After a mundane Thursday, with all the top seeds advancing, the past three days have been full of all the madness we’ve come to love and expect from the NCAA Tournament. Tampa Bay was home to a historic feat as all four lower seeds (#12 Villanova and Western Kentucky and #13 seeds Siena and San Diego) won their games at the same site for the first time in Tourney history. National title-contending powerhouse programs Connecticut, Georgetown and Duke each got bounced in the opening weekend. There were explosive scoring displays, and spectacular last-second game-winning shots.

 In honor of the first weekend, I’ve compiled a list of the biggest upset, top game-changing performer, most scintillating showstopper, most dramatic game and most clutch game-winning shot. And yeah, my predictions about Temple, St. Mary’s and South Alabama were off, but that’s alright cause Siena and Davidson held me down very nicely. Let’s get to it y’all.

 Biggest Upset- #10 Davidson over #2 Georgetown

 There's a clatter of candidates in this category. Several analysts picked Siena to knock Vanderbilt (including yours truly). Villanova beating Clemson wouldn’t’ have been as much of an upset had Clemson not imploded and coughed up a 19 point lead.  #13 San Diego pulled off an enormous upset over #4 UConn in the first round. #7 West Virginia sent the #2 seeded Duke Blue Devils packing with suffocating second-half defense and precision offensive execution.

But for all of the upset specials, the biggest of them all has to be #10 Davidson over #2 Georgetown.
Everyone knew Davidson had a good team. The Wildcats entered the Big Dance with a 20 game winning-streak, Southern Conference regular season and tournament championships and a #20 ranking in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll. The basketball world knew Davidson was legit, we just didn’t know the Cats could bring the pain like this. Beating Gonzaga was great because it was Davidson’s first tourney win in several decades, but did anyone really think the Wildcats had a realistic chance of knocking the Georgetown Hoyas? A team whose soul purpose this year was to get back to the Final Four and capture the title.

 After getting dominated the entire game, Davidson surmounted a 17-point second-half deficit with heart and moxie. They refused to concede mentally despite the overwhelming odds. Stephen Curry went off and scored 25 huge second half points to finish with 30, Davidson turned up the heat on defense and Jason Richards controlled the game with his Lens Crafters court-vision. The Wildcats responded like champions, while the Hoyas crumbled under the pressure, committing 20 turnovers and clanked 9 of 17 free throws. All-Big East center Roy Hibbert was a non-factor, finishing with a paltry 6 points and 1 rebound and Davidson cut Georgetown’s heart out. Big ups to the Cats, who proved they can stomp with the big dawgs.

 Top-Game Changing Performer- West Virginia PG Joel Mazzulla

 If West Virgina was going to beat Duke, most people would assume it would be behind future-lottery pick Joe Alexander and Alex Ruoff. True Alexander led the squad with 22 points and 11 rebounds and Ruoff hit 17 points, but the most valuable star for the Mountaineers was Joe Mazzulla.

 Head Coach Bob Huggins decision to give Mazzulla extended burn paid huge dividends. The sophomore back-up point guard spearheaded West Virginia to their third Sweet 16 in the last four years with their 73-67 triumph over #2 Duke. Mazzulla played with grittiness, poise and ferocity. Not only did the 6-2 lead guard score 13 points and drop 8 dimes, but most impressive Mazzulla collected 11 boards. Mazzulla’s gully, relentless glasswork and leadership served as the inspiration that propelled the Mountaineers to their hard-earned win.

 Most Scintillating Showstopper- Stephen Curry

 This was a no-brainer. Stephen Curry had to take this one. Davidson’s caramel cordripper may have a the face of a teenager, but he showed he’s definitely got grown man game as he busted 30 points in the second half to lead his squad to a thrilling 82-76 victory over Gonzaga. Curry was the personification of a player refusing to let his team lose. Curry, or should I say, “Stephen Bury” cause money is flat murdering the competition thus far, single-handedly willed the Wildcats to a win against the Zags. Curry electrified the Raleigh, NC with a classic shooting exhibition, drilling 8-10 triples

 The purity of Curry’s Evian-like, hair-trigger refreshing jumper is a beauty to see. Granted, Curry’s jumper is an inherent gift, because his father Eddie was one of the premiere shooters in the NBA during his playing days, but the slim balla with the phat game is so much more than simply a flamethrower. Curry can manufacture his shot off the bounce, take it to the rack and he has a mid-range game. Plus, Curry’s deceptively strong 185 pound frame enables him to snatch 5 boards a game, so dude ain’t no punk.  Making it rain is a gross understatement. Curry can make it monsoon. Dropping 35 points a night, Curry is easily the most outstanding player of the first two rounds.

 Most Dramatic Game & Clutch Game-Winner- Drake vs. Western Kentucky

 The first weekend was full of suspense thrillers. Villanova overcame a 16 point differential to upend the Clemson Tigers on Friday. San Diego registered a stunning upset over UConn. Belmont nearly pulled off a colossal shocker, suffering a one-point heartbreaking loss to Duke. Darren Collison’s high-runner off the window with 9 seconds left gave UCLA a hard-earned win over Texas A&M. Tennessee and Butler had a heavyweight slugfest Sunday, and Stanford’s Brooke Lopez drained an incredible turnaround floating behind the backboard to beat Marquette. But, hands down the weekend’s best game and most clutch game-winner had to be the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers and the Drake Bulldogs.

 Drake and Western Kentucky had everything you could want in a tourney game. Suspense, magnificent shots, clutch plays and gritty comebacks. Stephen Spillberg couldn’t have scripted a more captivating thriller than this one. This game brought more drama than a DJ Drama mixtape. There were huge momentum swings, as the Bulldogs put together a furious charge to surmount an 18 point WK lead. WK’s 101-99 win was a straight up barnburner reminiscent of the late 80s-early 90s tourney games when Arkansas, UNLV, Loyola Marymount and Duke routinely put a Benjamin on the board. Faced-paced, crowd-pleasing run n’ gun action, loaded with sensational displays of athleticism, pinpoint dime-dropping, determination, and timely, dream-crushing shots.

 The thriller also had several phenomenal individual performances. WK’S hardwood warrior, point guard Tyrone Brazelton made an unforgettable introduction to the nation, as he blazed Drake for 33 points. Drake’s Jonathan Cox was a beast, dropping 29 points and snatching 16 rebounds. And Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year Adam Emmenecker, whose game defies definition, finished with 11 points, 14 assists and 6 boards despite putting up a donut from the floor (0-10). WK and Drake also combined to sink 30 treyballs, breaking the tourney record set by West Virginia and Louisville in the 2005. The Hilltoppers’ Ty Rogers remarkably difficult 26 foot buzzer-beating trifecta with a hand in his face will go down as one of the greatest Big Dance shots of all-time.

 Simply put, this game was an off the banger classic, and emblematic of just how great college basketball can be when played the right way.