The NCAA Tournament will make its return to Philadelphia for the first time since 2022 when Xfinity Mobile Arena hosts first- and second-round games on Friday and Sunday..
Here’s a look back at the top 10 moments from past NCAA Tournament games that were played in Philly:
No. 10: Big 5 tournament takeover
The Palestra last hosted an NCAA Tournament game in 1984, but Penn’s venerable gym used to be a regular site for postseason play.
When it hosted first-round games in 1978, Penn, Villanova, and La Salle were all there to play. The Quakers beat St. Bonaventure, 92-83, in their first-round matchup behind 37 points from Keven McDonald. Rollie Massimino’s Villanova team outpaced the Explorers, 103-97, despite a 35-point outing from Michael Brooks.
Penn lost to Duke in the East Regional semifinals, but Villanova pulled a 61-60 upset of Bob Knight’s Indiana team to reach the East Regional final in Massimino’s first trip to the tournament.
No. 9: The Fighting Irish stun Wisconsin
Down a point with 19.3 seconds remaining in the 2016 East Regional semifinal at the Wells Fargo Center, No. 6 seed Notre Dame came back to beat Wisconsin, 61-56.
The Fighting Irish pressured Wisconsin into a turnover off an inbounds pass with less than a minute to go, allowing Demetrious Jackson to score a layup that put Notre Dame up, 57-56, with 14.4 seconds to go.
Wisconsin’s Bronson Koenig drove the length of the court to the basket on the ensuing possession, but his layup attempt was too strong. After two Notre Dame free throws, Jackson came up with a steal to seal Notre Dame’s second consecutive trip to the Elite Eight.
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No. 8: Iowa halts the Hoyas
In the 1980 East Regional final at the Spectrum, No. 5 seed Iowa booked its third trip to the Final Four in program history with an 81-80 win over No. 3 seed Georgetown.
The score was tied at 78 when Steve Waite drove for an and-one layup with five seconds to go. The junior center converted the free throw, giving the Hawkeyes an 81-78 lead.
John Thompson’s Hoyas tipped in a shot at the buzzer but fell just short. The Hawkeyes advanced to the Final Four, where they lost to the eventual champion, Louisville.
No. 7: Tar Heels advance again
No program has made more trips to the Final Four than North Carolina, which has played in 21 since its first appearance in 1946.
The Tar Heels punched their 19th ticket to the Final Four in 2016 with an 88-74 win over Notre Dame at the Wells Fargo Center. Brice Johnson scored 25 points as the top-seeded Tar Heels took down the sixth-seeded Irish.
North Carolina beat Syracuse in the Final Four but lost to Villanova in the 2016 national championship game after Kris Jenkins hit a buzzer-beating three-pointer.
No. 6: Explorers march through Philly
La Salle’s run to the 1954 national title made a stop at the Palestra, as the Explorers beat North Carolina State and Navy to advance to the Final Four.
Tom Gola, the Explorers’ All-American forward, scored 26 points and grabbed 26 rebounds in the team’s 88-81 win over the Wolfpack. He followed that with a 22-point, 24-rebound performance in a 64-48 win over Navy.
The Explorers went on to beat Penn State and Bradley to claim the program’s lone national title in their first trip to the Final Four.
No. 5: Hoosier Heaven, Part 1
Knight won three national titles during his 23 seasons at Indiana. He captured two of them at the Spectrum.
Knight’s first championship, in the 1976 tournament, is the more notable of the two, but he won his second in 1981. Once it reached the Final Four, Indiana produced two blowouts in Philly.
The first was a 67-49 win over Louisiana State in the national semifinals and the second was a 63-50 win over North Carolina to claim the school’s fourth national title, the second under Knight.
Isiah Thomas scored 23 points for the Hoosiers in the championship game and was named the Most Outstanding Player of the 1981 NCAA Tournament.
No. 4: Florida Gulf Coast becomes ‘Dunk City’
Florida Gulf Coast became the first No. 15 seed to advance to the Sweet 16 when it pulled back-to-back upsets in the first and second rounds of the 2013 tournament at the Wells Fargo Center.
Behind a high-flying style of play that earned it the nickname “Dunk City,” FGCU upset second-seeded Georgetown, 78-68, in the first round. The Eagles then beat seventh-seeded San Diego State to book their first trip to the Sweet 16 in their sixth season as a Division I program.
The Eagles’ run ended with a 62-50 loss to Florida in the South Regional semifinal.
No. 3: Peacocks push past Purdue
Less than a decade after Florida Gulf Coast made history as a No. 15 seed at the Wells Fargo Center, St. Peter’s outdid the Eagles in the same building.
The 15th-seeded Peacocks upset No. 3 seed Purdue at the Wells Fargo Center in a 2022 East Regional semifinal. The Peacocks were the first No. 15 seed to advance to the Elite Eight in tournament history.
Doug Edert, who scored 20 points in the Peacocks’ first-round upset of No. 2 seed Kentucky, hit two free throws with 4.1 seconds remaining to seal St. Peter’s upset of Purdue.
The Peacocks lost to North Carolina in the Elite Eight.
No. 2: Hoosier Heaven, Part 2
As Indiana entered the Spectrum for the 1976 Final Four, it needed two more wins to claim its third title in program history and complete an undefeated season.
Knight’s team won both games, beating UCLA by 14 in the national semifinal and routing Michigan, 86-68, in the title game behind 26 points from Naismith Player of the Year Scott May.
Indiana’s wins at the Spectrum made it the seventh undefeated national champion in Division I men’s basketball, a feat no team has accomplished since.
No. 1: Laettner hits ‘the shot’
Christian Laettner’s overtime buzzer beater to defeat Rick Pitino’s Kentucky at the Spectrum in the 1992 East Regional final is among the most iconic moments in college basketball history.
No. 2 seed Kentucky pushed the top-seeded Blue Devils to overtime, and Sean Woods hit a runner in the lane over Laettner to put the Wildcats up by one with 2.1 seconds remaining.
After a timeout, Grant Hill inbounded the ball from the baseline, heaving a pass to Laettner at the Duke foul line. With his back to the basket, Laettner dribbled once, turned, and hit a buzzer-beating fadeaway jumper that gave Duke a 104-103 win.
Mike Krzyzewski’s team went on to win its second consecutive national championship, beating Michigan, 71-51, in the title game.