Biggest comeback wins in men’s NCAA tournament history for March Madness

Here’s a look at the biggest comeback wins in men’s NCAA tournament history.

BYU’s rally from down 25 to Iona in the 2012 First Four is the largest comeback in March Madness, with the Cougars winning 78-72 after falling behind 49-24. In all, there have been 21 tournament games where the winning team trailed by at least 15 points. That includes two instances in the 2025 tournament, with Texas Tech topping Arkansas in the Sweet 16 and Arizona defeating Oregon in the second round.

Below, find a table of all the biggest March Madness comeback wins.

25 points — (14) BYU def. No. (14) Iona 78-72 in the 2012 First Four

BYU holds the record as the largest comeback win in NCAA tournament history, rallying from a 25-point deficit with 6:12 remaining in the first half (49-24).

Iona ended up scoring 55 points in the opening half, taking a 15-point lead into the break — even after going scoreless for more than four minutes to close the half. But the Cougars outscored the Gaels 38-17 in the second half to stun Iona.

Noah Hartsock scored 23 points on 14 shots to spark the rally.

22 points — (1) Duke def. (3) Maryland 95-84 in the 2001 Final Four

These teams met four times in the 2000-01 season, with the road team winning the first two outings before Duke captured the showdown in the ACC tournament. Then, in the Final Four, after falling behind by as many as 22 points at 39-17 with 6:37 to go in the first half, the Blue Devils trimmed the deficit to 49-38 at the half.

Duke secured the stunning win by scoring 57 points in the second half. Shane Battier and Jason Williams combined for 48 points as the Blue Devils surged en route to the title game — where they beat Arizona, 82-72.

22 points — (7) Nevada def. (2) Cincinnati 75-73 in the 2018 second round

Nevada’s win is still the top mark for biggest second half comeback win, as the Wolf Pack trailed 65-43 with only 11:37 to play in the game and pulled off the shocker to reach the Sweet 16 for the second time in program history.

Cody Martin had a busy day with 25 points, seven assists and six rebounds to lead an offense that had only two turnovers all game. His twin brother Caleb Martin tied the game at 73 on a 3-pointer inside a minute to play to set the stage for Josh Hall’s winning shot on his offensive rebound.

20 points — (4) Louisville def. (7) West Virginia 93-85 (OT) in the 2005 Elite Eight

Kevin Pittsnogle scored 25 points and drilled six 3-pointers as West Virginia led 38-18 with 2:50 remaining in the first half, but Louisville scored 50 points in the second half and doubled the Mountaineers’ OT production (16-8) to advance to the Final Four.

Larry O’Bannon scored 24 points and Taquan Dean added 23, with Juan Palacios and Francisco Garcia combining for 26 more points on only 14 shots. West Virginia hit 18 3-pointers to Louisville’s 11, but the Cardinals finished plus-15 on rebounds.

20 points — (1) Ohio State def. (5) Tennessee 85-84 in the 2007 Sweet 16

Yet again, Ohio State had a dramatic win. After escaping Xavier in the second round, the Buckeyes had an even more steep hill to climb in the regional semifinals, needing to overcome a 49-29 deficit with 0:02 seconds in the first half.

A late David Lighty and-1 cut the gap to 17 at the half to jumpstart Ohio State’s huge 53-point offensive burst in the second. Star Greg Oden battled foul trouble throughout the game, though the Buckeyes got 25 points from Ron Lewis, who hit the clutch 3-pointer against Xavier to force OT in the previous game.

Ohio State didn’t stop winning until losing to Florida in the national title game.

Here’s the full list of comebacks of at least 15 points:

Deficit (SCORE)
Time
Winning team
Losing team
FINAL SCORE
Round

25(49-24)
6:12 left in 1st half
(14) BYU
(14) Iona
78-72
2012 First Four

22(39-17)
6:37 left in 1st half
(1) Duke
(3) Maryland
95-84
2001 Final Four

22(65-43)
11:37 left in 2nd half
(7) Nevada
(2) Cincinnati
75-73
2018 second round

20(38-18)
2:50 left in 1st half
(4) Louisville
(7) West Virginia
93-85 (OT)
2005 Elite Eight

20(49-29)
0:02 left in 1st half
(1) Ohio State
(5) Tennessee
85-84
2007 Sweet 16

18(26-8)
8:36 left in 1st half
(3) Seton Hall
(2) Duke
95-78
1989 Final Four

17(37-20)
3:18 left in 1st half
(2) UCLA
(3) Gonzaga
73-71
2006 Sweet 16

17(49-32)
0:35 left in 1st half
(11) Ole Miss
(11) BYU
94-90
2015 First Four

17(46-29)
18:30 left in 2nd half
(11) USC
(11) Providence
75-71
2017 First Four

17(56-39)
7:36 left in 2nd half
(7) Dayton
(10) Nevada
63-60
2024 first round

16(53-37)
4:52 left in 2nd half
(16) Western Kentucky
(16) Mississippi Valley State
59-58
2012 First Four

16(42-26)
18:28 left in 2nd half
(8) NC State
(9) LSU
66-65
2015 first round

16(37-21)
18:52 left in 2nd half
(10) Syracuse
(1) Virginia
68-62
2016 Elite Eight

16(38-22)
2:17 left in 1st half
(1) Kansas
(8) North Carolina
72-69
2022 National Championship

16(61-45)
9:29 left in 2nd half
(3) Texas Tech
(10) Arkansas
85-83 (OT)
2025 Sweet 16

15(45-30)
14 left in 2nd half
Loyola Chicago
Cincinnati
60-58 (OT)
1963 National Championship

15(75-60)
4:04 left in 2nd half
(1) Illinois
(3) Arizona
90-89 (OT)
2005 Elite Eight

15(39-24)
16:22 left in 2nd half
(3) Texas A&M
(11) UNI
92-88 (2OT)
2016 second round

15(26-11)
7:02 left in 1st half
(5) Virginia
(12) UNC Wilmington
76-71
2017 first round

15(28-13)
4:45 left in 1st half
(11) Michigan
(6) Colorado State
75-63
2022 first round

15(19-4)
14:18 left in 1st half
(4) Arizona
(5) Oregon
87-83
2025 second round