Jovenitti: Top 10 upsets in men’s college basketball so far

In the words of the famous college basketball commentator Dick Vitale, this week was “upset… In the words of the famous college basketball commentator Dick Vitale, this week was “upset city, baby!”

Top-10 men’s college basketball teams Pitt, Duke, Connecticut, Villanova, Syracuse, BYU and San Diego State all lost. And let’s face it — that’s why we all watch college basketball. Besides cheering for your own team, you watch to see if Wyoming can maybe pull off the upset over a perennial top-10 power.

So in the spirit of upsets, here are the top 10 upsets of the 2010-11 season so far.

10. Stetson 89, Wake Forest 79. This was one of the first upsets of the year, and it was cute at the time. But it was actually a warning sign of just how bad the ACC would be. The Demon Deacons were the first ACC team to be upset by a non-Big Six conference team, but they certainly weren’t the last. Boston College lost to Yale and Rhode Island, and Georgia Tech lost to Kennesaw State. Big East fans should rub it in this year while they can, because we can’t expect the ACC to be this awful for very long.

9. Temple 68, Georgetown 65. This was a huge win for the Owls. Granted, it wasn’t that big of a surprise for Temple. The Owls typically beat one top-10 team per year. But it was a major home loss for Georgetown, as the Hoyas allowed Ramone Moore to put up 30 points for the Owls. Luckily for Georgetown, the Hoyas have bounced back, just besting Villanova in Philadelphia.

8. Tennessee losing to everyone. Tennessee truly looked like a title contender at the beginning of the year. The Volunteers won their first 10 games, including a big win over Pitt. But then Tennessee went on a losing spree — falling to Oakland, Charlotte and Charleston. The first loss was shocking and excited the college basketball world, but the next several losses just left everyone shaking their heads at the Vols.

7. Penn State 66, Michigan State 62. The Spartans were ranked No. 2 early in the season, but a brutal schedule caused Tom Izzo’s team to lose several games early on. All of these losses were to ranked teams, though, so they were all understandable. But when the Spartans fell to Penn State in Happy Valley, it led everyone to think, “Maybe they’re just not very good.”

6. New Mexico 86, BYU 77. Brigham Young was a top-10 team heading into the week. The Cougars knocked off previously undefeated No. 4 San Diego State on Wednesday. But then they traveled to New Mexico and suffered a huge let-down at the hands of the Lobos.

5. Providence 83, Villanova 68. Providence has become quite the giant-killer lately. The Friars have never been that great, and so they rarely contend for an NCAA Tournament spot — but somehow they find a way to knock off a quality, ranked team every year. Two years ago, the Friars beat No. 1 Pitt, and last year they beat No. 18 Connecticut. This year they beat No. 8 Villanova, right after taking down No. 19 Louisville.

4. Seton Hall 90, Syracuse 68. Syracuse was off to its best start in years — the Orange were 18-0 before they fell to Pitt two weeks ago. But the loss at the Pete sent the Orange into a skid, and they have now lost four straight. Losses to Pitt, Villanova and Marquette are understandable, but Syracuse getting crushed at home by Seton Hall made for the biggest upset in Big East play so far.

3. Illinois-Chicago 57, Illinois 54. This was the ultimate story of a little brother finally besting his big brother. Prior to the Flames’ victory over the Illini, Illinois-Chicago had only defeated Illinois once — 21 years ago. The Flames came back from eight points down in the second half to stun the 12th-ranked Illini.

2. St. John’s 93, Duke 78. The Red Storm handed the Blue Devils their second loss of the season, ending a week where No. 2, No. 3, No. 4 and No. 5 in the rankings all lost. Prior to the season, St. John’s was many experts’ sleeper pick for a Tournament bid. But after losing to St. Bonaventure, St. Mary’s and Fordham, the Red Storm fell off the radar.

Now St. John’s is back on the map, as the win over Duke marked the Red Storm’s third victory over a top-10 team this year. It also ignited a lot of conference debates. It’s tough to judge conferences based on one game, but it’s also tough not to notice when the Big East’s 11th-place team crushes the ACC’s best.

1. Marshall 75, West Virginia 71. This was simply the biggest feel-good upset of the year. Perhaps this is just my Pitt bias, but the Thundering Herd are always in the Mountaineers’ shadow — both in football and basketball. And after Marshall’s football team came oh-so-close to knocking off West Virginia, it was nice to see the Thundering Herd finally pull one off.

And oh yeah, Marhall’s head coach — Pitt’s former assistant coach Tom Herrion — got a bit of revenge on the Mountaineers. If you remember last year, when WVU defeated the Panthers in Morgantown, an unruly crowd got so out of control that Herrion was hit in the face with a coin. WVU, meet karma.