It was a preposterous matchup on paper. Big, bad Georgetown, loaded with McDonald’s All-Americans and future N B A players, against tiny Davidson, the liberal arts college of 1,700 students with a roster made up of players deemed too unskilled, too slow, or too small to play for a big-name school. The teams’ star players underscored the gulf between them: Georgetown’s 7-foot-2-inch behemoth Roy Hibbert vs. Davidson’s baby-faced Stephen Curry, listed as 6 feet and 180 pounds.

But perhaps most telling was the little graphic at the bottom of the screen showing the score and the abbreviations for each team. When the final buzzer sounded, it read: DAVID 74, GTOWN 70

Yes, Davidson was, in every sense, the David of this battle, and Georgetown the Goliath. The Wildcats’ ability to chop down their much bigger foes illustrated how a seemingly undermanned mid-major team can take down a major conference opponent, even when the big guys seem to have an insurmountable edge in pedigree. In scoring 30 points to knock out the Hoyas — 25 in the second half — Curry showed how a player overlooked by all the big schools could still take over on the biggest stage. During the regular season, Davidson played the likes of North Carolina, Duke, and UCLA, nearly beating all of them. The Wildcats came closest against North Carolina, leading for much of the second half before losing by four. Afterward, a reporter asked North Carolina Coach Roy Williams about Curry, the little assassin who rang up 24 points and nearly beat the Heels by himself. Williams shook his head, lamenting his decision not to recruit Curry. At least he could take comfort in the fact that none of Carolina’s ACC rivals did either; nor did the beasts of the Big East, the powers of the Pac-10, or anyone else. Despite his impressive bloodlines (his dad Dell was a prolific scorer in the NBA for 16 years), bigger schools looked at Curry’s slight frame and figured he wasn’t cut out to play for a major school. If they even looked.

While the nation’s basketball factories go after megastars like Greg Oden, Kevin Durant, and Kevin Love — players likely to head to the NBA after just one season — savvy mid-major schools can mine for players who have lesser reputations, but can still play the game. Curry fits that role perfectly for Davidson. Horizon League upstart Butler, which took SEC juggernaut Tennessee to overtime before bowing out yesterday, had its own players of that ilk in graduating senior A.J. Graves and backcourt mate Mike Green. Though Gonzaga has established itself as a mid-major school with high-major results, it still derives much of its success from recruiting below-the-radar players, too. Davidson’s first-round win over Gonzaga, in which Curry sprang for an obscene 40 points, signified the Wildcats’ arrival as a mid-major team that could play with anyone. Their win over Georgetown etched it in stone.

Of course, having one player who can lead the way isn’t enough. Davidson Coach Bob McKillop went to Illinois to grab senior point guard Jason Richards. Four years later, Richards led the nation in assists while serving as Curry’s running mate, leaving the Illini, Hoosiers, and other Big 10 powers to wonder how they let him get away. Realizing he still needed to do more to outfox the big guys, McKillop reached well beyond American borders to fill his roster. Nominal big man Andrew Lovedale, the man who helped the Wildcats hold their own against a legion of big men from Gonzaga and especially Georgetown, hails from Nigeria. Swingmen Max Paulhus Gosselin and Will Archambault are natives of Quebec. Reserve forward Boris Meno came from France. Using that mishmash of talent, McKillop has taught a cohesive system to his players, preaching crisp screens, sharp cuts, and plenty of movement on offense to get open shots, good positioning, and a team effort on defense.

Having a strong system has been the key to other mid-major teams finding success. When Butler Coach Todd Lickliter bolted to Iowa after a 131–61 record and a 2007 Sweet 16 berth, his young assistant Brad Stevens took over and made few changes, helping the Bulldogs get back to the big dance and nearly play into the regionals again. When Dan Monson left Gonzaga after the Zags’ wildly successful 1998–99 season, top assistant Mark Few took over and built on that success, taking elements of Monson’s system, adding a few tweaks, and making Gonzaga an even bigger winner. Bill Grier would’ve probably carried on that winning tradition had he stayed on as an assistant under Few and eventually risen to the head coaching job. Instead he took the Gonzaga system with him to San Diego, guiding the Toreros to an NCAA tournament bid and a shocking first-round upset of Connecticut on Friday.

Still, a lot of things have to go right to spring an upset as big as Davidson’s stirring win over Georgetown. So loaded were the Hoyas that the man with the ball in his hands down the stretch was freshman Chris Wright, a player who missed 18 games this season due to injury, was nearly forgotten, then made it back before the Big East Tournament. Oh yeah, he was another McDonald’s All-American. The loaded Hoyas slowed down Curry for a while, holding him to just five points in the first half and making it tough for him to get off clean looks from behind the 3-point line.

But like his team, Curry showed he could be resourceful when it mattered most. Trailing by 17 points early in the second half, Curry started finding creative ways to score. The Wildcats chipped the lead all the way down to one with less than five minutes left. Then with a Hoya defender overplaying him out to the 3-point line, Curry cut backdoor, just in time to receive a sizzling pass from Richards. Curry hit the layup and drew the foul, giving Davidson the lead. After Georgetown came down and tied on two free throws from freshman Austin Freeman (another McDonald’s All-American), Curry executed the play of the day. Again hounded by pressure defense, Curry drove to the hoop and tossed in a scoop shot that made Billy Packer’s heart grow three sizes that day.

When Curry came back the next possession and nailed a 3-pointer, Davidson fans could sense that the Wildcats were on their way to slaying the giant. And they did.

Mr. Keri (jonahkeri@gmail.com) is a writer for ESPN.com’s Page 2.