Starting with the Men’s tournament on Thursday, highlighting the four-game slate
No. 6 BYU vs. No. 2 Alabama / East Region (Mar. 27, 7:09 PM on CBS)
One of the partial Cinderellas of March Madness, the sixth seed BYU, faces offensive powerhouse two-seed Alabama. Eventually losing to the Big 12 champions, Houston, in the conference tournament, the Cougars were given a tough road to get where they are now. First-year coach Kevin Young, junior standout Richie Saunders, and the rest of the Cougs defeated No. 11 seed VCU and then upset third-seeded Wisconsin in the second round.
Across the court, the Crimson Tide have struggled in their opening games. Although scoring enough with their offense, they tend to give up runs a lot, which could make or break a game. They defeated No. 15 seed Robert Morris and seventh seed Saint Mary’s to advance to their third straight Sweet 16.
My Prediction: Alabama
No. 4 Maryland vs. No. 1 Florida / West Region (Mar. 27 – 7:39 PM on TBS/TruTV)
The Crab Five against the ascending Gators has everyone on their toes. It is one of the biggest matchups of the Sweet 16. Both Maryland (first Sweet 16 since 2016) and Florida (first Sweet 16 since 2017) are back to their old days of being powerhouses. The Gators being one of the deepest teams in the country is only one of many positives of this team.
A second-round game against the defending two-time champs UConn was scary, and the game was a must-watch down the stretch. A win against the Huskies is a morale booster for the team down the road, dealing with late-game situations like that.
The story coming out of the Big Ten was the resurgence of Maryland. Kevin Willard built a starting lineup that can match up with anyone. The phenom freshman Derik Queen headlines the Crab Five. Queen was the savior in round two, beating the buzzer and earning the Terps a win for a change after suffering multiple losses at the buzzer this season.
My Prediction: Florida
No. 4 Arizona vs. No. 1 Duke / East Region (Mar. 27 – 9:39 PM on CBS)
A rematch from the regular season sets up as the Blue Devils go against a familiar foe in the Wildcats. Caleb Love has a long history against Duke, playing a significant role at rival UNC for three years and in his second year at Arizona. Love has a 6-3 record against the Blue Devils, including big wins in the Final Four and Coach K’s last game.
Duke walked into Tucson and walked out with a 69-55 win over the Wildcats in November. Love contributed eight points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, three turnovers and shot 3-13 from the field. Duke eased through the first two rounds, while Arizona’s chances of going home came down to the wire against Oregon.
An almost healthy Duke squad, headlined by Flagg, is on their first real test of the tournament. This will definitely be one of the more physical games of the tournament, with a lot of trash talk and bad blood between Love and the Blue Devils.
My Prediction: Duke
No. 10 Arkansas vs. No. 3 Texas Tech / West Region (Mar. 27 – 10:09 PM on TBS/TruTV)
The only double-digit seed left, the Cinderella of the tournament, taking down Pitino and the Johnnies has the Arkansas faithful jumping. After a rough start, the Razorbacks bounced back in the second half of the season, including some big wins, which boosted their resume for the tournament. A historic opening matchup in the round of 64 pitted seven-seed Kansas against 10-seeded Arkansas. Self vs. Calipari, with all the history behind these two and what they have done for the game, everyone knew this game would be must-see TV.
Arkansas’s run continued on defeating the resurgence and title favorites St. John’s in the second round. Another coaching battle between familiar foes, Pitino and Cal. Big news for Razorback fans: Adou Theiro will be available. Calipari and company kept on dancing but stumbled on the red hot Red Raiders.
Back-to-back NCAA tournament appearances for second-year coach Grant McCasland and Texas Tech. This looks like one of the best Red Raider teams in a while, possibly since the 2019 championship team that lost to Virginia in the final. Impact transfer JT Toppin highlights the teams, along with several other key additions that have formed well down in Lubbock. Coming off an impressive win against an upset, a happy Drake team has Texas Tech looking to get to the Elite 8 under new coaching and an incredible roster.
My Prediction: Arkansas
Friday’s slate of games includes overall one-seed Auburn and round three of UK/UT
No. 6 Ole Miss vs. No. 2 Michigan State / South Region (Mar. 28 – 7:09 PM on CBS)
Chris Beard is back on the college basketball map. Ole Miss is in the midst of one of their best seasons in the program with experienced coaching at the helm. Beard has been to the Final Four in 2019 with Texas Tech. The Rebels are led by a gritty transfer guard from Virginia Tech, Sean Pedulla, who is averaging 20 points in his last two games of the tournament.
After a dominating First Four game by UNC, Ole Miss had the threat of facing them in the first round. It was scary and nearly shocking how they almost blew such a big lead, but the Rebels got it done. The next round was the real shocker when three-seeded Iowa State looked to advance, but Sean Pedulla and company weren’t ready to go home. The Rebels scored 91 points on an incredible Cyclones defense throughout the season. Ole Miss looks to continue their Cinderella run against Michigan State.
The Spartans, led by Tom Izzo, look to be one of the best teams he has had in a while. The title favorites have good odds because of their deep bench and experienced roster. The Sparthans headed to their second Sweet 16 in three years, headlined by freshmen standout Jase Richardson, son of former Spartan Jason Richardson.
In their first two games, Michigan State has had to battle back from leads during the majority of the game vs. No. 15 Bryant and No. 10 New Mexico. One thing about the Spartans is that they never back away and know how to close out games.
My Prediction: Ole Miss
No. 3 Kentucky vs. No. 2 Tennessee / Midwest Region (Mar. 28 – 7:39 PM on TBS/TruTv)
One of the most anticipated games of the Sweet 16, round three of Kentucky vs. Tennessee. The volunteer community has stated on social media that this is the biggest game in program history. Kentucky took both home and away games during the regular season. The Wildcats have Tennessee number right now, but with how the Vols look through their first two games, it could be a close game. Tennessee rolled past no. 15 Wofford and eliminating a tough No. 7 in. UCLA team with their disruptive defense, but it hasn’t worked against the Cats this season.
North Florida transfer Chaz Lanier has been the star on the court offensively for the Vols, scoring 29 points and 20 points in the first two games. Both games were against the Cats in the regular season. Tennessee has shot horribly from the three and struggled defending the three. Those are two keys to this game for the Volunteers.
Kentucky, under new first-year head coach and former player Mark Pope, has already exceeded expectations for this season. Breaking records left and right, defeating top 15 teams left and right. Their defense has been much improved from the regular season, and it showed during the first two games. They held Troy to 57 points and an outstanding offensive Illinois team to 75.
The bright spots for the UK have been Otega Oweh and Koby Brea in their first two games, but the balance scoring the Cats have with multiple players in double figures is what’s scary about facing Kentucky. The Cats’ first Sweet 16 since 2019 under great coaching from Mark Pope.
My Prediction: Kentucky
No. 5 Michigan vs. No. 1 Auburn / South Region (Mar. 28 – 9:39 on CBS)
This game has the storyline to be one of the best games of the tournament. Overall, top seed Auburn faces possibly the hottest team right now in Michigan. The Wolverines went into Selection Sunday, champions of the Big Ten tournament, beating Purdue, Maryland, and Wisconsin, and then getting an undeserving seed.
Michigan did not care about the seed and just played basketball. First-year head coach Dusty May, who has had tournament experience with FAU, Michigan beat 12. UC San Diego was in the first round with a nail-biter victory 68-65. The Wolverines then took on 4. Texas A&M and beating them pretty convincingly, out-rebounding the best rebounding team in the country. Michigan is headlined by two starting seven-footers Vlad Goldin and Yale Transfer Danny Wolf.
Wolf was on that Yale team last year that upset Auburn in the first round. Tre Donaladson was on that Auburn team which is now in Michigan. Donaldson faced his former team on Friday.
The Tigers cruised in their first around game against 16. Alabama State and beat a difficult 8. Creighton team. Auburn still has a sour taste, having lost its last two games of the regular season, including a buzzer-beater defeat to Alabama in their home arena and losing to Tennessee in the conference tournament. Auburn is another team with amazing balance scoring and many bench pieces who can go off at any time, including SEC freshman of the year Tahaad Pettiford.
My Prediction: Michigan
No. 4 Purdue vs. No. 1 Houston / Midwest Region (Mar. 28 – 10:09 on TBS/TruTV)
After coming off an embarrassing loss in the first round of their conference tournament, Purdue is heating up ahead of their matchup against Houston. They took down two upset-minded teams in No. 13 High Point and No. 12 McNeese. No Zach Edey, no problem for the Boilermakers who are led by point guard master Braden Smith.
Trey Kaufman-Renn, who scored the most, averaging 20 points through the first two games, was riding the bench last year, with Edey getting all the attention. Next man up mentality for Kaufman-Renn and has now turned into a star for Purdue. The big key for the Boilermakers to win the game is to get another one or two more players scoring constantly. Besides Smith and Kaufman-Renn, players like Fletcher Loyer, who has had a mediocre season, and C.J. Cox need to contribute if Purdue wants to go far.
Big 12 champions and powerhouse Houston is looking to finally get past the barrier blocking them for years and earn Kelvin Sampson a title. The looks of this team have championship favorites and one of the best Cougar teams. Houston is riding a 15-game winning streak with No. 16 SIUE and eighth-seeded Gonzaga in one of the games of the tournament.
The Cougars are led by experienced, gritty, and talented players like L.J. Cryer, Milos Uzan, Emanuel Sharp, J’Wan Roberts, and many more. This season seems like a championship or bust for Houston because of how dominant they’ve been the whole year, commanding the top spot of a stacked Big 12 conference going 19-1.
My Prediction: Houston
The upcoming games shape up to be some of the most entertaining and exciting games of the season. Potential matchups in the future rounds, too, with SEC teams facing each other and a possible Michigan/Michigan State game in the Elite 8. It will be a must-watch Sweet 16.
