Originally Posted by
Nugget
This was a fun one to think about – best losses by Carolina in games not against Duke.
I limited it to games since I began watching in the late 70’s, ranked based on:
(i) importance of the game; then
(ii) Carolina’s performance relative to the opposition; then
(iii) upset/humiliation factor.
50 Favorite Carolina Losses (not to Duke)
(1) Kansas, 1991 NCAA Final Four (79-73)
(2) Indiana, 1984 NCAA Sweet Sixteen (72-68)
(3) Boston College, 1994 NCAA 2nd Round (75-72)
(4) Kansas, 2008 NCAA Final Four (84-66)
(5) Weber St., 1999 NCAA 1st Round (76-74) (Harold “The Show” Arceneaux!)
(6) Utah, 1998 NCAA Final Four (65-59)
(7) Indiana, 1981 National Championship (63-50)
(8) Marquette, 1977 National Championship (67-59)
(9) Arkansas, 1995 NCAA Final Four (75-68)
(10) Penn St., 2001 NCAA 2nd Round (82-74)
(11) Temple, 1988 (83-66)
(12) George Mason, 2006 NCAA 2nd Round (65-60)
(13) Georgetown, 2007 NCAA East Regional (96-84) (ot)
(14) Michigan, 1989 NCAA Sweet Sixteen (92-87)
(15) Maryland, 1986 (77-72) (ot)
(16) Texas Tech, 1996 NCAA 2nd Round (92-73)
(17) Wake Forest, 1995 ACC Tournament Final (82-80) (ot)
(18) N.C. State, 1987 ACC Tournament Final (68-67)
(19) Arizona, 1997 NCAA Final Four (66-58)
(20) Florida St., 1992 (86-74) (Cassell: “It’s like a wine and cheese crowd.”)
(21) Arkansas, 1990 NCAA Sweet Sixteen (96-73)
(22) Villanova, 1985 NCAA Mideast Regional (56-44)
(23) UMass, 1993-1994 Pre-Season NIT (91-86) (ot)
(24) Georgia, 1983 NCAA East Regional (82-77)
(25) Arizona, 1988 NCAA West Regional (70-52)
(26) Georgia Tech, 1985 ACC Tournament Final (57-54)
(27) Georgia Tech, 1993 ACC Tournament Final (77-75) (lower b/c they won NCAA)
(28) N.C. State, 1983 ACC Tournament Semis (91-84) (ot)
(29) College of Charleston (@ Charlotte), 1998-1999 (66-64)
(30) @ Georgia Tech, 1994 (89-69)
(31) Wake Forest, 2004 (119-114) (3ot)
(32) Hampton, 2001-2002 (77-69)
(33) Syracuse, 1987 NCAA East Regional (79-75)
(34) N. C. State, 1998 (86-72)
(35) @ N.C. State, 1989 (98-88)
(36) @ Georgia Tech, 1990 (102-75)
(37) @ Wake Forest, 1997 (81-57)
(38) @ N. C. State, 1991 (97-91)
(39) 2002-2003 Iona, @ MSG (65-56)
(40) @ Maryland, 1995 (86-73)
(41) @ Kentucky, 2000-2001 (93-76)
(42) @ Maryland, 2003 (96-56)
(43) @ N. C. State, 1995 (80-70)
(44) @ Maryland, 2002 (112-79)
(45) Virginia, 2010 (75-60)
(46) San Francisco, 1978 NCAA 2nd Round (68-64)
(47) Clemson, 1996 ACC Tournament, 1st Round (75-73) (Yay, Klemnop)
(48) Texas A&M, 1980 NCAA 2nd Round (78-61) (2ot)
(49) Iowa, 1989 (98-97) (Remember Raveling’s tracksuit?)
(50) Georgetown, @ Meadowlands, 1989-1990 (93-81)
Honorable Mention:
Penn, 1979 NCAA 2nd Round (72-71) (tempered because it was Black Sunday)
@ Arkansas, 1984 (65-64)
@ UCLA, 1986-1987 (89-84)
@ Wake Forest, 1993 (88-62) (downgraded because they won it all)
@ Illinois, 2002-2003 (92-65)
Gonzaga, 2006-2007 Pre-Season NIT (82-74)
@ N. C. State, 2007 (83-79)
@ Maryland, 2009 (88-85) (again, downgraded since they won the title)
@ College of Charleston, 2009-2010 (82-79) (ot)