We shouldn't be too surprised when an underdog pulls off an upset based on recent results, but it's still unexpected to see as many top teams go down as we saw Saturday.
Six of the AP's top 10 teams (No. 2 Baylor, No. 3 Kansas, No. 5 Arizona, No. 7 West Virginia, No. 8 Kentucky and No. 9 Virginia) went down on a wild day. That matches the most losses by teams in the AP's top 10 on a single day.
Some of those teams' losses were shocking as for the first time in the history of the AP poll, three top-10 teams from the Big 12 (Baylor, West Virginia and Kansas) lost to unranked opponents at home.
And this is only February!
Let's recap the day with some of the biggest winners and losers:
Winner: Syracuse's bubble hopes
Before the 2017 calendar year, Syracuse had zero wins over top-50 teams in the KenPom rankings. As a Final Four team just a season ago, there was a legitimate discussion as to whether the Orange would even make the NCAA tournament.
And while the Orange aren't totally out of the woods, it has certainly bolstered its resume of late. Especially with its 66-62 win over Virginia. It has now won four-straight games in ACC play with three wins over top-35 teams -- including two top-10 wins over Florida State and Virginia. Jim Boeheim has his team trending in the right direction, although Syracuse is likely to be underdogs in its next five games. This stretch will be season-defining whether they can slip into the middle of the madness of March.
Loser: Baylor's chance to make a move in the Big 12
It's not every day Kansas takes an L in the Big 12 at home. But when it does, if you're challenging for a conference title, you have to take advantage of it.
Baylor blew a huge opportunity to do just that in a 56-54 home loss to Kansas State. As a 7.5-point favorite over the Wildcats, the Bears dug themselves a 15-point hole in the first half. Even after outscoring the Wildcats by 13 points in the final 20 minutes, the K-State lead proved to be insurmountable. Baylor is now 7-3 in the Big 12 and blew a chance to knot things up in conference play with Kansas. That's gotta be a tough pill to swallow if you're Scott Drew.
Winner: Oregon's Pac-12 title chances
Carrying a perfect 10-0 conference record into Eugene, Sean Miller's Wildcats were hit by a freight train early against Oregon. And they were never able to recover in an embarassing 85-58 loss.
This was an Oregon win more so than an Arizona loss, though. The Ducks hit 10 first half 3-pointers to take a 38-18 lead into the break, and cruised to an easy victory. The Pac-12 is now wide open for the taking, and Oregon's win over the Wildcats was a statement it's ready to contend. The Ducks are for real.
Loser: Duke in Coach K's return
Duke continued its three-game winning streak in the ACC with a 72-64 victory over Pitt in Mike Krzyzewski's return to the sideline.
But it was anything but normal in Durham.
Against a middling Pitt team that is dead last in the ACC standings, the Blue Devils couldn't put the game away until late into the second half. It took everything they had, including a heroic Grayson Allen run late, to put the Panthers away.
Pitt deserves more respect than its getting. It has been competitive despite its standing in league play, but with Coach K's return and the streaking Blue Devils returning to Cameron Indoor Stadium, it's surprising that they weren't able to handle business until the end.
Winner: Oklahoma State bolstering its NCAA tournament resume
With six straight losses to open up Big 12 play under Brad Underwood, Oklahoma State looked dreadfully destined for a trip to the NIT -- if the Cowboys were lucky.
But five straight wins, including a tough Arkansas team in the SEC/Big 12 challenge, has the Cowboys surfing on the bubble and sliding in the right direction.
Before Saturday, OSU's biggest win was on the road against Wichita State. That changed with an 82-75 win over No. 7 West Virginia. And it's exactly what OSU needed to feel a little more confident with a difficult stretch to end the season. The Cowboys may be the hottest team in the conference right now with a tilt against No. 2 Baylor on tap Wednesday in Stillwater.
Loser: Arizona's chance to distance itself in the Pac-12
With a statement win over UCLA in mid-January, Arizona got its star Allonzo Trier back in the fold and looked next to unbeatable as the Bruins brought a spotless conference record into Saturday.
Oregon ripped the Wildcats to pieces in Eugene, though, and consider it an opportunity missed.
Dana Altman's team has been difficult to beat at home, but a 27-point loss wasn't what anyone anticipated from Arizona. Now it's Oregon - not Arizona - who is the team to beat in the Pac-12.
Winner: Purdue's closing strength
As Matt Norlander wrote earlier this week, Maryland has quietly fooled everyone this season and could be a sneaky Final Four contender. The Terrapins have nver won 20 of its first 22 games until this season. Since star point guard Melo Trimble arrived, the Terps were 29-6 in games decided by six points or fewer.
And Purdue made that 29-7 with a 73-72 win over Maryland on its home floor. Strangely enough, the Terps haven't lost on a neutral floor or on the road this season. But the Boilermakers dropped Maryland to 20-3 -- and handed them its third home loss of the year by knocking down two clutch free-throws with two seconds left in the game. Purdue held Maryland without a field goal for the final 7:37 of the game.
Loser: That's a bad loss for Arkansas
Losers of 13-straight games, Missouri was hobbling into its home game with Arkansas, so it should have been another easy win for the Razorbacks as they look to improve their NCAA tournament resume.
Yet Arkansas inexplicably laid an egg and blew it, losing 83-78. The game wouldn't have meant much for its tournament resume had Arkansas won -- but it's a black mark on the resume now. A really bad loss for Mike Anderson's team as the Razorbacks head for the home stretch. It could come back to haunt them on Selection Sunday.
Winner: South Carolina's SEC title hopes
Kentucky gets the pub in the SEC -- but it's South Carolina who is perhaps performing at perhaps the highest level. With its 77-75 win over Georgia, the Gamecocks advanced to 9-1 in SEC play and are favored to win each of its games in the regular season except a Feb. 21 showdown with Florida. For a team that finished 11-7 in SEC play a season ago, that would be vast improvement for Frank Martin's team. Saturday's closely contested win over the Bulldogs is a step in the right direction toward an SEC title.