utah State def. Ohio State | 77-68 (OT) |
| 2001 | Gonzaga def. Virginia | 86-85 |
| 2002 | Tulsa def. Marquette | 71-69 |
| 2002 | Missouri def. Miami (Fla.) | 93-80 |
| 2002 | Creighton def. Florida | 83-82 (2OT) |
| 2003 | Butler def. Mississippi State | 47-46 |
| 2004 | Manhattan def. Florida | 75-60 |
| 2004 | Pacific def. Providence | 66-58 |
| 2005 | Milwaukee def. Alabama | 83-73 |
| 2006 | Montana def. Nevada | 87-79 |
| 2006 | Texas A&M def. Syracuse | 66-58 |
| 2008 | Villanova def. Clemson | 75-69 |
| 2008 | Western Kentucky def. Drake | 101-99 (OT) |
| 2009 | Wisconsin def. Florida State | 61-59 (OT) |
| 2009 | Arizona def. Utah | 84-71 |
| 2009 | Western Kentucky def. Illinois | 76-72 |
| 2010 | Cornell def. Temple | 78-65 |
| 2011 | Richmond def. Vanderbilt | 69-66 |
| 2012 | South Florida def. Temple | 58-44 |
| 2012 | VCU def. Wichita State | 62-59 |
| 2013 | Ole Miss def. Wisconsin | 57-46 |
| 2013 | California def. UNLV | 64-61 |
| 2013 | Oregon def. Oklahoma State | 68-55 |
| 2014 | Harvard def. Cincinnati | 61-57 |
| 2014 | North Dakota State def. Oklahoma | 80-75(OT) |
| 2014 | Stephen F. Austin def. VCU | 77-75 (OT) |
| 2016 | Little Rock def. Purdue | 85-83 (2OT) |
| 2016 | Yale def. Baylor | 79-75 |
| 2017 | Middle Tennessee def. Minnesota | 81-72 |
| 2019 | Liberty def. Mississippi State | 80-76 |
| 2019 | Murray State def. Marquette | 83-64 |
| 2019 | Oregon def. Wisconsin | 72-54 |
| 2021 | Oregon State def. Tennessee | 70-56 |
| 2022 | Richmond def. Iowa | 67-63 |
| 2022 | New Mexico State def. UConn | 70-63 |
| 2024 | James Madison def. Wisconsin | 72-61 |
| 2024 | Grand Canyon def. Saint Mary’s | 75-66 |
