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March Madness

Kansas State is the biggest villain of March Madness after knocking out UMBC

Kansas State Wildcats forward Xavier Sneed (20) reacts during the second half against the UMBC Retrievers in the second round of the 2018 NCAA Tournament at Spectrum Center.

Kansas Jayhawks fans won't be the only college basketball fans to loathe the purple of Kansas State this week. 

The ninth-seeded Wildcats sent home the NCAA tournament's most likable Cinderella on Sunday, just two days after No. 16 seed Maryland Baltimore County pulled off the biggest upset in NCAA tournament history — sending No. 1 overall seed Virginia home Friday as the first No. 16 to beat a No. 1, and doing so with a 20-point cushion. 

Some of the most memorable upsets in March Madness history don't necessarily equate to Sweet 16, Elite Eight or Final Four trips. But UMBC's upset of Virginia was so captivating that whichever team sent them home was going to become the villain of this year's tournament. And that's especially the case since Kansas State was 1.) a beatable No. 9 seed and 2.) a second-round foe instead of an athletically overpowering opponent in the Sweet 16. 

GAME STORY:Kansas State knocks out No. 16 seed UMBC

POSITIVE VIBES:Basketball world congratulates UMBC

IT'S BRACKET MADNESS: Enter USA TODAY's NCAA tournament bracket contest for a chance at $1 million prize.

Kansas State's win doesn't take away from UMBC's historic upset. But it does bring the excitement level down a few notches — officially ending the Retrievers' short-lived Cinderella run. 

What's more is how determined and gritty UMBC was playing in the game's final minutes, diving after loose balls and doing everything in their repertoire to muster up some of the same gust of moxie that made the Retrievers' offense so potent in the stunning upset over the nation's best defensive team. But in the end, there was just 30% shooting from the field and 27% from three-point land. The magic was gone, and KSU was the evil power conference team to play schoolyard bully. 

College basketball fans will mourn the Big Dance's losses of top scorer Jairus Lyles, 5-8 point guard K.J. Maura and whizkid forward Joe Sherburne. But they leave with their heads held high, and Kansas State goes to the Sweet 16 in unbelievably unexpected fashion (who could have predicted the South Region's results?). 

Coach Bruce Weber and Kansas State are a fine team, a middling Big 12 team that fought its way off the NCAA tournament bubble and earned an impressive first-round win over Creighton to earn its shot against UMBC. But it's safe to say the Wildcats won't bring the same type of spotlight as UMBC would have in Atlanta. Kansas State will be another Sweet 16 team there, and one with a legitimate shot of upsetting a thriving Kentucky team. 

But for right now, with the Cinderella dust wearing off, Kansas State has been cast as this March's biggest villain. 

HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE NCAA TOURNAMENT'S SECOND ROUND

 

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