All it takes is one March Madness game for a player to stamp their name into NCAA tournament lore forever.
Does this year’s tourney have an Ali Farokhmanesh or a Harold Arceneaux in its midst? How about a Bryce Drew or even, dare we say … a Stephen Curry? All it takes is one freak performance or a buzzer-beater to become a college basketball legend.
Kentucky’s Otega Oweh made sure he never has to buy himself a drink in Lexington again with a buzzer-beating heave in a thrilling Wildcats win over Santa Clara in the first round of the tournament on Friday. And that shot only accounted for three of his 35 points in the game.
Draft your Yahoo Fantasy Baseball team for the 2026 MLB Season
On the women’s side, there haven’t been too many upsets but the stars are showing out with some monster performances. Olivia Miles cobbled together an all-time stat line on Friday with 12 points, 14 assists and 16 rebounds in TCU’s opening-round win. She’s the third player to record multiple triple-doubles in the NCAA tourney, alongside Oregon’s Sabrina Ionescu and Stanford’s Nicole Powell.
Otega Oweh is going to be an all-time Kentucky fan favorite after his heroics on Friday. (Jeff Curry-Imagn Images) (IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect / REUTERS)
Who has the most points in a single game in this year’s NCAA tournaments?
Men’s tournament top scorers
Darius Acuff Jr., Arkansas: 36 points
The Razorbacks got all they could handle from 12th-seeded High Point in the second round, but Acuff’s brilliance was a big reason why Arkansas won 94-88 to advance to the Sweet 16. He added a rebound and six assists to go with his scoring.
Otega Oweh, Kentucky: 35 points
As mentioned above, Oweh hit one of the best NCAA tournament buzzer-beaters you’ll see to force overtime in the No. 7 Wildcats’ 89-84 win over No. 10 Santa Clara. The senior guard had eight rebounds and seven assists on top of it.
AJ Dybantsa, BYU: 35 points
The star BYU freshman looked every bit like a player who could be taken No. 1 in the 2026 NBA Draft, scoring 35 points and taking over for stretches for the Cougars in their first-round game against Texas. The problem was that he didn’t have any help and BYU fell, 79-71.
Labaron Philon, Alabama: 35 points
The scoring load just got to be too much for Labaron Philon in Alabama's Sweet 16 matchup against No. 1 Michigan. With No. 2 scorer Aden Holloway still sidelined for an off-court matter, Philon did what he could with 35 points on 10-for-21 shooting (6-for-14 from behind the arc). But the Wolverines pulled away for an easy win.
Terrence Hill Jr., VCU: 34 points
The spritely guard came off the bench and delivered an all-timer for the Rams in their upset win over No. 6 UNC on Thursday. Not only did he have 34 points, he shot 7 of 10 from behind the arc and also pitched in five rebounds and five assists.
Tarris Reed Jr., UConn: 31 points
Speaking of all-time tourney outings, Reed scored 31 points on 12-for-15 shooting, but that wasn't even close to the most impressive part of his night. The senior center also had a staggering 27 rebounds — and he would’ve had a double-double with just offensive rebounds (11).
Rob Martin, High Point: 30 points
Shout out to Martin and his No. 12 Panthers, who pushed No. 4 Arkansas to the brink before suffering a 94-88 loss in the second round. Martin also played a big role in High Point’s first-round upset win over No. 5 Wisconsin.
Jeremiah Wilkinson, Georgia: 30 points
No. 8 Georgia got steamrolled by No. 9 Saint Louis in the first round of the tournament, but nobody can blame Wilkinson for it. The sophomore guard came off the bench and dropped a 30-piece with seven 3-pointers.
Women’s tournament top performers
Jaloni Cambridge, Ohio State: 41 points
The Buckeyes fell to No. 6 Notre Dame in the second round of the tournament, but Cambridge did everything in her power to win it for OSU. The sophomore guard had 41 on 13-for-25 shooting with five treys and seven rebounds. She turned up the volume late when Ohio State was trying to make a comeback too, scoring 28 of her 41 in the third and fourth quarters.
Madison Booker, Texas: 40 points
Booker led the Longhorns into the Sweet 16 with a dominating 100-58 victory over the Oregon Ducks. She made 14-of-21 shots and 10-of-11 free throws to finish with her career-high in scoring. Booker’s previous career high of 31 points came two weeks earlier in the SEC tournament.
Audi Crooks, Iowa State: 37 points
Crooks was a dominant force for the No. 8 Cyclones, but much like the regular season, they struggled to find scoring elsewhere in a 72-63 loss to No. 9 Syracuse. Crooks shot 17 of 25 from the field and the rest of the Iowa State team was just 9 of 42.
Taryn Barbot, Charleston: 36 points
The Cougars couldn't quite pull the upset on No. 3 Duke, but it wasn't for lack of trying on Barbot's behalf. She nailed six 3-pointers and went 14 for 16 from the free-throw line in the losing effort.
Lauren Betts, UCLA: 35 points
Playing the final game of her All-American career in front of the home fans at Pauley Pavilion, Betts dominated Oklahoma State, finishing with a career-best in scoring in the second round of the NCAA tournament. She made 15 of her 19 shots and 5 of 7 free throws to go along with 9 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal and 1 block.
Azzi Fudd, UConn: 34 points
Last year’s Final Four Most Outstanding Player had one of her best games ever in what’s going to be her final one at Gampel Pavilion in Storrs, Connecticut. The senior guard torched Syracuse for 34 points (tying a career high) and went 8-for-11 shooting from behind the arc. She scored 26 of her points in the first two quarters and didn’t play a second of the fourth in the Huskies’ 53-point rout.
Hannah Hidalgo, Notre Dame: 31 points
The Energizer battery broke the single-season steals record in the first quarter, and that was just the start of her day. Hidalgo then led the Fighting Irish to a Sweet 16 upset win over No. 2 Vanderbilt with this monster stat line: 31 points, 11 rebounds, 10 steals and 7 assists. She also came through in the clutch after the Commodores had rallied back to take the lead in the closing minutes. She nabbed a steal, finished at the rim on the other end with an and-1, and then found teammate Cassandre Prosper for what turned out to be the winning bucket.
Jazzy Davidson, USC: 31 points
Playing in her NCAA tournament debut, Davidson didn't hesitate in pulling the trigger. In addition to the 31 points, the do-it-all freshman had 6 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 steals for the Trojans in their win over No. 9 Clemson.
Mikayla Blakes, Vanderbilt: 30 points
The All-American had 23 of her 30 points by halftime of the Commodores' rout of No. 15 High Point and added five assists. She was efficient too, making 11 of her 16 shots. Blakes is the nation's scoring leader, averaging 27 points a game.
Avery Howell, Washington: 30 points
The No. 6 seed Huskies got past South Dakota State in the first round and Howell's long-range prowess was a big reason why. She nailed seven treys and had nine rebounds in the game.
Zamareya Jones, NC State: 30 points
The Wolfpack hounded Tennessee on Friday night and Jones was a menace on both the offensive and defensive sides of the court. She had five steals along with the 30 points, and went 9-for-15 shooting from the floor in a 76-61 win.
