Thursday at Boston
(1) Connecticut vs. (5) San Diego State, 7:39 p.m. | TBS/truTV
Kicking off the Sweet-16 of the March Madness Tournament in Boston will be the UConn Huskies up against the San Diego State Aztecs.
The Huskies first-round game went smoothly as they dominated the Stetson Hatters 91-52. Donovan Clingan led the team in scoring with 19 points and did so in only 20 minutes. Tristen Newton was hot from the 3-point line, as he shot 60% from beyond the arc with 13 points. Newton also led UConn past the Northwestern Wildcats in the second round with 20 points.
The Aztecs, on the other hand, played a nail-biter against the University of Alabama-Birmingham in the first round; however, the Blazers couldn’t seem to stop Jaedon Ledee. Ledee scored 32 points for the Aztecs, along with 8 rebounds. The 69-65 victory advanced San Diego State to the second round, where they played 13-seeded Yale. The Bulldogs were coming off an upset win over No. 4-seed Auburn; however, Ledee took over the game and dropped 26 points in the 85-57 victory.
Prediction: UConn
(2) Iowa State vs. (3) Illinois, 10 p.m. | TBS/truTV
The Iowa State Cyclones will take on the Illinois Fighting Illini in the top game on Thursday.
The Cyclones handled South Dakota State, as Milan Momcliovic dropped 19 points in the 17-point victory. Then, against the Washington State Cougars, Tamin Lipsey stepped up and scored 15 points, shooting 100% from the free-throw line. The Cyclones struggled in the first half, only scoring 27 points, but they shined in the second half, scoring 40 and outscoring the Cougars by 11 points.
The Fighting Illini dominated its competition by defeating Morehead State, 85-69, and Duquesne, 89-63. Terrence Shannon Jr. scored 56 points in the two games for Illinois and will most likely be their leading scorer again against Iowa State.
Prediction: Iowa State
Thursday in Los Angeles
(2) Arizona vs. (6) Clemson, 7:09 p.m. | CBS
Kicking off the Sweet-16 in Los Angeles will be the Clemson Tigers against the Arizona Wildcats.
The Clemson Tigers are coming off two phenomenal wins against the No. 11-seed New Mexico State and the No. 3-seed Baylor Bears. Clemson guard Chase Hunter dropped 20 points in the win over the Bears. PJ Hall was limited in his minutes but dropped 11 points in the win.
The Wildcats have been cruising through the tournament so far with an 85-65 victory over Long Beach State and a 78-68 victory over Dayton. Caleb Love has been the story for the Wildcats this tournament as he dropped 18 points in the first-round game and 20 points in the second-round game. The Wildcats match up well against the blazing-hot Clemson Tigers and should make the game competitive.
Prediction: Arizona
(1) North Carolina vs. (4) Alabama, 9:30 p.m. | CBS
The second No. 1 seed in the Sweet 16 will play against the Alabama Crimson Tide in a highly anticipated matchup.
The North Carolina Tar Heels have looked good so far with wins against Wagner and Michigan State. R.J. Davis and Armando Bacot combined for 42 points in the win over the Seahawks and 38 points in the second-round game. This duo has led the Tar Heels all year and will certainly win the tournament if they can keep taking over the floor.
The Crimson Tide, on the other hand, are averaging almost 90 points a game due to Mark Sears. Sears is averaging 28 points per game in the tournament and is shooting 56.8% from the field. Although Alabama has played a 13-seed and 12-seed, the Tide will look to Sears to shock the world and deliver an upset over North Carolina.
Prediction: North Carolina
Friday in Dallas
(2) Marquette vs. (11) North Carolina State, 7:09 p.m. | CBS
No. 2 Marquette will take on No. 11 NC State on Friday Night. Marquette defeated No. 15 Western Kentucky in the Round of 64, 87-69, and defeated No. 10 Colorado, 81-77, in the Round of 32. Marquette was down 43-36 at halftime against Western Kentucky. However, the Golden Eagles went on to outscore the Hilltoppers 51-26 in the second half. They were led by Kam Jones, who scored 28 points. In his return from injury, Tyler Kolek had himself a double-double, recording 18 points and 11 assists. In the game against Colorado, Marquette jumped out to an early lead and held on, even with the late push from Colorado, as the Buffaloes were able to tie the game within the final four minutes. Kolek had another double-double with 21 points and 11 assists. Kam Jones had 18 points, and the Golden Eagles got help from Chase Ross off the bench, scoring 12 points and having 5 rebounds.
North Carolina State had to face No. 6 Texas Tech in the opening round and upset them with an 80-67 win. The Wolfpack’s spark came from their backup big man, Ben Middlebrooks, who had a career-high of 21 points, as he played 23 minutes due to fan favorite DJ Burns Jr. being in foul trouble for the majority of the game. Mohamed Diarra had 17 points and 12 rebounds in the win, and D.J. Horne had 16 points. Then, NC State had to take on No.14 Oakland, as they shockingly defeated No.3 Kentucky. NC State had to stop Jack Gohlke if they wanted to win, and they held him to 6-17 shooting from behind the arc. The Wolfpack had themself a night, as they had five players score over 10 points, being led by the 24 points by DJ Burns Jr. NC State won the game, 79-73 in overtime. This will be Marquette’s third straight game against a double-digit seed, while NC State finally gets some rest after seven games in twelve days, all of which they won.
Prediction: Marquette
(1) Houston vs. (4) Duke, 9:30 p.m. | CBS
No.1 Houston, who is the second-overall No. 1 seed in March Madness, will take on No.4 Duke on Friday night, following the Marquette and NC State game. Houston won their first two games, defeating No.16 Longwood, 86-46, and winning an overtime match against No.9 Texas A&M, 100-95. Houston’s fast start allowed them to control the entire game, as they were up 43-16 at halftime. Houston pulled their starters early into the second half, as they were easily winning by 25+. The Cougars had four scorers score double figures, being led by L.J. Cryer and Damian Dunn, who each had 17 points. In their second game, they took on Texas A&M, who they had beaten 70-66 earlier in the year. This game, however, was much more of a scoring battle, and a game impacted by the referees severely. In this game, Houston had four of their five starters foul out of the game, and Texas A&M had two of their five starters foul out of the game as well. Houston was up 83-73 with 1:26 to go in the game, but the Aggies went on a 13-3 run, and Andersson Garcia made a three-pointer as time expired to send the game to overtime. Emanuel Sharp had 30 points, and Jamal Shead had 21 points and 10 assists.
Duke has had easier games, as both of their wins have come by 15+ points. Duke first defeated No.13 Vermont, 64-47. As Duke did not get help from Kyle Filipowski this game, as he was held to only 3 points on one field goal attempt, they had four players score within 13-15 points, as Jared McCain and Mark Mitchell each had 15 points, Jeremy Roach had 14 points, and Tyrese Proctor had 13 points. All of the Duke starters played 30+ minutes, as the bench was not utilized at all in this game. In their next game, they defeated the fan favorite No.12 James Madison, 93-55. Jared McCain had himself a night, as he had 30 points, going along with 8-11 shooting from behind the arc. McCain almost outscored James Madison in the first half, as JMU had 25 points, and Jared McCain had 22 points. Duke was up big to begin the game, as they were up 40-19 in the first half with four minutes left, before causing JMU to use their second time out of the half, which is never ideal for any collegiate coach.
Prediction: Houston
Friday at Detroit
(1) Purdue vs. (5) Gonzaga, 7:39 p.m. | TBS/truTV
No.1 Purdue, will take on No.5 Gonzaga for the second time this season, but this time, in the Sweet 16 of March Madness. The first time, Purdue defeated Gonzaga 73-63 in the Maui Invitational. Purdue has been dominant in their first two games, as they look unbeatable. In their first game, they defeated No.16 Grambling 78-50. Zach Edey had himself a night, scoring 30 points and grabbing 21 rebounds, with 12 being defensive and 9 being offensive. Edey also recorded a double-double in the first half. Trey-Kaufman-Renn had 11 points, and Braden Smith had 11 points and 10 assists. In their second-round game, Purdue embarrassed Utah State, winning 106-67. As Purdue was up 49-33 at the half, they opened up the second half on a 19-6 run and blew the game open. Zach Edey had 23 points and 14 rebounds. Trey-Kaufman-Renn had 18 points and 8 rebounds. Fletcher Loyer added 15 points as well in the win.
Gonzaga has won their first two games as well by 21 points in each game. Gonzaga took on No.12 McNeese, who was a common upset pick to many analysts and fans, but Gonzaga wound up winning 86-65. Graham Ike led the way for the Zags, scoring 16 points. Four other players also scored 10+ points in the dominating win. Gonzaga was up by 30 at one point and cruised to a victory. Then, Gonzaga had to take on No.4 Kansas. Kansas was up 44-43 at the half, but Gonzaga would go on to outscore them 46-24 in the second half, to win the game 89-68. Anton Watson led Gonzaga with 21 points, as Gonzaga again had four more players scoring over 10+ points. Point guard Ryan Nembhard, a transfer from Creighton University, had 12 assists.
Prediction: Purdue
(2) Tennessee vs. (3) Creighton, 10 p.m. | TBS/truTV
To wrap up the Sweet 16 in March Madness, No.2 Tennessee will take on No.3 Creighton on Friday night. Tennessee defeated No.15 Saint Peter’s 83-49 in the opening round of March Madness. In the game, Tennessee’s leading scorer was Dalton Knecht, he scored 23 points and had 8 rebounds as well. Zakai Ziegler, who was facing off against his brother at Saint Peter’s, had 11 points and 10 rebounds. In the Volunteers second round game, they took on No.7 Texas and won 62-58. Dalton Knecht was the leading scorer having 18 points. Tennessee’s defense was on display, as it only allowed the Longhorns to score 19 points in the first half. Tennessee was in control for the entirety of the game, even when Texas would go on little runs to chip away at the lead.
Tennessee’s opponent, the Creighton Bluejays, defeated No.14 Akron in the first round, 77-60. All five of Creighton’s starters scored 10+ points and had all of Creighton’s total points. Ryan Kalkbrenner had 23 points, Trey Alexander had 19 points, and Baylor Scheierman had 15 points and 13 rebounds. Two nights later, Creighton had a win over No.11 Oregon, 86-73, in double overtime, which was one of the best games of the entire March Madness Tournament so far. Two of Creighton’s players, Baylor Scheierman and Trey Alexander, did not come out of the game once, playing all 50 minutes. Alexander finished with 20 points and Scheierman finished with 18.
Prediction: Creighton
