The tournament has started to play out, upsets, Cinderella stories, and buzzer beaters have consumed the college basketball world. March means Madness and chaos is brewing. 4 double digit seeds have made it to the Sweet 16. 11 seed Michigan, 11 Seed Iowa St, 10 Seed Miami, and 15 Seed Saint Peter’s all have shocked the basketball world and made it.
Now let’s summarize what has happened thus far and preview the sweet 16.
Biggest Upset
Saint Peter’s over Kentucky
By far the upset of the tournament, the Peacocks beat the Wildcats in overtime. Saint Peter’s outshot the Wildcats 9 to 4 behind the 3 point line. The Peacocks shot over 50% from the floor while Kentucky shot only 42%. Thus the Peacocks won 85-79.
Best Game (Thus Far)
Baylor v N. Carolina
This game was over, it was put to bed halfway through the second half, as North Carolina held a 25 point lead over the Bears. Baylor, however, came storming back to force the game, with a North Carolina ejection and some players getting into foul trouble, into overtime. The Bears comeback was halted though by the Tar Heels who reigned supreme on the day, winning 93-86.
West Region
This region has been pretty routine thus far. Notre Dame and New Mexico St upset the 5 and 6 seeds in the opening round but could not beat Texas Tech and Arkansas respectively. Gonzaga made it past a Memphis team that gave them everything they could handle and now is playing Arkansas as Duke is playing Texas Tech. 1-4 seeds are all that remain and I still figure Gonzaga will make it through.
East Region
The shocks have been made in this region. The opening round featured the 15 Seed Saint Peter’s busting brackets and making it to the Sweet 16. North Carolina stunned Baylor in overtime, and UCLA and Purdue have made it here as well. It is all up for grabs here in the region but it is important to note that no 15 seed has made it past this point in the tournament. I still believe UCLA will ultimately win the region in the end.
South Region
Michigan’s Region and it has been a surprise to see them here. Many people, including myself, did not see the Wolverines making it this far, but here they are and they are dancing to a date with Villanova in the Sweet 16. Again, this is a game they are not expected to win and the Wolverines will need to play their best to win. Arizona and Houston play on the other side of the bracket and that looks to be the game of the round. Any team could make it but Arizona is still my odds on favorite.
Midwest Region
Auburn and Wisconsin failed to make it past their second round matchups and thus were eliminated from the tournament. The door is open for Iowa St or Miami, if they make it to the Elite Eight they will play one of Kansas or Providence, either of which being a tall order. Previously, I said Kansas was going to fall to Creighton, however Kansas won 79-72. I still stand by the decision that Providence would win this region and I think they beat the Jayhawks this week.
